iPhone Car Accessories - Part 2

by Collin Hilder  |  May 4, 2009

Buying car accessories for an iPhone is definitely not an easy task. Because there isn't a single accessory to fulfill all needs, one needs to buy an accessory for every desired feature. In the last article I mentioned that for a correct and legal use of an iPhone inside a car one needs to buy minimum 3 accessories: a car mount, a charger and a pair of headsets / headphones / earphones. If in Part 1 I tackled the first 2 essential accessories, I'll begin Part 2 speaking about the latter one – the headsets.

The headsets are the ones that make available the “call function”, allowing the driver to answer or to give a phone call. In order to fulfill this job it's important that the earphones have a microphone incorporated. Luckily iPhone is sold together with the “iPhone Stereo Headset”, which can be considered the basic “earphone” solution inside a car. This model can also be found on Apple Store at a price of $30.

A more sophisticated option is the “Bluetooth headset”, which offers more comfort, and no wires, thanks to the Bluetooth technology. An example of such a product is “Plantronics Voyager 520 Bluetooth Headset”, sold for $80 at Apple Store. A more expensive option is “Sennheiser VMX 100 Bluetooth Headset”. At a price of almost $120 the headset offers speech and sound clarity, plus an adjustable microphone. Before using these kind of products, one needs to activate the Bluetooth function of the iPhone by going into “Settings”, choosing the “Bluetooth” function and pressing “On”. Although the headphones could be replaced by the iPhone's speakerphone mode the quality of the sound will be definitely lower.

Another way to enable the “call feature”, would be to buy a wireless speaker + microphone. The “Contour Surface Sound Compact Car Kit” offers, at a price of $100 a flat - panel speaker, a pivoting microphone and Bluetooth connectivity. Attached on the car sun visor, the product is able to reduce noise and to cancel the echo for a quality hands – free experience.

An optional accessory inside a car is the FM transmitter, which is able to broadcasts the music from the iPhone to the car's stereo. Even for this accessory there are several options at different prices. As I mentioned in Part 1 the FM transmitter can be or not accompanied by a charger. A simple model  - only FM transmitter – is “iTrip”, from Griffin, which can be bought at a price of 50$. Practically, the transmitter only sends the music from the iPhone to an open FM frequency to be heard inside the car through the speakers. The inconvenience is that one needs to buy also the “PowerJolt Car Charger”, so that the iPhone stays charged while playing the music. An FM transmitter plus a charger, apart from the  “Belkin TuneCast Auto with Clear Scan” presented in Part 1, is the “iTrip Auto” from Griffin which joins a charger to the FM transmitter, for only $20. Don't forget about the “Road Trip Smart Scan”, also presented in Part 1” which for $100 is able to be a mount, charger and FM transmitter, but doesn't solve the “call feature” issue.

The options, when it comes to car accessories for an iPhone, are surprisingly plentiful and for sure are to come even more. So, in this case, the best option can be different from one person to another and from one car to another. It's better to think thoroughly when buying this kind of accessory, to pay attention to the options available on the market and to put above the desires the safety inside a car.

Next articles in this series:

1. iPhone Accessories: Headphones, Headsets, Earphones
2. iPhone Accessories: lots and lots of Cases
3. iPhone Car Accessories - Part 1
4. iPhone Car Accessories - Part 2
5. The Ultimate iPhone Accessories

Not the info that you're looking for? Ask Tuva and you'll get your answer!

Comments

Your Comment: