Customer Reviews

Griffin iTrip FM Transmitter for iPod mini; iPod classic 3G, 4G (White)

5 star:		(76)
4 star:		(91)
3 star:		(43)
2 star:		(76)
1 star:		(125)

 

 

If you have a cassette deck in your car, you don't need the iTrip, just get one of those cassette adapters and you are all set. But if you don't have a cassette deck in your car, the iTrip does what it's supposed to do fairly well. In the majority of cases, it works fine. Although you should be aware that this technology is not perfect. Depending on your location, you may occaisionally experience some static from a radio station that is near where you have the iTrip set to.

Also, the quality is limited to FM radio quality. It is not as good as what the iPod is capable of and certainly not CD quality. That said, the quality from the iTrip is quite listenable for the price when there is no static. In my area (which is a major metropolitan area), no matter what I do, I get some occaisional static depending on the time of day.

If your car stereo has a line input, that would the the ideal recommendation. Some radios nowadays even have a jack right on the front of the radio. If yours doesn't, perhaps it has line input jacks in the back of the unit and an installer can wire this up for you so you can access it and plug the iPod in to it.

Another better option than the iTrip is to have a car stereo shop install a wired FM modulator for you. The FM modulator is wired under your dash between your antenna and the radio and includes a jack for the iPod. This works virtually flawlessly, with no static and a much more powerful signal into the radio.

In all, I would recommend the iTrip for use in a rental car or a friend's car or if you will only use the iPod occaisionally in your car. If you drive a lot and use the iPod exclusively, it would definitely be worth it to invest in a wired option instead.

I live in Cambridge MA and find the iTrip a worthy addition to my iPod arsenal. At first I had no luck with the iTrip, it was so hard to tune in that I almost gave up, but after waiting 6 months for delivery it was worth just that last ditch effort to get right.

For some reason 97.7 on any FM radio is the station to tune to and then let the iTrip find the best signal. I've had it with zero hiss for long journeys, such as Boston to New York and it's been fine the whole way. I've also used it in the UK (on the same 97.7 frequency) and has performed excellently there too. There are more radio stations than sense in Boston so I actually collapsed my arial on my car which makes it work better as the closest signal to the radio will always be the iPod.

Don't get your cell phone too close as the constant signal exchanges between phone and phone provider can be annoying and power lines make it sizzle sometimes. Overall I like the device and if you have multiple radios in your house it's great to carry music from one location to the other without having to take the disc or tape.

Thumbs up from me. 4 out of 5 just for the fact that it was really hard to get going and that my LED is red and not blue as the instruction manual states and as such I was convinced mine was broken from day one!

This will not work with video iPod. The video iPod does not have the power source next to the audio out like all the other iPods. The video iPod only has the audio out (headphone jack).

I already had an FM attachment for my iPod, but it was clumsy - it had an earphone jack, but was powered by batteries, which I had to replace way too often for a transmitter that had a very limited range (about 1 foot).

The iTrip looked perfect for my needs - self-powered by the iPod, and sexy-looking to boot.

The iTrip ships with a CD, which contains several dozen .mp3 files, one for each station/channel on broadcast FM. If you only use your iPod in one city, then you will rarely have to change stations, as the station that's "free" - ie, doesn't have a radio station broadcasting a signal on it, is unlikely to change that often - but if you go on a road trip, you may want to change the frequency once in a while.

The first time I tried out my iTrip, I went on a road trip from the Dallas area to Shreveport, Louisiana. I was taking the trip anyway, not just to test the iTrip! Anyway, I didn't think to create a play list just for the iTrip stations before I synched (it would have been nice if the documentation w/ the iTrip suggested this), so I had my iTrip on random/shuffle play on my whole library - lo and behold, it hits another frequency .mp3 and resets my ipod to a different station. There is no way to delete an item directly from the iPod w/o synching with a computer - so I was out of luck and had an extremely frustrating trip until I saw a Radio Shack on the way and bought one of those Cassette-Jack adapters. So, everytime one of the Griffin .mp3 files would come up on random shuffle, I'd hit the "next" arrow on the iPod to skip it - since it's obnoxiously loud.

Griffin had an excellent idea with this gizmo, but I doubt they did any field testing first, otherwise they would have rethought their approach. With the Apple Software Developer Kit (SDK), they could have written an application for the iPod that let you control the settings for iTrip, instead of making .mp3 files be the trigger for setting the device... this way no one has to make different play lists to accommodate a third party gadget.

I was so happy to buy this item, and now it lays in a drawer because it's too frustrating to use. The range is also less than impressive. I know that the FCC has rules on how strong a radio transmitter can be for this type of device, but I should be able to use the iPod when it's in the passenger seat - but apparently that's too far from my stereo! I had to lay it in my ashtray to get a good signal.

Great concept, beautiful design, crappy execution.

I've seen the bad reviews and I've seen the raves on this. My opinion falls somewhere in the middle.

First off, let me debunk the positive rave reviews and/or Griffin Technology's description. This is not the coolest device on earth. It is merely an adequate means to listen to the songs on your iPod without wires.

I live in Detroit where there are many radio stations cluttering the frequencies. Griffin suggests the best reception and seperation is found in the middle of the dial (98-102-ish). Unfortunately, this is where most major markets have their stations. FM sound quality is substandard to begin with and the iTrip's sound quality is somewhere below FM quality. When I started on iTrip's default frequency(87.7 or 9) - I was supremely disappointed as the sound was a bit better than a transistor radio. However, going toward the bandwidth middle it gets better. I have to turn down the bass and increase the treble just to get decent sound. You also need to keep the iPod close to your head unit. Moving it a few feet gets me static.
Bottom line: If you're a sound afficionado - you'll hate this thing. If you realize that you can't expect greatness out of radio - this may suffice.

Despite the poor rating "rant" above, I realize what a nice "wonder" this thing really is and for the cost of a couple CD's, it is hard for me to hate this thing. If it cost a few bucks more, I'd probably hate it. I find it useful for previewing my latest downloads that I haven't had time to hear at home yet. Better yet, I use it at work on my desktop boombox (where sound quality isn't that great to begin with) and I'm quite pleased. I've yet to try it in less crowded radio markets and hope it will deliver better sound but I'll have to wait for that review. I've also yet to compare it with a cassette adapter but will do so when more time permits.

Set up was not hard at all as other reviews have warned. In fact, I've eliminated all the "taken" frequencies in my area in iTunes so that I've less to choose from when changing frequencies.

In Detroit area, I've had pretty good success on 101.5 frequency.

From what I've seen, the iTrip is the best FM Transmitter for the iPod, but that doesn't mean it's good, or even does what you need it to do.

Sadly, I get faint radio static from the iTrip no matter where I place it in my car, and when I drive around, the music might fade completely to static. This is distracting, and while you might get used to it, I personally didn't play $50 to have my iPod sounding like a record player. I get much better performance from a cheap $10 tape adapter. Long road trips will force you to change the radio frequency often, and while the iTrip thankfully while let you use any frequency you want to, setting a new one is too complicated to do singlehanded while driving by yourself. Driving through a big city (or even living in one) will leave you totally frustrated. The little add-on looks cool sitting atop you iPod, and runs off the iPod's batteries and not AAs like some others, but overall I just can't recommend it to anyone unless you absolutely have no other option, especially if you live in a big city with crowded airwaves.

I cant review this items for how nice or crappy it is. But I can warn everyone looking to buy this item...it does NOT fit the newest iPOD video 30gb and 60gb models. It also doesnt NOT fit the iPOD Nano.

I have to say, I don't understand what all the complaints are about. I live in Los Angeles, and rarely have any problems on all types of radios. If it starts to get staticy - usually close by a major radio station in town - I change frequencies and am good to go.

People complaining about audio quality should adjust the volume on the Ipod, as if it's set too high, the sound distorts. You should keep ipod volume levels in mid range and use the volume on your stereo. Also - they might not be setting the stations correctly.

Also - installation is NOT COMPLICATED. All it is is Mp3s of all the radio frequencies and a Playlist to put them all in for easy access. The itrip responds to these short mp3s and if you hit the pause button while they play you reset it to a different station. Easy as that.

In fact, the quality is so good that anyone with a radio in my office can set theirs to the frequency and listen to what I'm listening to. Only on soft songs do I detect some static, sometimes.
I give it four stars only because I think ipod should just come with this feature installed inside. Don't listen to the bad reviews - this is essential for ipod owners.

I bought the iTrip for my new 15G iPod. The software install was effortless- Just skip the included CD and go straight to Griffin's web site. Install the drivers and station menus from there. I downloaded the US and European stations. This gives me access to every channel on the dial. As far as using it goes: My advice is to set yourself up before you start to drive. The iPod's controls are intuitive, but distracting. I use the lowest channels on the dial (like 88.1, 88.3, etc.) and have no trouble. Sometimes when I pass a semi-truck, their CB or something interferes. I was forced into the iTrip because my Chevy Trailblazer has CD only, no cassette. I would rate the overall sound quality at about 7 out of 10. Some crackles can be heard from time to time, and if your song has heavy bass (dance, techno, rap, etc.) then there will be some distortion. Still working on figuring that one out. Also, some hiss can be heard if the song is real quiet. Overall though, it isn't any worse than a regular FM station on the dial. The coolest thing about the iTrip is I can now just set it to play on my home stereo, which runs though the house. I have my entire CD collection on the iPod, and as long as it's plugged in, I can play all day.

One reviewer had a problem setting the iPod/iTrip up. It's actually pretty easy. Just select the radio channel you want to use on the iPod and on the car/radio. Play the channel selection on the iPod, and let it run for a second or two (half way accross the bar). Pause the track. In a second, you'll hear the iTrip take over the radio, and you'll know when this happens because the static will stop and there will be only silence. Then "menu" back to your playlists and start playing whatever song you choose. That's it. As long as you don't turn the iPod off, it will continue to control the radio channel in the car, even if you turn the car off. This is great when I'm out running errands- I don't have to keep setting it up.

Pretty good product.

The bad:
Hiss at low volume (not too bad, but noticable)
Bass distortion on upbeat songs
Limited range (must be within about 10 feet of the tuner)
iTrip sucks the battery power from the iPod. Expect 40% less play time

The good:
Good price
Easy to use
Convenient
Cool solution to comlicated problem

The new iPod with video doesn't have a "docket" next to the earphone plug, so this product just wont fit...