Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter for MP3 Players (Black)

by Belkin

Product Details

Product Manual [112kb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6 x 2 inches ; 8 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0001F22PA
• Item model number: F8V3080
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (535 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #100 in Electronics > Portable Audio & Video > MP3 Players & Accessories > MP3 Player Accessories > FM Transmitters
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 14, 2004

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

For use at home or in the car, the Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter allows you to play the music on your iPod, PC, MP3 player, or other portable device through your car or home stereo. Set the Belkin TuneCast II and your stereo to the same available radio frequency, and you will hear your music broadcast through the stereo.

TuneCast II FM Transmitter for MP3 Players (Black) At a Glance: Transmits music from digital player through stereo Memorizes up to four preset radio frequencies Automatic On/Off preserves batteries Low-battery LED indicator Car-adapter power cord included for battery-free operation

Broadcast your music through your home stereo, or in the car using the included power adapter. View larger.

Play Your Music Anywhere
By placing the Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter within 10 to 30 feet of your FM radio and plugging it into the headphone jack of your iPod, computer, MP3 player, PDA, or CD or cassette player, you can quickly and easily broadcast your own music through your car or home stereo. The TuneCast II works with any digital audio player with a 3.5-mm mini-jack

How It Works
Find a frequency on the FM radio that has a clear or strong broadcast signal and program the TuneCast II to the same frequency. With the volume on your music player at a medium level, you can use the volume controls on your stereo to create the ideal listening experience.

Preset Frequencies Add Convenience
Once you find the frequencies that work well in your area, you can store them as one of four preset memories. Once programmed, simply toggle through the preset frequencies to find the one that is currently transmitting the clearest signal.

Power Options Preserve Batteries
An automatic On/Off function preserves battery power by turning on when an audio signal is detected, and turning off after 60 seconds of no signal. An LED indicator alerts you when batteries are running low.

The included power cord gives you the option to save battery life by powering the TuneCast II with the cigarette lighter in your car (Please note that it does not charge your portable player's battery).

About Belkin International, Inc.
Belkin offers a diverse product mix that provides people with seamless electronics integration in their homes, cars, and on the go. Founded in California in 1983, Belkin is a privately held company and the recognized leader in connectivity solutions, in addition to accessories for MP3 devices, computers, and more. We provide extensive solutions for networking, home theater--with our PureAV line of cables, power, and digital wireless accessories--and many more categories. Belkin's phenomenal growth has led to our expanding global presence. In addition to corporate headquarters in Los Angeles, we now have offices throughout Europe--in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Germany, among others--and in the Asia Pacific region, including Australia, Shanghai, and our regional headquarters in Hong Kong.

The Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter is backed by a one-year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter, mobile power cord, and two "AAA" batteries.

Belkin iPod Accessories - Car
	F8Z136	F8Z184	F8Z343	F8V3080
Charges	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Compatibility	iPod Nano 2G	iPhone and iPod	iPhone and iPod	iPod and all MP3 players with a 3.5mm port
Line Out	No	No	No	No
ClearScan	No	No	Yes	No

Product Description

Now you can use your iPod PDA MP3 CD cassette player PC or laptop to listen to your favorite tunes through any FM stereo receiver. The Belkin TuneCast II Mobile FM Transmitter connects portable music players to your car or home stereo quickly and easily using FM radio waves. Just plug the TuneCast II into the headphone jack of your iPod PDA MP3 CD or cassette player; or connect it to your PC or laptop computer. Tune your car stereo or receiver to any clear FM frequency and enjoy your iPod music experience with more sound and fewer wires. Belkin adds a great convenience feature with its unique Auto ON/OFF function. It frees you from having to manually toggle your TuneCast II's ON/OFF switch by simply powering on when an audio signal is detected. If no signal is detected for a period of 60 seconds your TuneCast II switches off. This innovation preserves battery life while making your outstanding mobile audio experience simpler to enjoy. TuneCast II also features 4 programable memory slots allowing you to save the clearest station wherever you go. TuneCast II includes a Belkin Mobile Power Cord that connects to your car's cigarette lighter-so you can preserve your batteries as you play your tunes on the road (will not charge the TuneCast II). Primary InformationFeatures Car power adapter AAA battery FM transmitter UNSPSC CodeUNSPSC Code 52161600 

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Workable, with a bit of effort, February 12, 2005

By 

D. J. Douma "flicker" (Monrovia, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter for MP3 Players (Black) (Electronics)

After reading the reviews I was a bit trepidacious about this item. It seems like a lot of people have difficulty getting satisfactory performance, but I really wanted to be able to use my mp3 player in the car so I grabbed one with the expectation that it might be marginal. Sure enough, out of the box it had pretty poor FM reception in both of my cars. I moved it around in the car and tried various 'blank' stations, but the unit would dropout and could be static-y even when reception was relatively good. Moving it around in the car has a big impact on performance, so the problem is pretty clearly just low transmistter power competing with big city radio interference (I live in the bay area, which has a LOT of radio stations). As an engineer I'm generally OK with working around the limitations of a gadget but I found this product pretty trying in its virgin state.

So I decided to see what sort of 'enhancement' it would take to bring it up to snuff. My first approach was based on the observation that the physical size of the device was too small to get decent antenna performance at FM wavelengths. I guessed that the cable to the mp3 player might be functioning in part as an antenna, so maybe adding an extension cord would improve the transmission efficiency. So I got a 6 foot headphone extension cable (the smallest one at my local store) and used it between the player and the transmitter to stretch out the antenna length. That pretty much solved the problem for me. I spread out the new 'antenna' by tossing the transmitter in the back seat, put the player next to me in front and it works much better and I'm happy with it now. It works well in both cars and the quality is more than good enough for my audiobooks and pop music. I use rechargeable batteries in the unit to avoid having to plug it into the lighter socket, and I generally just disconnect the player and leave the transmitter in the car - it turns itself off automatically 60 seconds after I disconnect the player.

263 of 299 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Less than satisfactory, April 10, 2004

By 

Scott - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter for MP3 Players (Black) (Electronics)

I had been looking for a good FM Tuner to use with my Creative Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra. I had heard good reviews about this product so I picked it up. Now, I wasn't expecting crystal clear CD-quality sound, but I was expecting something listenable, which explains my dissatisfaction with this product.

The product is easy enough to use. You plug the Belkin into the headphone or line out jack of your player, then find a poor quality radio station, tune your Belkin to it, and hit play. The Belkin can run on 2 AAA batteries or off your car's cigarette lighter. My first problem with it, is that the cigarette lighter adapter would not fit securely into the Belkin. It fell out at the slightest touch, as the hole in the Belkin was just too big. I either had to tape it in their, or had to run off the batteries, which run down surprisingly quick.

My next problem, is with the general size of the device. The cord that connects the Belkin to your audio player is about 3 inches long, which means you have to keep it right next to the player. You can't attach it to your dashboard or anything like that. It made it very awkward to change the song or skip through something on the player because I had this tuner hanging down from it.

My final, and biggest problem with the player is the poor reception. I tried it with three different vehicles, and two different MP3 players. I tried every single radio station I could find. I tried every tip I found on the Internet to get good quality. I adjusted the volume on the player and in the car. I turned on the radio first, and then the player, and vice versa. I just couldn't get a decent sound from it. It would sound okay for a few seconds, and then static.

Something to note, is that the poorest quality station won't always give you the best sound. I sometimes found that I received the best sound from a station that I could somewhat get a broadcast from, even though the manual tells you to look for the weakest stations. The other problem is that if you're in your car, the signal strength of the radio stations change depending on where you are, so the sound quality is going to always vary. I also found that I could only get real good quality when I held the mp3 player and Belkin in my lap, and held onto it. As soon as I let go, I get a little bit of static. The range for this thing in a car is realistically about 2 feet.

One thing I did get a good reception with was with home stereos, where the quality was decent enough to use. But this was pretty pointless for me because I can simply plug in my mp3 player directly into the stereo anyway.

Bottom line, if you can live with sub par quality and don't mind the awkwardness of the Tuner, this is probably the best tuner you will find out there today. Unfortunately, that doesn't account for much until technology provides for better reception in the future.

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Works great!, August 8, 2004

By 

T. Brunner (Brooklyn, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter for MP3 Players (Black) (Electronics)

I picked the Belkin Tunecast II up a few weeks ago before driving cross country from Brooklyn to Wisconsin (about a 14 hour car ride). I had recently bought a Rio Karma mp3 player and wanted to use it on the journey. Having just got back from my trip, I couldn't be happier with how the Belkin performed. I was driving a 1994 Saturn SL2 with a Sony Xplod CD player and placed the Rio/Belkin devices on the passenger seat where they would be in easy reach if I had to change the radio frequency. Surprisingly, the Belkin was tuned to 88.3 without incident for my entire journey through New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin (including several major cities such as New York, Newark, Chicago and Milwaukee). I was expecting a lower sound quality filled with the occasional burst of static, but that was not the case. My entire car ride was static free and the music could only have sounded better if I had brought along my CD collection. Needless to say, I'm very happy with this purchase and recommend the Belkin Tunecast II to anyone considering an FM transmitter for similar purposes. A word of caution: as another reviewer pointed out, different cars may have different antennae/shielding issues so you should probably test this product in your car before buying if possible.