Customer Reviews

Griffin Technology 4026-LCDT iTrip LCD FM Transmitter for iPod

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(16)
1 star:		(48)

 

 

The original Griffin iTrip became one of the best selling iPod accessories. People love their iPods, and the ability to take the music on the road, in their car, is a desired feature.

However, many of today's automobiles do not include a stereo with line-in, and cassette players are rarely found in cars today, which eliminates the ability to use a cassette adapter. What does this leave? A FM transmitter.

The original iTrip offered good performance, for a FM transmitter. That is the key, for a FM transmitter. FM transmitters will not sound like a CD, cassette, and in some cases it won't even sound as good as a strong FM radio station, in your area. However, many times, the iTrip does a satisfactory job. It works even better, if you're in a rural area, where there is a wide selection of empty FM frequencies.

Improvements over original iTrip

The new iTrip features an LCD, with the ability to change the FM frequency broadcasted to, directly on the iTrip. Previously, you had to navigate to the iTrip stations on your iPod, select a frequency, and press the pause button at just the right moment. That inconvenience is gone with the new iTrip with LCD. Simply twist to your desired station, and you're done.

More Broadcast Modes - You now have the ability to transmit in stereo, or mono sound. Stereo sound will be the highest quality, in good situations. However, if you find lots of static and interference, switch to the mono-sound mode. This allows a stronger signal, which may eliminate the static, unfortunately you lose the depth of stereo sound, but if you're listening to a podcast monaural sound is fine.

Better Battery Life - The new iTrip seems to drain significantly less battery life, than the original iTrip. Sure, it will still cut your iPod's battery life by several hours, but it is less dramatic than the original.

Overall, Griffin has improved upon perhaps their most popular iPod accessory, and they improved it in a big way. The ease to change the frequency you broadcast to is fantastic, and the improvements in performance and battery life are appreciated too. The Griffin iTrip with LCD FM Transmitter will not sound like CD audio, but it is a great way to listen to the thousands of songs on your iPod, in your car. Furthermore, the improvements to this newest model will make you find the experience of using a FM transmitter a little more bearable.

1. It is impossible to use it in big cities (unless you have a co-pilot that can do the dirty job for you or be sure you are going to crash)
2. Yes, the volume is really low
3. Yes, 3 inches away from the stereo and all you get is static
4. Yes, lots, lots and LOTS of static, unless you get a perfect magical place in your dial AT LEAST 1,5 positions away (both forward and backwards) from the next FM station
5. Yes, it does eat your battery away (lasts avarage 4 hours when fully charged)
6. When driving from one city to another, you will always need to reset the frequency for obvious reasons. Example: 3-hour drive from Aspen to Denver, I had to reset it 3 times while on the road.

HOWEVER...
It does play any song you want from your probably vast selection stored in your I-Pod and eliminates the need to listen to those very old songs on your CDs or the hassle to bring your heavy and bulky CD collection with you.

REMEMBER: This iTrip does not work with video Ipods, so if you have one of those, buy the dock connector iTrip. The product details do not say so, but trust me on that. I bought two for 2 different Ipods and had to return one for that reason

Review by Ronald Schoedel, written for the Alaskan Apple Users Group
PRO: Nice screen, easy tuning knob, fits unobtrusively on top of iPod, choice of stereo "local" mode or mono "DX" mode, entire FM spectrum supported
CON: Tuning knob is very smooth and can be somewhat hard to grip
Alaskan Apple Users Group "Moose" rating: 5 out of 5

Griffin has done it again. These folks refuse to stop. Every time they introduce a product, it is only a matter of time before they improve upon an already incredible product. I have owned an iTrip since the first one came out in 2003.

For the uninitiated: iTrip is a small FM radio transmitter designed to get the music out of your iPod and into your nearby FM radio. Brilliant, right? Yes! Your iPod no longer has to be content merely entertaining you through earphones. It can now wow a crowd at home, in your car, or anywhere else an FM radio can be found. I think I can safely say that the most common application of an iTrip is in the car.

[First, a disclaimer: do not expect miracles from FM transmitters in general. They are: a) limited by LAW to very minimal power output; b) limited in bandwith like all FM radio stations; and c) not the "very best" way to enjoy your iPod in the car. But: if your car has no cassette player (so you can't use a cassette adapter) and your car radio does not have a "line-in", which would support a DIRECT audio connection to your iPod, then iTrip is the best transmitter. ALSO: if you live in a major city, consider that the FM stations that exist in your town all spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on frequency engineering studies to try to find a clear channel with no interference. It is not easy to find a clear channel in a major city, even if you are a major FM station. ALSO, ALSO: The make and composition of your vehicle can have a tremendous impact on the use of an FM transmitter. Don't blame the transmitter because your car's antenna is located on the rear of the vehicle, and therefore 15 feet away through glass and metal from the transmitter! There's a REASON why antennae are placed on the OUTSIDE of cars: radio signals have a hard time penetrating solid metal! Most of the things I have mentioned in this disclaimer will account for explaining why everyone who gave this product a poor review did so unfairly. Now, on to the review. And no, I don't work for Griffin. But I do have a fundamental knowledge of broadcast engineering and know what to expect from a product like this, and how to avoid the pitfalls associated with using any low power radio device!]

From the beginning, I have loved iTrip for its support of the entire FM spectrum. A multitude of FM transmitters exist on the market. But most have a very critical flaw: they only support two to four FM channels on which you can transmit. Those are usually on the low end of the FM band, around 88-90 MHz or so. It can be a real challenge to find a free spot on the dial when you have only 4 to choose from. Griffin allows its iTrip to be tuned anywhere from 76 MHz (this is below the US FM dial, for users in Japan) clear up to 107.9 MHz. This works great for me, since my favorite channel is 87.5 MHz. This is not an officially licensed FM channel anywhere in the USA, but it can be tuned by most analog radios and on many digital radios. Therefore, no matter where you are, 87.5 MHz is likely to be clear of any stations and interference, and as long as you have a radio that tunes it, your iPod has an opening. No other transmitter I have checked out tunes that low. Most start at 88.1. This is a big plus. (Please note that you will need to switch from US to the INTL mode to gain access to any frequency below 88.1.)

Another thing that sets the iTrip apart from the competition is the bright, crisp and clear LCD. You always know exactly what station your iPod will be broadcasting on! Tuning it is as easy as using the tuning knob on the side. I did find the plastic knob a bit hard to grip sometimes, but this was not a big deal. If it had a notch, it might be easier to turn than it is, just smooth plastic all around. But this is a minor quibble. It doesn't make me love iTrip any less.

Griffin has outfitted this newest version of iTrip with the ability to switch between "LX" (local) and "DX" (distance) modes, useful when you are having a hard time finding a clear channel or getting your iPod close enough to the antenna to get a strong stereo signal. Switching to DX takes your audio signal and makes it monaural, and increases the ability of the signal to penetrate interference and static. It might not make music sound the best, but it is just fine for listening to audiobooks, spoken word, and other similar material. (I don't mind my music in mono, for that matter.) The ability to switch into DX mode might be the little bit of extra "oomph" needed to get a clear signal in crowded metro areas or in vehicles where the antenna is located on the back of the vehicle.

Do I like iTrip? Is it that obvious? I love iTrip. My wife loves it too. She uses this iTrip for her iPod mini, which she enjoys listening to in the car. The easy tuning pleases her much more than the tuning method employed by older versions of iTrip (which, while interesting and technologically creative, was--frankly--a pain in the rear. If you have an older iTrip and are thinking of updating, DO IT!!!!). The LCD adds an incredible amount of user friendliness to the iTrip.

I only offer one caution: with the introduction of the new iPod with video (also called a 5G iPod), the model I reviewed will work only on iPods produced between early 2003 and October 2005: those that have the little rectangular port on top next to the earphone plug. If you are thinking of getting a newer iPod, make sure you get the VERY latest version of iTrip--which this is not (this is the second newest version!). The latest crop of iPods has eliminated that rectangular port and has standardized on the bottom "dock connector port" as the means of attaching accessories. Griffin has already announced and will start shipping any day now a new version of iTrip, largely the same as the one reviewed here, but made to connect on the bottom dock port. The benefit of this is that the newest version of iTrip will work with EVERY iPod that has a dock connector port, which includes all iPods from 2003 and later, as well as iPod mini, and iPod nano (now it seems clear why Apple has standardized on that dock port, eh?)

Let me just make it clear that this is a ZERO STAR review. The dropdown box only had 1 through 5 stars as an option, but seeing as this product is a special kind of horrible, I thought I should step outside of the box. This unit has constant static and interference on all frequencies, on every radio I have played it on. I use it in my car with my iPod Photo, and I must constantly change the channel and adjust my radio frequency to get a clear reception. You may think this is from interference from other radio stations, like I did, but it doesn't make any difference. There is static no matter what. In addition, the unit produces a loud cracking/thumping sound whenever you change a song, so if you're listening to the radio loud, there's a chance of blowing out your speakers or your eardrums. I would classify that as a negative. On a positive, it does work relatively well on my home theater receiver if you wrap the white wire antenna directly around the unit about 6 times. It still has some static, though. Don't bother wasting your time or money. This thing is worthless. I could go on for days, but this thing has wasted enough of my time.

Alright, I'm one of those money saver guys. So I didn't wanna buy a brand new car stereo with an audio input and all that just to listen to my ipod. So I resorted to the Griffin itrip. Ok, so I went to go check the reviews and *ouch* ... not-so-great. I checked the prices and most of them came in at around $50. Hell no ... Next resort ebay. Hmmm, $12 (Brand New in Box) not so bad. So I was like might as well buy it if it's only $12. A few people said it worked flawlessly. Hopefully I'll be another one of those lucky people. So I buy it ...

Find an empty FM Radio station.

You stick it at the top of the ipod. Doesn't turn on automatically, you have to press 'Play' on your ipod for the itrip to turn on. Did I mention it has a backlit LCD ?

Tuned to that station. I hear my song. OK quality. Kinda staticy. It gets a grip of static at the slightest movement. I live in Los Angeles, so maybe you guys in not-so-popular cities will get better results. Your best bet is to keep it as close to the car-antenna as possible to get the least static. And when it actually doesn't get static, it sounds pretty decent. A little better than listening to the same songs on the radio.

It's really easy to use. The silver knob is a scroll wheel. It's also a button to switch between International mode, LX Mode (Mono), and DX Mode(Stereo).

I think it's worth the $12 I paid since I can listen to what I want now. If you can get it for as cheap as I did, I suggest you do so and see if you're one of the lucky guys. If you are, keep it, you just saved $38. If you're not, resell it to a friend for $20 and make an $8 profit for your time, just tell em you bought it for $50 so it sounds like you're giving them a deal.

PROS

LCD
Backlight
Easy to use
International Support
Looks Good
Decent quality when at max potential
Worth the $12 I paid IMO
No external battery

CONS

Good amount of static
Not worth the $50
Doesn't feel durable
Drains ipod battery
Bare Manual

Looks: 9 / 10
Durability: 7 / 10
Quality: 6 / 10
Money Value: 4 / 10
Ease of Use: 9 / 10

I wasn't even going to write a review until I saw Mr. Silver's horrible review. First of all, this is an FM transmitter. The quality is never going to be as good as a direct connection or even a cassette adapter, but Griffin makes good products, and this one is no exception.

I own Griffin's first iTrip and have used it extensively. On long road trips and in more rural areas it performed prefectly...as well as a tape adapter would. The new one does also. In some urban areas I used to get a lot of static, but the newer unit makes it easier to avoid that by allowing me to quickly and easily change frequencies.

Bottom line, at times this adapter will sound clear and clean, and other times, depending on the area you are in it will have static (or be completely garbled). It's an FM transmitter after all, and so you are at the mercy of the radio waves all around you.

Note: This is not compatible with the newest iPod Video models. The description makes it sound like it might be, but don't make this mistake (like I did).

This is the worst FM transmitter in the market, always static.
After returned to the store I bought another : "FM-iTronic" from iPotronic (search it on Amazon), it's GREAT, works in my car perfect, no static, full frequency, this guys say, they have the most powerful FM Transmitter in the market. It's highly recommended

Let me preface this review by saying I've had iPods and iTrips since both debuted.

Since I finally misplaced my aged, but working iTrip, I figured I'd get a zippy new one that doesn't require setting the frequency with the iPod itself like the previous one did. Looked around and found it quite reasonably priced at one of Amazon's partner merchants. Item arrived, new in box. I'm ready to go.

First, the pros. I REALLY like being able to set the frequency with the knob on top. I read that other review and went to the International frequency setup so I could get to 87.7 and 87.9--which are clear, or should be, in most markets. Plugged the thing in and it flashed blue. (Took me a minute to figure out that you wouldn't see a frequency until you had your iPod playing.) It worked. It SEEMS to be easier on the battery than the original iTrip

Now, the Cons. It feels cheap. I know, the original iTrip felt like a cheap ball point pen, but this feels worse. To its credit, it is still functioning, so I guess I can't really fault the little fellow on this issue. It does make a small pop when you fast forward, but unless you have your stereo way up, it isn't very noticable. When the iPod goes to the next song on its own, there isn't a pop.

The worst thing is that it doesn't work as well as the original iTrip. I get much more fuzz and static with this guy than with the original iTrip. Same iPod. Same car. Same location. Old gave no static, new gives pretty serious static.

I haven't tried it with a power cable as others have suggested because, well, unless I'm on a long trip, I want to be able to grab my pod and go. I don't want to have to chase down cables and such.

One thing that annoyed me a bit. I have an iSkin cover on my iPod. The iSkin has to be pulled a bit to the side so the iTrip can make good enough contact to work. Not a problem on the older one.

Bottom Line: If you NEED--and I mean NEED--to be able to frequently and easily change frenquencies, go with this one. Use a power charger hooked to your car and you may be ok.

If, like me, you set the frequency and don't change it, get a older iTrip. You'll be happier.

For the past year I have been using the old iTrip. With it you had to navigate through the iPod's menu structure to find the station you wanted to broadcast on, play a special "track", and then get lucky with the pause button in order to get the iTrip to tune in properly. Quite frankly that system sucked. Sure once you succeeded in tuning it in it worked pretty well though there was some small interference at times.

From an operational standpoint this new iTrip is VASTLY SUPERIOR to the old one. I turn the dial (albeit the tuning scrolls slowly) and as soon as I reach my desired frequency it starts working. It couldn't be any easier to use.

In fact if you are traveling and will need to change frequencies at all during the trip this new interface is light-years better than the old. I don't understand why this wasn't the initial approach instead of that clunky software solution.

Another plus of this tuner over the old version is that there is no delay. With the old iTrip once you started your first song the iTrip would take a few seconds to turn itself on so you would miss the first five seconds of the song. The new one starts to broadcast as soon as you start the song and thus you miss nothing.

Both iTrips are susceptible to some interference. I live in a pretty small city with a smaller range of radio stations so it is easy for me to find a clean frequency. However, overhead power-lines are in abundance and, at times, they cause some interference.

As expected there is some sound quality loss when you broadcast it over the FM frequency. This is a natural effect of the conversion. If you turn the volume up too high on the iPod the quality will degrade even more. Typically, if I keep the iPod volume set to about 60% I get the best possible reproduction.

The only real negative to give this version of the iTrip over the old one is that there is a small "pop" noise at the beginning of each song. The pop is even more noticeable if you skip ahead using the iPod controls. It isn't really that big of a deal for me - but it may annoy some users.

If you don't have a tape deck, or don't want to deal with the cassette adapter, and can't afford a hardwired solution (such as the iceLink) then the iTrip is a very good solution.