Why is this the best way to connect my iPod to my Ford, Lincoln or Mercury?

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You have typically four choices when it comes to how to connect your iPod to your Ford, Mercury, or Lincoln factory audio system. Cassette adaptor, FM transmitter, aux-input, and direct connect.

The easiest and cheapest option is the cassette adaptor, although this is becoming less of an option because few newer model vehicles have cassette players. The sound quality is fair, but you’ll have messy cords to deal with and not all cassette adapters include the optional recharging circuit into the cigarette lighter, which means more loose cords. You must also control your iPod from the iPod itself, which can be dangerous while driving.

The next option is an FM transmitter. These units act as analog signal transmitters that transmit the sound from your player to an unused FM channel. Tune your radio to the same channel and it plays what’s on your iPod through your car audio system. Reception is not typically the best and interference can be annoying, especially in highly populated regions. FM modulators are better, because these are hard-wired directly into your antenna jack at the back of your radio, but you still have to control the iPod from the iPod itself, and they provide no option for recharging your iPod.

The third way is to use an aux input into your factory radio. If your vehicle didn’t come with it (Ford began offering 3.5mm line in jacks as standard in 2007), then you need to add one. Ford dealers sell a small device called “Trip Tunes” that will put a line-in jack into your glovebox, and they are relatively inexpensive, around $70-100 plus installation. This will give you better sound quality, but it still doesn’t recharge the iPod or let you control it from the radio head unit. You have to select music from the iPod itself, which can be dangerous while driving.

Ultimately, the highest quality choice is the direct connect system. The ideal is a direct connect that has CD-quality sound, charges the iPod, and is integrated with the radio to allow you to utilize the factory radio controls to control your iPod. Most display song info on your radio as well. Among these products, there are differences, so caution and being an informed consumer is essential. All of them recharge the iPod, but not all of them respond to commands intuitively or let you control your iPod from the factory radio easily and reliably. Some are quite slow to respond to commands when you push the button on the radio to command the iPod. Others don’t map the control buttons of the iPod exactly to the labeled buttons on your radio. To rewind a song on your iPod may require holding down the “seek” button for example, instead of the “Rewind” button right below it. That’s because most of these devices are designed as one-size-fits-all solutions for many different manufacturers OEM radios, and they use a common design that doesn’t always work well for a particular car company’s radios. Also, you need to be cautious because many of these systems won’t work if your vehicle came with factory satellite radio, a factory navigation radio, or a rear seat entertainment system.

iPod Direct Connect by Brandmotion is specifically designed for newer model Ford Lincoln and Mercury radios, and was designed to work seamlessly with all radios whether Satellite-radio, factory navigation, or rear seat entertainment equipped. It even maintains steering wheel control functions for seeking songs.

We have also made it easy for anyone to install, by using factory original plug-and-play connectors that plug into very clear slots on the back of your radio (or into your Satellite tuner if you have Sat radio) with no opportunity for making a connection mistake or harming your vehicle in any way. Trim bezels around Ford radios are very easy to remove, and you’ll find specific downloadable guides for connecting to every Ford vehicle on our website.

Further, the Brandmotion system is backed by a full 12 month warranty and 30-day unconditional money back guarantee.