iFM

Written by Darryn Lowe | 22 January 2006
Posted in iPod

Ever since the iPod first came out I wished there was an FM tuner inside so that you could listen, and possibly record, FM radio. This never eventuated until Griffin released the iFM. Let's get the obvious out of the way first. This does not look like anything that should be associated with an iPod. It has the wrong look and feel and quite frankly it looks ugly.

The controls feel out of place next to an iPod. There are buttons on the right side that control volume and forward and reverse. There is the Play/Pause button on the front, which is also the largest button. A small recessed button with an LED in the center is the Record button. There is also a switch on the left that sets the unit between Off/FM/Remote.

Review
Installation & Documentation
Ease of use
Value for money
Price approx.	$89 (approx)
Software/Hardware Requirements	4G iPod with dock connector
Available from	Buyers Guide

You cannot browse menus therefore much of the controls are only valid once you've set the music you want to listen to then the remote works. It works okay but doesn't feel intuitive. In Remote mode if you press the Record button a microphone allows you to take voice memos.

Voice Memos on the iFM are pathetic. They are so quiet they're almost unhearable. If you want voice memos then buy the iMic from Belkin as it is a much better device for this. You need to remove the headphones to get the best recording but it makes no real difference.

FM mode works very well but recording sends it to the iPod as a voice memo. It's better than the mic though. FM mode uses the Forward and Reverse buttons to automatically scan (holding button in) or fine tuning (tapping button). It doesn't always lock into the correct station as can be seen by the second photo. It should read 95.6 for The Rock in Taranaki but I could get either 95.5 or 95.7 and so the quality was lack luster. This is more to do with FM as I get similar problems in car stereos, which have much stronger receivers in them. The headphones act as the aerials so I suggest using headphones with good cables.

All in all the iFM falls short. Clearly it's not designed for the iPod and it has the look and feel of this fact. Griffin should have concentrated on making a single device that did one thing and one thing well, integrating it with the iPod software much better than it has.

Incidentally, as of originally writing this review Apple released the iPod FM Remote so if you have a Nano or Video iPod then buy that instead. From what I've seen from the Keynote then this is what iFM should have been.

If you have an older iPod and you want FM radio then I recommend this. If you want an all in one unit that also does voice recording then sadly you will be greatly disappointed. FM mode is great but Voice mode is pathetic.