Griffin NA15005 RoadTrip Handsfree for iPod, iPhone and Smartphones -Black

• Play your iPod or iPhone on your car's FM stereo while you recharge its battery .
• Flexible steel neck and case-friendly cradle holds your iPod or iPhone securely where you want it .
• Easy SmartScan 1-button setup finds the best frequency for you .
• Griffin SmartSound adjusts the signal for best sound, always .

Just arrived. Took it out for a spin around my neighborhood and it just works. Setup took under five minutes. It suggested I download the app. I did and it made the setup that much easier. Not having to press and hold buttons to set/change stations is quite nice. The interface of the app is a much larger display to read. Well worth the download.

I live in a VERY saturated city and the stations hold well. However the stations suggested by the SmartScan feature were not the best by a long shot. Fortunately I knew and had already set the best channels on my radio. The phone works very well. My voice, according to my parties, came through very clear with no background noise. It was hard to tell I was in my car. Their voice on my end was also very clear. Conversations can be had without shouting by either party.

Static still creeps in but that's common in a saturated market such as mine. I have yet to find a transmitter that was static-free. However, I came close with the last RoadTrip model. Changing the output to mono gave a clear static-free sound. The loss of the sound stage was noticeable but not unpleasant.

The design is very sleek. Soft blue lights provides a very pleasing effect at night. The display is very easy to read and very nicely designed. The menu can easily be navigated without reading the manual.

It's nicely built. However I found the swivel on the holder a bit looser than I'd like. That's my only concern so far. So, I'm keeping the box and packing materials handy just in case. There's no need to remove even the bulkiest case (short of military grade) I can imagine. The holder is adjustable and is nicely padded with soft rubber.

Bottom line:

It's the best FM transmitter I found so far for the iPhone 4.

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I was a little hesitant to purchase and FM transmitter for my car. I heard they didn't work as advertised and that I would hear a lot of static with my music. But when I bought a used car and an FM transmitter was the only way I'd be able to listen to my iPod, I needed to get one.

The Griffin Roadtrip Hands-Free was the only practical option when it came to FM transmitters. It plays and charges the iPod just like it's supposed to and the ability to talk on the phone through the car stereo and microphone is really nice. The only design flaw I can think of right now is that instead of pausing the iPod when a phone call comes in, it mutes the music. I have songs on my iPod because I like the music and I don't want to miss them if I have a long conversation on the phone. You can still manually pause the iPod, but it creates an extra step.

In terms of performance, I've heard that sound quality can depend quite heavily on the location of a car's antenna. Mine is built in to the rear window and I'd say sound quality is pretty good. If I listen hard, or during pauses between songs, I can usually hear a little static. The biggest factor in sound quality is the competing radio stations. I've found a station that maintains good quality for my trip from work to home, but if I deviate from that path, I usually have to use the Roadtrip's built in station finder. It usually does a good job of picking clear stations, but sometimes it only lasts for a few minutes.

In terms of the physical layout, the buttons are easy to find and press, and the lighting of the screen is not too bright for night driving. I love being able to rotate the iPod dock and move the neck around. It holds the position well, though I've only had it for about two months.

If you're looking for a good FM transmitter, I'd highly recommend you purchase this one. It's not perfect, but in my eyes, it's the best one one the market.

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I was awaiting this car adapter for my iPhone for months to be released as my current Belkin TuneBase product which I have two was working except the LED numerals are burning out in each.

The stalk strength seems sufficient for most use. The adapter holds an iphone but a bit looser than the Belkin product a little wobbliness can occur.

I haven't tried the Bluetooth mode yet but the biggest problem with this device is weak FM signal transmission. I bought two of these and each behaves the same. In sport utility and crossover vehicles, the FM antenna is often not located near the front window. In both of my cars they are on a rear quarter window. The FM is almost complete static unless I cup my hand behind the unit essentially turning myself into an antenna. In a car with the FM antenna up front, the signal strength seems sufficient.

I discovered through trial and error that one can wrap a narrow gauge wire around the top of the stalk where it pivots to connect to the base. This appears to be near where the FM transmitter is located. This wire behaves like a passive antenna and one can then position the length of wire to an optimal position to optimize the signal output. I decided to wrap the wire around the antenna feed that leads into the back of my car radio. So it's actually not completely wireless a user modification is required if you have a sport utility or your car's FM antenna is not near the front.

I was under the impression this had a 5 watt FM transmitter but reading up, I think the specs only mean it draws 5 watts of power to power the whole unit. There is no way a full 5 W FM signal can't reach an indoor antenna 6 feet away. I believe this could be an electronic engineering deficiency in its design.

If this flaw gets fixed, then I would increase my rating to 5 stars. Right now, it has to be a buyer beware for you alpha adopters.

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Like other reviewers, I waited months for this unit, only to be severely disappointed. The FM signal output is so weak as to be almost useless.

It's not because of any FCC-mandated limits, either. I've owned several other FM transmitters (major brands, mind you, not no-name Asian knockoffs), and the RoadTrip Handsfree is hands-down the worst of the lot.

Here's how lame it is: I live in Central MD, where there aren't any truly clear frequencies, so much as there's one empty frequency between stations, all the way up and down the FM dial. With every other FM transmitter I've had, I could tune it to one of those between-station frequencies, then use the Seek button on my car's radio to tune into that frequency, as if my transmitter were its own "station".

Not so on the RoadTrip Handsfree. The Seek button went right past my chosen frequency as if there was nothing there. The signal is THAT weak. And my car's antenna is pretty much directly above the RoadTrip unit.

The upshot is that no matter which frequency I try, the signal is constantly overtaken by static as I drive, and my music fuzzes in and out. I can cup my hand around the stalk of the thing, as another reviewer noted, and that seems to improve the signal a bit, but that's about it.

Haven't used it for a phone call yet, so I can't speak to that. SmartScan is useless -it keeps picking frequencies that are already stations.

I was also unimpressed that every time I plugged in my iPhone, a message popped up informing me that an app was "required" to use the accessory. I finally downloaded the silly thing -which does nothing you can't do with the RoadTrip's buttons -just so it'd stop nagging me about it. Haven't used the app since.

Maybe if you live in rural country with broad swaths of clear spectrum, the HandsFree would work for you. For my part, I'll be sending it back and looking into other brands instead.

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I bought this as a mount, an FM transmitter, AND a handfree calling device.

Unlike others, I had no problem with the gooseneck not supporting my phone. The phone (even within a big case) fits on this device just fine. It's easy to put on; easy to take off. The FM transmitter works ... okay. My local reception is a problem, but that's not the fault of the device. It worked great to enable me to hear my Mapquest app's turn-by-turn directions.

My complaint about this device is the "handsfree" capability. It didn't always auto-pair to my phone (sometimes it did, sometimes it didn't) -but the real problem is that no one could understand me when I spoke into this thing, on a call. My car's cigarette lighter sits down low -so the microphone on the phone (that's the only microphone, for the unit) is far away from my mouth. It just couldn't be used as a handsfree device. Griffin was contacted, and had absolutely no suggestions.

I'm giving 2 stars because the handsfree part is the primary reason I bought this. If you're looking for a mount/FM transmitter, your rating might be higher.