The wide open road. The windows down on a warm spring day. The wind whips through your car and tosses your hair about. The lo-fi tunes strain to be heard from your car speakers because you’re using a tape-deck adapter to listen to your iPhone or iPod. If you’re looking to upgrade your system from its roots in the 1990s, Sony’s CDX-GT730UI Xplod GT Series CD Receiver (longest name ever) is a low-cost solution for getting your car to play nice with your iPod or iPhone.

The single-DIN CDX-GT730UI is surprisingly versatile--Sony has all of your digital bases covered. If you’re still purchasing CDs from the corner music store, the built-in CD player covers your old-school needs. The auxiliary input is great for iPod shuffles and other MP3 players. But the real power is the USB connection at the front of the device.

Plug your iPod, iPhone, memory stick--or God forbid, a Zune--into the head unit and you’re immersed in the sweet glory of digital music without the limitations of AUX inputs, FM transmitters, and tape adapters. The CDX-GT730UI gives you the option to control your iPod or iPhone via the head unit or via the iPod or iPhone itself. For those used to navigating the iPhone or iPod while driving, you’ll be able to navigate tracks using the Sony’s buttons instead. The CDX-GT730UI’s navigation isn’t as intuitive as your iPod’s, but it’s one of the easiest to use of the car stereos we’ve tested. Some of the playback controls--Shuffle and Pause, for example--share the same buttons as numbered station memory buttons. When driving at night, the numbers are illuminated, but unfortunately the iPod controls above the numbers are not. Aside from a bit of night blindness, the button layout is simple, and for that we are grateful. All the main buttons are on the left side of the device near the driver, and the controls are positioned logically.

Cars drive by with the boomin' system.

Like most car audio companies, Sony decided to add an annoying repeating demo video to the display. When and why the trend began is beyond us, but if you want to be able to see the track information without triggering an epileptic seizure, be sure to change the display as soon as you fire up the device for the first time. Once you’ve banished the trippy video, the display can be set to one of a number of display modes, including a visual EQ. We chose the option with the least amount of background action, and we’re happy to report that the display is very easy to read in all but the most direct sunlight.

The Sony’s 52W four-speaker output works for the casual audio buff and doesn’t shortchange users looking to upgrade their car stereo. If you’re looking for an LL Cool J–style boomin’ system, 4V preamp outputs make it easy to add external amps to power larger and more complicated gear.

We did encounter an odd bug with the unit after the iPhone OS 3.0 update: We had to unplug and replug our iPhone into the head unit a few times in order for the Sony to recognize the iPhone. Once recognized, the unit and the iPhone had no trouble communicating with each other. Hopefully, the issue will be remedied with a future update.

Sony's CDX-GT730UI is an inexpensive car stereo with digital connectivity built in--and it works with your iPhone. It's finally time to toss that tape adapter out the window.

CDX-GT730UI Xplod
COMPANY: Sony
CONTACT: www.sony.com
PRICE: $199.99
REQUIREMENTS: iPod with dock connector or other audio device
Inexpensive. Ready for anything you can throw at it.
A few bugs with the iPhone 3.0 OS. Some controls invisible at night.