Griffin iTrip AutoPilot....FM Transmitter/Charger

[CaptainChaos]

I was really looking forward to getting a car charger for my 3G so that I could charge my phone during my long car trips. The only thing that could have made it better was if it had a way to stream my music through my car stereo system at the same time. That is when I decided to run with the Griffin iTrip AutoPilot.

Man, was I disappointed at first. The sound quality was very disappointing. I could not for the life of me find a quality stereo channel to listen to my music on. Eventually I did, but not until I realized that the AutoPilot would let you use frequencies that are prohibited to be broadcasted on in the United States by switching its mode from US to either Japan or European. This allows you to drop down below the 88.1 range so that you can find stereo sweetness. Then I also discovered that it had a Gain feature that further lets you tweak out the static that bleeds through your music. Now I cruise down the interstate listening to podcasts, Pandora, WunderRadio, etc with a big smile on my face.

There are two ways to control your music on the AutoPilot. One is the front face of the cigarette lighter plug in and the other is directly from the inline FM transmitter. Or you can revert to simply using the iPhone's touchscreen itself.

The RDS feature that displays the Artist/Song Title on your head unit is a little quirky often times displaying gibberish, but I don't pay it any attention.

Pros:
The AutoPilot does what it does very well...charges and delivers great sound.
Easy playback control from the inline transmitter.
No GSM background noise.

Cons:
The instruction booklet sucks. Very badly. They should be ashamed that it was even packaged with the product. It is of no help what so ever.
I had a hard time getting good sound quality until I figured out the Eastereggs.(This should have been in the instruction booklet)
It gave me the "This device is not designed for use...blah blah airplane mode blah blah" one time(but never again thereafter) even though it is touted by Griffin to be compatible with the iPhone.

From the manufacturer's page:

* AutoPilot controls iPod playback from your dash or console's cigarette lighter with the touch of a finger.
* Industry-leading SmartScan does all the work -- scans the radio dial for the three best frequencies then saves them automatically to 3 programmable presets for easy recall at the touch of a button.
* New SmartSound Plus technology delivers clear sound under real-world conditions.
* High-contrast display is easy to read.
* Three-stage light ring changes color to indicate the charging status of your iPod.
* RDS technology shows song information on RDS-enabled car radio display.

[Riviera]

Hey man, Thanks for the review.

Eventually I did, but not until I realized that the AutoPilot would let you use frequencies that are prohibited to be broadcasted on in the United States by switching its mode from US to either Japan or European. This allows you to drop down below the 88.1 range so that you can find stereo sweetness.

My questions are: can we really drop the frequency radio below 88.1 in a car?
What frequency did you use?

[CaptainChaos]

I use 87.9

Yes you can drop the frequency below 88.1, but the radio stations are forbidden to broadcast on them.