Blaupunkt 'Brisbane' in-dash stereo leaves out the CD player

The Blaupunkt 'Brisbane SD48' is a in-dash car stereo that forgoes the CD entirely in favor of SD cards, external MP3 players, phones, USB flash and hard disk drives. Because it's all solid state, they're pitching it as a solution for those who partake in "high G-force motorsports and...off-road enthusiasts."

Unfortunately the actual file-handling capabilities seem a bit lackluster:

The Blaupunkt Brisbane SD48 has a front panel SD/MMC card-slot, headphone-jack input for portable MP3 player, and a USB input that allows the addition of storage devices such as a portable hard-drive or thumb-drive loaded with digital music. It supports both MP3 and WMA audio files at bit-rates of 8 to 320 kilobits. The Brisbane accommodates up to 127 music directories, and displays ID3 tag information up to 30 characters in length. The 3.5 mm front-panel auxiliary input is compatible with the headphone or aux outputs of nearly any portable device.

In-dash head units with USB or SD card slots are not uncommon; I don't see how useful leaving out the CD drive is considering the car is one of the last places people tend to use CDs. Additionally, lots of cars already have "MP3" minijacks, so if your iPod is your primary music device, there's little reason to install an additional $160 head unit just for that. There are additional iPod and Bluetooth modules that will give you direct access to your iPod or cellphone through the head unit, but still, it seems like you're mostly paying nearly two bills just to use bigger knobs.

Press Release [GSPR.com]

Discussion

Take a look at this

#1 posted by Tommy

, April 23, 2008 12:53 PM

My Sony Xplode has USB, CD/MP3 disc, aux jack in, and an iPod connector.

That said, an onboard SD slot would be less obtrusive than a big-ass USB/SD connector sticking out.

#2 posted by DeWynken , April 23, 2008 2:06 PM

I'd be okay with it IF it was hovering at the $100 pricemark and not double that. And 127 directories is a joke..it should be triple or more that at the least. AND have a front USB port for flash drives.

#3 posted by Anonymous , April 23, 2008 6:11 PM

"...it seems like you're mostly paying nearly two bills just to use bigger knobs."

Um... there are no knobs.

#4 posted by certron , April 24, 2008 1:10 PM

I have (and am happy with) my VR3 unit. Supports SD, USB and CD, with either MP3 or WMA (although I've not tested the WMA-ness yet). Detachable faceplate, convenient AUX input, and even a remote control. I installed it myself without setting the car on fire, which was nice. All this, for only about $80. Yeah, I'm cheap.

http://www.roadmasterusa.com/vr3_auto.html

I currently have the VRCD500SDU but I had the VRCD400SDU in a previous car. The VRCD500SDU shows up very briefly in the movie Superbad, but I think I may be the only person in a 100 mile radius who noticed it.

#5 posted by Burnchao , April 24, 2008 10:59 PM

"I don't see how useful leaving out the CD drive is considering the car is one of the last places people tend to use CDs."

What does that mean? If the car is one of the last places people tend to use CDs, then it makes a lot of sense to get rid of the CD drive.

#6 posted by Joel Johnson

, April 25, 2008 5:20 AM

Burnchao, that sentence is a bit stickily worded, but you're reading it idiomatically when you should be reading it literally.