iRiver AFT 100 Mobile FM Transmitter

Manufacturer:	iRiver
List price:	~~$49.99~~
Our price:	$35.14 that is 30% off!

iRiver AFT 100 Mobile FM Transmitter

Average rating: Stars

This one *will* work, when other's don't!

I have an older (vintage? LOL) sports car that has a cassette player that does not work and only 4 programmable radio buttons; I needed an update for my music situation. I tried 5 other brands (Sony, Belkin, & "no-name's") with unacceptable results. I ordered the iRiver based on the reviews here and was pleasantly surprised when it worked wonderfully!
I noticed that it must have a frequency "cut-out" (sorry, don't know how to describe) when I used it with my mp3 player. I started up my car, heard faint garbled radio signal, then powered up my mp3 player (but hadn't hit "play" yet) and the radio signal just "cut-out" to nothing. The other FM transmitters did not behave in this manner. I'm in the Twin Cities area and drove thru Bloomington on 494 with this iRiver playing and did not have even a hint of "crackle" in my music!

iRiver AFT 100 Mobile FM Transmitter - iRiver

As good as this product gets

Just want to echo what others have said: This one works. The signal seems to be powerful enough to overcome relatively weak FM radio stations and you have the option of choosing any frequency with this product. The sound quality is good as well.
Buy this one and forget the rest.

iRiver - iRiver AFT 100 Mobile FM Transmitter

The best iKludge available.

First of all, let's take it as given that all FM transmitters are kludges. They are a clumsy solution to a very simple problem: How to get music from your MP3 player to your car stereo.

I have tried numerous systems: the Belkin TuneCast II, Sonnett PodFreq, the DLO Transpod, and, of course, the iRiver. With a few significant caveats, I would say the iRiver is the best unit of the bunch.

It works well ergonomically, without taking up much space, as well as having several user-definable preset buttons and a fairly easy to read lighted display.

The sound quality is probably the best of any of the units I've tried, with the most success even in a crowded bandwidth area. With the ability to have several presets, you can adjust your unit quickly.

However, after being very happy with the iRiver in my car, I bought one for my wife, and her preset buttons would clear themselves whenever the car was turned off & power was no longer supplied to the iRiver. While this wasn't a significant issue for her (I removed her external antenna, so she can receive the iRiver's signal fine, but not general radio signals) this would have been a dealbereaker otherwise.

But the major annoyance is the auto-shut-off "feature." Why this was implemented, I can't say, as it's both useless and annoying. The transmitter draws its power from the car; who cares if it keep operating when the MP3 player isn't being used? Since it doesn't affect the MP2 player's power, I can't see why it has any utility; the only logical purpose of this function is to save batteries.

More importantly, as several other reviewers have noted, quiet passages can trip the auto shutoff at the worst possible time. This is both inconvenient and extremely annoying. Nothing like a sudden very loud noise while you're driving!

Personally, I think if someone made this same design, without the auto-shutoff, and used a dock connector instead of a stereo jack, adding line level output & charging capability, they'd have the best FM transmitter on the market -- for iPods. Of course, since iRiver markets a competing MP3 player, their choice to use the 1/8" jack is sensible, even if it has its own shortcomings, such as having to crank the MP3 player's volume in order to get a decent signal -- doubly important, since an inadequate signal will cause the unit to turn itself off in a fit of electronic pique.

In conclusion, the best kludge out there -- but it's still a kludge.

Consumer Electronics

Accessories

Too Low To Display

Shure E2c Sound Isolating Earphones

Too Low To Display

Shure E3c Sound Isolating Earphones