i-Kit iPhone FM Hands-free car kit & FM transmitter

I should probably let you know that I am the master of Jerry-rigging stuff. A few examples: I have a  screw/ring that I use to tune one of the broken machine heads on my 1939 Johann Nurnberg double bass… I have two broken guitar pedals that that I use to balance and  prop up the front feet of my 1970 Fender Rhodes organ (that is missing one of the leg extenders)… For years, I used a toothpick to hold in the bass boost button on my home stereo… the list goes on and on.  It’s just who I am and how I operate. I am cool with it.

Even though I am fairly practical about form/function and am usually forgiving when it comes to aesthetics, I also don’t want you all to think that  I am not capable of appreciating something that is beautiful or works well. On the contrary, I’d pimp any Harold Van Doren object, any day of the week. I can appreciate something that is elegant or makes it easy on you, while not always requiring it. I’m kind of “Jekyll and Hyde” like that. Dig?

So when I received the MediaGate i-Kit FM Hands-free car kit & FM transmitter to review, at first I think I questioned if I needed it, but after about 2 days, I really began to appreciate it. Now, I am not trying to say it’s beautiful, like a Van Doren scooter or anything, but for $50-$60 it looks reasonably good and works pretty well. It definitely makes it easy on you, if you want to screw around with your iPhone/iPod in the car.

In a nutshell, the i-Kit is an FM transmitter for you iPhone/iPod that transmits the output of your device, wirelessly, to your car stereo, while at the same time keeping it charged. It has a couple of other extra features too, so lets just go ahead and list them all.

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The Santok SP-500 speakerphone

 

I am always looking for a better Bluetooth solution for my car and here is a cool looking hands free speakerphone that caught my eye today. 

Besides its good looks, I was impressed with the location of the controls, the LCD screen and most importantly the pivoting arm, which can be positioned for optimum voice pick-up.  The unit does feature Caller ID.

Check it out here at Santok

Review: ARKON’s Device Mounts and Holders

I have been reviewing and testing a few of ARKON’s new holder and mount models for a few days now and here are my impressions about them. This set of mounts that I got for reviewing includes some of their brand new designs as well as some of their all-time best sellers.

All of ARKON’s products that I received for review are made of a sturdy black plastic and no matter how much beating they took, they did not bend, break or  change color. The plastic is thick enough to stand use (and quite some abuse) and vibrations that any vehicle will put under normal driving situations. I have tested them under everyday life conditions (commute and daily driving) and I did a little bit of off-road "shake-up" tests. ARKON is the designer of the Dual-T mount pattern I was just referring to, which is used in all Magellan GPS units and other products from HP, Nokia, GlobalSat and ASUS. Products from other manufacturers can be used with either an adapter plate or a universal mount that has arms that can be pressed to hold any device. ARKON makes plenty of adapter plates to support most brands in the market, a few examples are the TomTom ONE, TomTom ONE XL and TomTom GO 520/720/920/530/730/930, Garmin Nuvi and Garmin Streetpilot series. Garmin uses normally a "ball" adapter where a sphere fits into a receiver and can look in any direction allowing it to move freely. ARKON also manufactures mounts and adapters for these devices as well where the ending of the mount has the "Garmin ball" connector instead of the "Dual-T" connector without the need of an adapter. The products I reviewed had either the "Dual-T" connector or the "Garmin ball" connector. These two types of connectors allow users to connect to all kinds of devices. Even though this set I got for testing was mainly for GPSs I was able to use them for any kind of device. I tried them for GPS units, smartphones, regular cell phones, touch-screen smartphones, PDAs, MP3 players, iPods, etc without any problems at all.

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Chrysler to Offer WiFi in 2009 Vehicles

Gina Hughes, the Techie Diva has just posted a great story about Chrysler.

Safety advocates be damned!  Chrysler is adding a new in-dash system called UConnect to all it’s 2009 models.  This will bring Bluetooth, iPod integration, satellite TV and a mobile hotspot to your vehicle.

Passengers will be able to connect laptops, handhelds and even the web-connected Nintendo Wii.  Chrysler is the leading seller of minivans, and I’m sure parents will really appreciate all this multimedia goodness.  Keeping those little ones contented is far better than listening to, “Are we there yet?” over and over.

As of yet there is no mention of pricing, but expect to pay an annual or monthly fee.

Safety advocates will be up in arms.  California has just started their new handsfree phone law, but there are no laws against playing Wii in the car.  Expect other car companies to eagerly wait in the wings to see what the backlash will bring.  I predict some law will be passed barring drivers from surfing the web, but adding multimedia capabilities to automobiles will only get more popular.

Look Ma, no hands!

Remember what a thrill it was when you could first ride your bike without any hands? Driving a car is a different matter, and it’s a good idea to keep both hands on the wheel at all times. It gives me the shivers when I see a young mother with a car full of kids yakking on the phone. Fortunately, in some states it is against the law to talk on a cell phone (or text) while driving. This should be a matter of common sense.

I don’t know about you, but I find those over the ear headsets a bit uncomfortable after a while. Some actually hurt my ear. A full set of headphones is illegal. I have somewhat successfully used a GPS device with built-in Bluetooth for receiving and transmitting phone calls while driving. But the sound quality seems lacking and difficult to hear over road noise sometimes.

Having just returned from a month on the road covering several states, thousands of miles, and a big gas bill ($5.09 in California for regular), I am pleased to report that I was able to test the new AXVisor Bluetooth car kit thoroughly, and I am happy to be able to give it a high recommendation.

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