Dension Gateway 500 iPod Integration Review

It’s been a long time since I’ve had some new toys to play with, and just like the buses, three come along at once!

Last month I got 3 new toys to play with which were all related to a new car purchase – a Dension Gateway 500 iPod Car Integration Kit, a TomTom Go 720 and a new iPod Classic to use as my main iPod as my 5G 60GB is now permanently in the car.

For the last four years, I’ve been using various FM transmitters to play my iPod music on my car stereo. The problem with this method in London is because there are so many pirate stations, it’s hard to find a clear frequency. Because of this, the audio quality can fluctuate and at times be quite poor.

The Dension Gateway 500 iPod car kit does away with this problem by connecting directly to a car stereo system via a fibre optic cable providing CD-quality sound and also control of the iPod via the car’s head unit. Also contained within the Dension package were connectors for an aux input and USB players, as well as clips to hold the iPod in place. I hooked up the USB connector as well, as this is what is used to upgrade the software on the Dension unit.

After a couple of hours I managed to get the Dension Gateway 500 tucked away behind the car’s centre console, and the iPod and USB cable safely installed in the glovebox, and being able to hear my mp3 tracks in all their glory has really enhanced my driving experience.

Controlling the iPod from the head unit is quite easy once you get the hang of it. Basically the Dension acts like a CD Changer, where each ‘CD’ on the head unit performs a different function:

• CD 1 – allows selection of playlists and Next/Back moves through the playlists
• CD 2 – allows selection of artists and Next/Back moves through the artists
• CD 3 – allows selection of albums and Next/Back moves through the albums
• CD 5 – allows is a ‘parking position’ which just allows the navigation backwards and forwards through the currently selected playlist/album or artist e.g. in the pic below I’m listening to track 66 in the current playlist

Unfortunately my head unit doesn’t display the details of the track that is currently being played, and I didn’t discover this until I after I’d set everything up. In a way I’m glad I didn’t know this before I chose my car options, as I’m coping without the display as I tend to use playlists in the car, as the alternative would have been to pay for an expensive stereo upgrade. If I really need to find a particular track, CD 6 allows me to toggle between iPod and Head Unit control, so I can use the iPod navigation if I need to.

Another bonus with integrating the iPod is providing access to the iPod’s graphic equaliser. This has added a new dimension to the car stereo, and has allowed me to remove the nasty ‘boom’ that the subwoofer in my car was making.

If you’re looking for a iPod Integration kit, then I’d definitely recommend checking out the Dension Gateway 500.