Cheap Mobile Video for Vehicles
While manufacturers are busy patting themselves on the back and talking about how affordable mobile video is the majority of consumers are still saying "Affordable?". With name brand in-dash video units costing $1,000-2,000 they are still out of the reach of many folks that would like to have video in their vehicle.
Mobile Video Alternatives
Just like when buying any piece of electonic equipment there are alternative brands that are less expensive. Going with these second or third tier brands can cost less than half as much as the major brands. But are they worth the money? Let's take a brief look at two different models, one from a major brand and one from a second tier brand.
| Name Brand | Second Tier Brand | |
| Price | $1,000 |
$500 |
| Plays DVDs | Y |
Y |
| Monitor Included | Y |
Y |
| TV tuner | N |
Y |
| Satellite Radio | Y |
N |
| Built in speaker power | Y |
N |
| Equalizer | Y |
N |
| Touchscreen | Y |
N |
| iPod™ input | Y |
N |
| Backup camera input | Y |
N |
| Navigation input | Y |
N |
| A/V input | Y |
Y |
| RCA audio outputs | 3 |
1 |
| Warranty (years) | 1 |
1 |
As you can see you get more with the higher priced top brand. However you do get a TV tuner with this lower brand so if that's important you should take that into consideration (may be useless after the switch to digital TV transmissions). But then there are also other intangibles such as quality. They both have a one year warranty but how long will they really last? I wouldn't want to pay $500 if the unit wouldn't last past the first year. That's always something to take into account and $500 can be quite a gamble, though there are no guarantees with the $1,000 product either.
Decision Time
So what do you do? Should you go with the lower priced product and live with fewer features and maybe reduced quality? If you only need mobile video and are willing to take a chance on a second tier manufacturer then yes. Should you save your pennies and go with the name brand? If you have the patience to wait and really want the extras you will get with the name brand then yes. Or should you just wait it all out and hope mobile video prices come down to lower price levels? You could but the price of mobile video likely won't drop in half for another year or more. If you're hot for mobile video now your best bet is to go with one of the first two options. Otherwise forget about mobile video and stick with an audio only system (there's no shame in that).
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The Car Audio Help DVD catalog includes five different videos covering many areas of car audio installation and custom fabrication. Topics range from basic system installation (head units, CD changers, amplifiers, speakers, etc.) and mobile security (car alarms and remote start) to subwoofer box design and fiberglass fabrication. If you're interested in custom fabrication and car audio installation be sure to check out what we have to offer. |
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