XM XVSAP1V1 SkyDock with Built-In XM Tuner for iPhone and iPod Touch

5 comments

1. 

   L. Love on December 17, 2009 at 7:40 am

   Plug doesn’t fit the smaller BMW power points. In my case, a 330xi. Had to return it.

2. 

   Street Dog on December 17, 2009 at 9:51 am

   This product was advertised as a holder for the iphone for automobile use but did not specifically state that it would not work UNLESS the iphone was registered as an XM radio. There are two XM apps for the iphone: one which allows limited channel access and the other which purportedly allows all channels.
   
   The app with limited channels works well in WiFi or 3G mode ( if ATT provides a signal ) while the other app will not work unless connected to this product. Nothing will function unless the iphone is registered as an additional radio at an additional charge at whatever rate the XM person states when customer service is called.
   
   All in all, unless a person wants to pay for another subscription, there is no reason to buy the non functional holder. I should have been more inquisitive to what I thought was a great idea but just another way to waste $100.00
   
   As to the holder, the charging stem is a bit short for use in my auto and definitely will not work on my Harley. Maybe it will work for you.

3. 

   Malibucapellino on December 17, 2009 at 12:41 pm

   Returned this item due to: poor fm transmition, very poor ease of set up and most important the rip off of xm subscription. I joined so called Sirus/xm radio for $33 during a trial period PRIOR to the skydock launce streaming via Iphone.. It came with Sirus and xm channels since the 2 companies merged (only on paper not customer service etc). This trial for $33 was for 6 mos to try it out cool…. So I thought. This subsciption with Sirus/ xm will not work with Skydock. I would have to cancel membership with sirus and join as new member XM. I called sirus to transfer service and the Rep. “Mike” said: oh you don’t have to cancel I reccommend this other transmitter I can send u for free and u can use the iPhone app and save $99 for skydock. Bottomline: I returned it. Xm/sirus are still tech and service 2 separate companies with very poor service agents, will be out of business <1 year is my estimate and for $12/mo. U can stream aol/pandora soon other free so called commercial free apps via iPhone. The iPhone phone sounds poor due to static on this fm transmitter. My solution? iPod module for your car (iPod and any app u have:aol radio, pandora and till march cancel date for me Sirus). 2nd for phone calls: Parrot Bluetooth Mki9200. Trust me it was $180 plus $160 still cheaper when u pay $12+ mo plus set up fees Xm. Just a thought. I’ll miss oprah radio, CNN and talk radio but not the static and commercials and fees.

4. 

   C. Trimble on December 17, 2009 at 3:30 pm

   I am an existing sirius customer who bought this thinking that I could just add it to my account because xm and sirius are one now. Well not so fast buddy. No can do. You have to create an account with xm and then instead of just adding another radio to your account for $6. You have to pay $12 and you can only pay it by having a xm account.

   I bought this to listen to Howard Stern using my iphone in my Jeep.

   Had I not wanted to listen to Howard Stern I could just pay $3 to sirius and get the ability to listen over the iphone web connection.

   Not happy.

   Dont buy this until sirius and xm settle the family feud.

5. 

   Jason M. Williams on December 17, 2009 at 4:36 pm

   I bought the XM Skydock after getting a new car that wasn’t equipped with satellite radio and needing a solution to have satellite radio and iphone connectivity without wires running everywhere. The initial appeal was the efficiency of using the iPhones far-superior OLED screen and touch interface as my XM radio tuner, AND using the same hardware to get non-XM audio to the car stereo.

   Installation was very easy. The power-outlet mount is surprisingly sturdy and tight. It will hold it’s position with minimal vibrations while driving, but a passenger can easily grab it and reposition to change the channel. The antenna wire and optional aux-line both connect to the base, facilitating a good wire-hiding job for a nice clean installation. I can’t review the new FM power-connect feature, as I chose the Aux-line installation, but I can say that the unit provides some good clean amplification for both XM audio and regular iPod audio. Nice rich deep bass and no noticeable electrical noise, indicating that the unit must have decent ground loop isolation built in. The sound was far better than when I previously had the iPhone connected via a direct line to the aux input.

   I give the hardware 5 stars, the required iPhone app gets 4 starts for now due to some quirks, but hopefully there will be updates. It keeps deactivating the screen even though I have the keep alive option checked, and sometimes it won’t respond easily to a tap when trying to change the channel while driving. It is, however, substantially better than anything I’ve ever seen from a traditional Sirius XM receiver. Plus there’s the added value of being able to easily take a phone call even if you don’t have a fancy integrated bluetooth in your car, and each individual iPhone can carry it’s own favorites and other settings without paying for multiple subscriptions. Of course, perfect ubiquity is hindered by Apple’s iPhone OS limitations. If the XM Skydock app could be backgrounded, it would be possible to tune in a channel and then switch to GPS navigation on the same device. For now I’ll just have to stick to the dual iPhone solution when my wife and I are travelling.