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iPod Your BMW Officially Launched
chasingporsches writes "Apple today announced the iPod Your BMW campaign on their front page. According to the iPod Your BMW page, 'Connect with music like never before behind the wheel of your BMW 3 Series, and X3 and X5 SAV, Z4 Roadster or MINI. With the installation of an integrated adapter developed by Apple and BMW, you can now control your iPod or iPod mini through the existing audio system and multi-function steering wheel. Which means no loss of power. No loss of sound quality. No loss of control.' There is also a QuickTime TV ad available for streaming. Apparently it only works with 2002 or later BMWs and Minis, and the iPod connects to a cable in the glove compartment."
As a MINI owner, I have been aware this has been possible for quite awhile. It was just done via a third party company who built a custom interface by hacking up the alpine i-bus CD changer interface.
:(
... oh well.
My fear now is that this company is getting ripped off of all their work by this venture with Apple and BMW.
I opted for Sirius over buying an iPod for hopes of having a greater selection in diffrent generes, but
Justin
There was a campaign for iPods and new beetles, but that was just a fancy cup/iPod holder.
sounds just like it
read about it here
it will allow the same thing this article talks about on alpine receivers. i can't wait for it!
i saw the baby, and the baby looked at me
BMW kinda got it half right. the iDrive has a knob, but rather than spinning it to scroll down menus you press it in certain directions--something much more suited to a joystick or just plain ol' buttons. that and the menu system is apparently horribly non-intuitive.
looking at this, though, it just seems like a hack of the radio, with the iPod's connection being in the glove compartment. ??? so now you have to lean over the passenger's seat (and maybe the passenger) to plug in the iPod if you took it out of the car. and god forbid you have anything actually IN the glove compartment that might get it the way. i think it would have been much better with some type of dock in the center armrest console.
I love apple. I'm a zealot, this is a cool thing for your BMW but read the fine print.
Only available for model year 2002, 2003 and 2004 BMW3 Series; Z4 Roadster; X3 and X5 SAV; and MINI models. Not available on vehicles with navigation system, CD changer, DSP cassette player or satellite radio. Installation performed by authorized BMW and BMW SAV centers only. Third-generation iPod (software 2.2 or later) or iPod mini (software 1.1 or later)
Yes... How many BMW owners don't opt for the CD Changer?
--------========+++Dont Feed The Lab Techs+++========--------
something like, oh, say,
:)
THIS?
i saw the baby, and the baby looked at me
No, just the track number:
"3. See/Hear - View and control up to five unique BMW playlists and virtually endless miles of music. Your iPod adapter simulates the CD changer function in your audio system, allowing you to move between and view track numbers in up to five BMW playlists."
And specific playlists are required as well, from the description on the Apple page it seems to be a hack of the CD changer, as somebody already pointed out this has already been done by a 3rd party product, rather than new functionality (more coming in revision 2 if this catches on?).
Overall seems like the two companies testing the waters, nice to see Apple and BMW working together though - both great products.
This configuration is compatible with the iPod dock if you want to put it in your glove box.
My name is Aaron Landry, and I approve this message.
...which was to get a car stereo with an auxiliary jack, and simply plug in and put the iPod in a nice holder.
Integrated controls are nice and all, but my solution was less than $200, and will work with any car with a single-DIN stereo.
My real question is why it's harder and harder to find stereos with front-panel auxiliary plugs these days. Aiwa offers them in cheap-ass stereos, and JVC in a couple models, but that's it. It could be a much cheaper solution for the masses.
http://icelink.densionusa.com has a product that does it the same way. the car's head unit thinks it is a CD changer so the remote controls of the stereo work, and the display will show track info. it adaps to a lot of car stereos out there, so it's an option for more than just BMW owners.
these are essentially hacks to existing car stereos.... just give it some time and there will be more options to integrate better with MP3 players.
>but you're just supposed to toss it in the glove box?
Well, if all the controls are integrated into the existing steering wheel controls, you really don't need the iPod in view; so best keep it in the glovebox for those 0.8+ g corners.
-- www.globaltics.net
Political discussion for a new world
'iPod' is NOT a verb. Now go and write it on the board 100 times.
And while we are at it, 'office' is not a verb, either. Microsft, you need to stay after class with Apple.
There, I feel much better now.
Download my free songs!
it doesn't just tap the remote control options of the device.... it also relays the track info to the head unit. this uses the port in the bottom of the iPod to connect, not just the minijack on top..... and that's not standard either.
unfortunately i don't see a standard coming. icelink has existed for iPods for a while now and works like this BMW adapter. there is also an Alpine one. it's possible there is something like this for non-iPods.
i know the back of my head unit has RCA inputs then a weird Sony link cable that is intended to link the head unit with a Sony changer. unless a sony device is hooked up (or some adapter bought) the RCA ports are off.
if your iRiver has the option of an inline remote then it seems very possible this does (or can) exist for your device. another bonus of the BMW thing using the port where the iPod would dock is that it gets juice from the car, so the batteries stay alive.
Car decks with CD-MP3 players are now common.y ers/index.php
HD units are catching on. (Like the phatbox) http://www.phatnoise.com/products/digitalmediapla
But what I think would be great is a car deck that uses a DVD drive, not to play movies but to play MP3s.
One disk can 50+ hours of decent quality music and and a dvd drive is not that expensive anymore.
It should be here now...
For an example of real neat integration of an iPod in a car look at what smart did with the i-move
;-)
Although I must admit that I'd still prefer a BMW over Smart anytime.
If, like me, you have a Sony with a multi-changer control you can have both an iPod and a CD changer hooked up.
I highly recommend it
'Internet! Is that thing still around?' - Homer Simpson
Is the iPod also easily spotted through the glove box door? After all, that's where the adapter is. ;-)
---- The price of freedom is eternal vigilance. -Thomas Jefferson
I wonder if they have plans to move this into other, higher quality vehicles in the future? While I admit that BMW's are very expensive and prestigous, independent car reviews like Consumer Reports always give them the lowest possible marks for reliability, a key indicator of quality. Any chance they're going to port this to high quality makes such as Nissan, Honda or (the king of reliability) Toyota?
Before anyone flames me -1 Troll or something, here's a link to the Consumer Reports review of the BMW 3-series. Consumer Reports does not accept advertising dollars and has been independent and objective for decades (you need a subscription). Their electrical systems and power equipment get the absolute worst rating and they managed the bare minimum "reliability check-mark" only three years out of eight studied. And that's the best of the bunch! Their SUV line gets some of the worst quality marks in automobile history.
God, why would the quality leader in portable music hook up with a quality sinkhole like BMW? People who pay the premium for iPods pay for their stuff to just work. People who buy BMW's pay a premium for prestige, and don't mind if the car breaks down twenty times a year. These are two totally separate markets.
If guns kill people, then CmdrTaco's keyboard misspells words.
You make a bunch of good points. I drive a 2000 3 Series myself and I think its great (Although it has more minor problems than my '88 Accord with 200k miles).
I'm also use Apple products professionaly.
What I'm sad about is the perception that Apple is cultivating for itself.
These days, when I think of Apple I think: elite, expensive, fashionable, trendy, Hollywood
yes, and the alpine adapter/head i linked above will display track/album/etc information.
i think this is more of a PR stunt than anything, you can only control 5 user-created playlists and one random playlist
i saw the baby, and the baby looked at me
Yes, you can control your iPod from the car's radio or steering wheel, but the integration leaves a lot to be desired. It works by emulating a 5-disc CD Changer. Hence you can have "five unique BMW playlists".
You will not be able to see the song name or artist on the radio's display. Nor will you be able to access any of the other iPod functions or features, such as browsing by name/artist/genre etc. You will only be able to FF and RW one of five playlists.
Apple and BMW should go back to the drawing board.
The adapter frees your car from messy wires
So the wire connecting the adapter to the stereo is neat and clean?
On another note, it's interesting how much they're hyping the supposedly excellent "sound quality" of the iPod. I love my iPod, but sound quality here is almost entirely a factor of the encoding of the music rather than the iPod. When it comes down to it, the iPod is just a hard drive with headphones. It stores the music and hopefully doesn't introduce too much noise in the connection to the speakers, but a crappy mp3 recording is not going to mysteriously sound so much better when played on an iPod as opposed to any other digital music player.
Preliminary info here.
-ted
Why not make one for my vintage VW Beetle, you insensitive clod!
Buy yourself Aiwa car stereo (a brand owned by Sony). Every model they make has a mini-jack line-in socket right on the front panel. Works with an iPod like a charm. If your vintage VW Beetle has a car lighter (some had, some hadn't), buy yourself a Belkin car kit to power the iPod while driving. Finally, buy yourself a ProClip pod to mount your iPod somewhere on the cockpit. All you need now is a stock 2x minijack cable and presto, you have an iPod equipped vintage VW Beetle. However, I had an old Beetle and I had car stereo in it, but it was virtually unusable - the sound of the engine was just too loud to actually hear the music. I think you should stick to listening to the beauty of the classic sound of the boxer engine - and believe me, many Porsche and Subaru drivers sometimes open their windows, turn off their stereos and listen to the engine as the best music they have. I do.
It's for forward compatibility. Apple wants to be able to freely update the iPod's form factor.