Have you ever wanted to play your PSP (PlayStation Portable) in your car, and yet you cannot get decent audio? Well this is what prompted me to purchase an FM transmitter, what is an FM transmitter? This is a tool that can be used to transmit your audio signal through your car radio. There is an abundance of these available for the iPod, but very few available for the PSP, so after carefully researching several technology companies I came across the iTrip FM Transmitter. Now don’t let the (I) in iTrip discourage your purchase, the iTrip works excellently with the PSP and there is a specific model designed for it in fact. Griffin is one of the few companies who actually produces a transmitter for the PSP so after careful bargain hunting I was able to pick this item up on uBid for $13.99 plus shipping.
Now I have to rave about the simplicity of this product, basically your plug-and-play and your ready to roll. In order to get this to connect with most modern car radios I would recommend setting iTrip to the DX or TX broadcast mode and 87.9 MHz. This operation went very smoothly and I was able to hear all audio on my PSP, you are not just limited to car radios either. I was able to play audio through my stereo system also, I wouldn’t recommend this option though because it devastatingly quickly drained my li-ion battery. There is also a pass through jack on the top of the iTrip in case you still want to use your headphones; there is also an AC adapter pass through, which is useful if you want to recharge your battery on the go.
The iTrip unit is designed to fit on the bottom of the PSP, while offering the same shape, color, and design to complement the PSP. The iTrip increases the PSP’s height by ¾ of an inch, this isn’t really too bad unless your really trying to be mobile, in while case this does make the already large PSP even bulkier. This also makes the PSP much more difficult to store in a storage case, although the iTrip does come with a neoprene glove that can successfully hold the PSP with the iTrip attached. The unit itself is very light weight and really doesn’t add much to the PSP’s overall weight. On the griffin website it states that the iTrip uses two AA batteries, but this is false as the unit I received uses three AAA batteries to power the FM transmitter.
The iTrip is also very good on power consumption; I’ve noticed no real change in battery life when using this transmitter. The unit has a LED display which tells you the FM frequency, and there is tuner up/down buttons located on the top of the transmitter. The sound quality is actually quite impressive judging by such a small transmitter. When using the DX mode you will get a fairly impressive range, even in an SUV in the third row seating area I managed to get a decent signal. The sound was crisp and clear, especially when playing MP3s or UMD movies, the games sounded less impressive and the PSP sound is muted while using the iTrip transmitter.
So if you are looking for a solution to broadcast your PSP over the car audio system or a home theater, the iTrip is an excellent solution. With a range of 10-to-30 feet, and stellar ergonomics, the iTrip is the ideal solution for PSP owners and you cannot go wrong with the under $20 price range.
