FM Transmitter for iPhone???

[kristenrice]

I'm a little confused and I want to make sure I have everything straight before I drop $50-$80 on an audio device.

What I want to do is stream Pandora radio (and possibly Netflix) through my iPhone while we are travelling. I do it already, but without an external speaker, it is very difficult for the kids in the back seat to hear. I'd like to get one of the FM transmitters that will allow the audio to come through my car speakers. Will this work with streaming or will it only work for downloaded music and movies? Our car does not have an AUX audio jack so that is not an option. I'm thinking I want one that does an "autoscan" since we will be travelling from Michigan to South Carolina.

Any suggestions?

 

[scrapquitler]

I'm a little confused and I want to make sure I have everything straight before I drop $50-$80 on an audio device.

What I want to do is stream Pandora radio (and possibly Netflix) through my iPhone while we are travelling. I do it already, but without an external speaker, it is very difficult for the kids in the back seat to hear. I'd like to get one of the FM transmitters that will allow the audio to come through my car speakers. Will this work with streaming or will it only work for downloaded music and movies? Our car does not have an AUX audio jack so that is not an option. I'm thinking I want one that does an "autoscan" since we will be travelling from Michigan to South Carolina.

Any suggestions?

How old is your car? I use a cassette adapter to play music from my iPhone in the car. It's a cheap and simple solution for someone like me with an old car that still has a cassette adapter.

 

[Yoshi]

I have one, I forget the brand (it might have been Griffin) since its in the other car that I bought for $10 at Macy's (original price was $50, it was from that electronic vending machine). It doesn't work well because you have to find a station that has a weak signal but also not have static which was very difficult to find and then while driving the signal strength seemed to change causing less or more static. It did work with streaming though.

 

[kristenrice]

How old is your car? I use a cassette adapter to play music from my iPhone in the car. It's a cheap and simple solution for someone like me with an old car that still has a cassette adapter.

2007 Trailblazer and a 2004 Suburban...both have CD players only, no cassette deck.

 

[ssawka]

Any FM transmitter should work, though some are probably better than others. You simply plug the transmitter into the headphone jack on your phone/tablet/laptop/etc. One problem with FM transmitters is that in a metropolitan area you are not likely to find an available station, so you will get interference. In rural areas you should be fine.

Do you by some chance have bluetooth on the vehicle. If you do and the bluetooth supports A2DP, you might be able to stream over Bluetooth.

BTW, $50-$80 is a lot to spend on an FM transmitter. Check out Amazon. I'm sure you'll find one much cheaper than that.

 

[djmeredith]

A friend of mine found an FM transmitter in the auto dept of Wal Mart for less than $10. It worked pretty well but had only a limited number of stations you could choose to use.

 

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

I've tried many of them. I absolutely LOVE the Flexsmart X2. I got it off of Amazon. The reception is perfect. It connects to your cigarette lighter and then gets a signal via bluetooth. You can listen to music or even use it to make speaker calls while driving. It even has a USB connector, so you can charge things while on the road.

This was the best purchase ever!

 

[momof3ds]

Ditto the flexmart X2.

That is what I use as well.

 

[kristenrice]

I've tried many of them. I absolutely LOVE the Flexsmart X2. I got it off of Amazon. The reception is perfect. It connects to your cigarette lighter and then gets a signal via bluetooth. You can listen to music or even use it to make speaker calls while driving. It even has a USB connector, so you can charge things while on the road.

This was the best purchase ever!

When you say it gets its signal via Bluetooth, does that mean my vehicle or my phone (or both) must have Bluetooth capability? I'm fairly certain that the Trailblazer does not have Bluetooth and I know the Suburban doesn't have it.

Oh, and the Suburban does have a cassette deck, but not the Trailblazer. Unfortunately, it is the Trailblazer that's going on the trip.

 

[ssawka]

When you say it gets its signal via Bluetooth, does that mean my vehicle or my phone (or both) must have Bluetooth capability? I'm fairly certain that the Trailblazer does not have Bluetooth and I know the Suburban doesn't have it.

No, the vehicle does not have to have Bluetooth. You'll just pair the device with your phone.

 

[tinan]

I personally have tried multiple fm transmitters and I was never happy with the quality of them. My husband instead bought me a bluetooth transmitter that I can not only listen to what is playing out of my Iphone I can also use it for hands free talking. It was a little pricey at around $100, but it does not have the interference that all of the others had. It is a motorola t505. Best of luck with whatever you choose.

 

[kristenrice]

I've tried many of them. I absolutely LOVE the Flexsmart X2. I got it off of Amazon. The reception is perfect. It connects to your cigarette lighter and then gets a signal via bluetooth. You can listen to music or even use it to make speaker calls while driving. It even has a USB connector, so you can charge things while on the road.

This was the best purchase ever!

Ditto the flexmart X2.

That is what I use as well.

After your recommendations, I checked out a few reviews and this looks like it will work! I ordered one from Amazon (and finally took advantage of the Prime free trial) and I should have it by Tuesday.

Thanks for the advice and I will be sure to report back on how it works out.

 

[momof3ds]

I love using it with my iphone and google maps. The GPS directions come through the car's speakers and you can use streaming music at the same time.

 

[mountdew1]

Strongly suggest looking for one that support using 87.9. Not all do, but pretty much no where has a radio station on that frequency, so you won't have to try to find an empty spot. The ones I have used with the autotune worked pretty poorly. More often than not the autotune would select a station that had music on it.

 

[Music City Mama]

I'm a little confused and I want to make sure I have everything straight before I drop $50-$80 on an audio device.

What I want to do is stream Pandora radio (and possibly Netflix) through my iPhone while we are travelling. I do it already, but without an external speaker, it is very difficult for the kids in the back seat to hear. I'd like to get one of the FM transmitters that will allow the audio to come through my car speakers. Will this work with streaming or will it only work for downloaded music and movies? Our car does not have an AUX audio jack so that is not an option. I'm thinking I want one that does an "autoscan" since we will be travelling from Michigan to South Carolina.

Any suggestions?

I take it you have unlimited data? I don't so I don't ever stream for any length of time if I'm not connected to Wifi. I do use an FM transmitter all of the time, though, to listen to my downloaded podcasts while I'm driving to/from work. When traveling, we also use it for the portable DVD player for the kids (so they can hear the movie through the car speakers) and that way, DH and I can hear the movie, too -- or we can just listen to other things on our phones w/ our ear buds. I think it would definitely work for streaming, but that would use a lot of data (and battery life) on a trip.

 

[kristenrice]

Yes, we have a Sprint family plan with unlimited data on 2 iPhones and an Android.

 

[ssawka]

I take it you have unlimited data? I don't so I don't ever stream for any length of time if I'm not connected to Wifi. I do use an FM transmitter all of the time, though, to listen to my downloaded podcasts while I'm driving to/from work. When traveling, we also use it for the portable DVD player for the kids (so they can hear the movie through the car speakers) and that way, DH and I can hear the movie, too -- or we can just listen to other things on our phones w/ our ear buds. I think it would definitely work for streaming, but that would use a lot of data (and battery life) on a trip.

Yep, make sure you have unlimited data. Also, I suggest having a car power adapter and keeping the phone plugged in while streaming.

 

[momof3ds]

Streaming music and/ or GPS does not use that much data.

 

[kristenrice]

THANK YOU!!

The Flexsmart x2 is PERFECT! The only (minor) problem is that a lot of the stations is selects end in even numbers (102.2 for example) but my car stereo only selects stations with odd numbers (102.1 or 102.3) which is a little issue. All I do is check the odd-numbered frequencies to either side of it, or I just push the auto-selector knob until it chooses an odd number.

My favorite Pandora stations are the comedy ones so I am listening to spoken word more than music so the sound quality is 100% acceptable, even with a little static. I am a die-hard Tigers fan and I am used to listening to AM radio. I found a station last night that is crystal-clear so that is the one I will be using around here. Obviously, between Michigan and South Carolina, I will be switching around a lot.

There is a USB port on the side so I can charge my phone with the transmitter plugged in. This is a nice plus because we have a total of 3 DC outlets in the truck, 2 in front and one in back. We will need to plug in the Garmin and at least 1 iPod, so being able to use the transmitter and my phone in the same outlet is a big plus.

 

[Praying Colonel]

I've tried many of them. I absolutely LOVE the Flexsmart X2. I got it off of Amazon. The reception is perfect. It connects to your cigarette lighter and then gets a signal via bluetooth. You can listen to music or even use it to make speaker calls while driving. It even has a USB connector, so you can charge things while on the road.

This was the best purchase ever!

That's what I was going to recommend as well. I tried at least 5 different ones before I found the Flexsmart X2 and it's been solid for me for over a year. The Bluetooh connectivity works much better and the transmitter seems to be a lot stronger than others I've tried. Plus love the ability to charge my iPhone via USB while driving.