It's pretty rare to not find the option for an ipod connector on the spec list of a new car. However, most of these are nothing more than a headphone lead that links to the car's radio. The mp3s play through the stereo, but charging the unit still involves extra leads and changing track means using the ipod. Not ideal.

Alpine have been at the forefront of utilising ipod technology within the head units. I've personally used an Alpine ipod unit for a good few years now, so I was very interested in trying one of their latest units, the iDA-X100.

The technology has come forward in leaps and bounds and it now simply means the ipod is controlled completely via the headunit. This allows you to hide the ipod away and more importantly make changing tracks easier, and a tiny bit safer, than rummaging around on the car floor at 70mph trying to skip a track.

The Alpine unit's controls have been simplified and the unit is no more difficult to control than the ipod itself. The large display is very clear and searching through tracks, albums or artists is very straightforward.

Upgrading the original radio in a car is a very easy way to vastly improve sound quality and the Alpine is fantastic at this. It has all the outputs to connect to external amps, so the unit could very easily be the centre of a full car install. We spoke to Paul Richardson of Car Audio Innovations near Luton, to find out what is possible.

“The Alpine is a great unit, having a host of add-ons such as a bluetooth car kit which will display your phonebook on screen and automatically stop music when receiving a call. If a customer came to us, we could transform the quality of the sound within the car using the Alpine x100 along with speakers and amps from Alpine's range.

“Alpine's PDX range of amplifiers could further improve the sound quality and we'd be able to hide this amplifier away from prying eyes. Their Type X speakers also deliver flawless sound, even at high volumes. You could even add an Alpine Imprint sound processor to produce some of the most accurate sounds possible in a car. All this from your tiny ipod!”.

The Alpine x100 really is an excellent unit for any car. The only downside is the lack of CD player within the headunit, but an external CD changer can easily be added for an additional fee. If you're the type to have your whole CD collection on an iPod, then this is no worry.

The x100's RRP is just £299.00

www.alpine-electronics.co.uk

www.caraudioinnovations.co.uk