Belkin TuneCast II

Author's product rating:   

Sound Quality	Good
Comfort	Excellent
Looks & Design	Excellent
Durability	Good
Value for Money	Excellent

Advantages:	Neat, Compact, Simple to Use .   It works !
Disadvantages:	Slightly inferior sound quality

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Introduction
This is a really neat piece of kit that will keep you entertained on those long car journeys. It connects via the standard headphone socket on your mp3 player, computer or other audio device and allows a car stereo to pick up the output.

Is it legal? Well, as of 8th December 2006, Ofcom decided to "...allow the use of certain low power FM transmitters, which wirelessly connect MP3 players and other personal audio devices to radios and in-car entertainment systems". This is good news for those of us who cannot afford expensive mp3 car-stereos! Please see Ofcom's website for full details of their regulations.

Packaging & Appearance
Annoyingly, this item comes in one of those heat-sealed blister packs which are impossible to open without resorting to sharp pointy things. Once opened however, everything is nicely available. The pack contained the TuneCast II, two Duracell AAA batteries, a car power adaptor and another short cable which may or may not be a different type of headphone socket adaptor (it is not mentioned in the product literature). There was also a booklet of very simple instructions in five European languages. The pack says that the device is for the iPod, but in fact you can use it with any mp3 or audio device that has a headphone socket.

The TuneCast II itself is quite small, measuring approximately 7 x 5 x 2 cm. My unit is black/grey, although I believe it does come in other colours. The build is quite solid & there don't seem to be too many breakable parts. It has a short (20cm approx.) cord with a headphone jack at one end and a DC power socket on the 'base' for the in-car charger. The headphone cord wraps neatly around the unit & the jack slots into a clip to keep it tidy. The unit has a basic unlit LCD display screen on the front with three buttons for tuning/frequency storage.

Operation & Sound Quality
The unit is very easy to use: just plug it into your mp3 player headphone socket. Then find an FM frequency with no station playing (or producing a very weak signal). Tune the Belkin TuneCast to the same frequency as your radio & start your mp3 player. The unit will automatically transfer audio output to your stereo! I also used this on my home PC and hi-fi unit. I was able to pick up sound on the radio downstairs (at least ten feet and two walls away). You have to juggle the respective volumes until you get the desired level. You may have to jack your source player volume up quite a bit before you can adjust the stereo volume. Just remember to reset it before you put your personal headphones back on! Batteries play an important part in available volume. Make sure your source & transmitter batteries are fully charged or your music will start to fade out. My only gripe is that there is no battery indicator on the display. I've not managed to wear the batteries out yet, but I've heard reports of up to eight hours of play time.

The sound quality is slightly sub-CD, but it really doesn't matter unless you are an avid audiophile. I found it perfectly acceptable in the car & at home - good for parties and journeys alike without the hassle of tapes or CDs. Be warned that in peak traffic, you may have trouble finding a good frequency, or that Terry Wogan interrupts periodically!

Overall, this product is a good buy (currently selling on Amazon UK at £14.99 inc. P&P) & offers great value for money. It is simple to use, & makes those long car journeys much more bearable as you can take hours of music with you!