Here in Orange County, California, we've got one of the most crowded radio markets in the country. Just looking at this list, it's easy to see that there are maybe two "usable" frequencies for an in-car FM transmitter.
This is something that always frustrated me, as I love having all my music in a tiny little iPod Nano, but never was able to find an FM transmitter that consistently let the sound be broadcasted in my Honda Civic with any clarity. Fortunately, that problem was solved with the upgrade to the new CR-V, which lets me use a $6 cable to connect my iPod to the tuner...
However, if you're not fortunate enough to have such a slick, integrated solution, you should check out the iCast from iStuff. It's an FM transmitter that scans the band and automatically evaluates the spectrum for the "cleanest" frequency to broadcast on. It's still not ideal, as any transmitter has to further "down-convert" the signal for broadcast, but has some nice features and as a bonus, works with any MP3 player, not just an iPod. Check out the whole story here, and the manufacturer's product page here. -- Fran Irwin, Tech Contributor
ateixeira says:
06:54 AM, 09/14/07
Fine in theory, but as you move the clearest channel changes constantly, so you'd have to re-tune-in each time you drove a couple of blocks.
actualsize says:
07:06 AM, 09/14/07
True, but use of this device would seem to provide as good a starting point as any other method -- in an automated fashion.
estreka says:
12:07 PM, 09/14/07
I'd like to see the FCC dedicate a bandwidth to transmitting devices like this. Also, transmitters should be able to use AM.