USA SPEC - iPod Interface Review

Overall 2.50 of 5 view all 2 reviews

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Kyle
Chicago, IL

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iPhone + Car = Heaven

an early adopter, music lover, quality conscious

Pros

great sound quality, out of sight, self-installable

Cons

not fully iPhone compatible

JUN

2008

Why didn't I install this sooner? For almost a year, I had been looking for an easy way to play music on my iPhone in my car (a 2006 Volkswagen Passat). With no cassette player in the car, no Bluetooth A2DP capability on the iPhone, and no use for sub-par FM adapters, I figured I was out of luck for the time being. I had heard of iPod interface adapters that hooked right into the back of a factory installed radio, but I questioned if they would work with the iPhone. It turns out they do, with just a few caveats.

The USA SPEC iPod Interface is just under $150 from several online retailers. I got mine from Crutchfield. It is a little box that sits between the radio and iPhone. The end result is one black cable that runs out of the back of the radio and plugs directly into the bottom of the iPhone. Everything else is neatly tucked away and out of sight!

The main selling point is sound quality. Unlike other types of adapters, this one does not lower the sound quality in any way. None. Whatsoever. Period. Others have complained of a slight hum, but I haven't noticed any sort of interference. Since it is integrated with the factory radio, buttons on the steering wheel can also control the audio. An added bonus is its ability to charge the iPhone with the same cable. These are the main reasons why I chose this particular type of music integration in the car.

With all of these great features, there is still one minor drawback: the display of song information. Partly due to limitations with Volkwswagen and partly due to limitations with the iPhone firmware, the song information is not passed along to the radio head unit. As a result, a very generic Track 1 is always displayed on the head unit. The iPhone itself is the only place to see the song information. If the engineers could get this song information correctly synced, I would give the USA SPEC iPod Interface 5 stars. For now, it is just a strong 4 stars.

Overall, I am extremely pleased with the capabilities of the USA SPEC iPod Interface. It was relatively easy to install, it provides decent (albeit somewhat limited) functionality, and the sound quality is outstanding.