After a period of uncertainty CE manufacturers and auto electronics installers now face the prospect of dealing with OEM installations that make aftermarket system add-ons and upgrades difficult with the defiance of a hardened street-fighter: in short, “bring it on”.

This new, more confident attitude can be traced to a host of direct and work-around solutions for coping with factory stereos that are tied into the vehicle's electrical system for climate control or other key vehicle functions. Major brands, including Alpine, Kenwood, JBL and Rockford Fosgate, among others, have introduced OEM integration devices that essentially act as alternative headunits and make it possible for consumers to obtain improved audio and video performance.

As the name implies, OEM-integration is the process of integrating new equipment into, or onto, systems made by the automobile makers. Put another way, it is the effort to make a piece of aftermarket audio, video or navigation equipment play well with something that is already in the car, having been installed at the factory. This removal and/or replacement process is done while maintaining factory features such as steering wheel controls, and all of the other convenience and control elements the vehicle originally included.

Comparing the various new OEM integration units with each other is a matter of taste.  Kenwood’s KOS-A200, for example, allows multiple outboard devices to be integrated with the vehicle's OEM system. Such devices could include disc changers, USB memory storage sticks, MP3 players of all kinds including, of course, i-Pod players, HD Radio and satellite radio tuners. The unit also can be used for hands-free cell phone integration using Kenwood’s own Bluetooth adapter. The level of integration of the KOS-A200 allows RDS FM text to be displayed on the OEM radio (song titles, selected track, etc.) from devices connected through the USB input.

Alpine’s Vehicle Hub Pro (VPA-B222) product also allows consumers to add things like iPod, satellite radio, HD Radio, DVD players and navigation to the factory system. The VPA-B222 consists of two parts: a hide-away “brain” and a wired rotary commander, called the "orb". It has a built-in radio tuner and a computer-controlled fan to cool the internal 18W RMS x 4 amplifier. The “brain” connects to the OEM system with the use of a vehicle-specific third party adapter, sold separately.

Taking a different drummer design approach by removing all factory equalization is Rockford Fosgate. With as many as 153 bands of equalization and signal manipulation, the 3SIXTY° Interactive Signal Processor will correct automatically and, if needed, overcome prior factory equalization settings, restoring a flat frequency response while adding an additional auxiliary input to the OEM system for in-car entertainment devices such as gaming and MP3 players. Rockford Fosgate’s 3SIXTY° Interactive Signal Processor is available in two platforms: the 3SIXTY° .1 optimizes equalization without the need to modify the existing OEM source unit. The upgraded 3SIXTY° .2 offers a fully interactive touch-screen wireless solution.

Connecting Digital Audio Players
As is to be expected given the popularity of Apple’s iPod and other digital music products, consumers now want to be able to access their music files anywhere they go, including the family car. Respecting the fact that one in four households now owns a digital audio player, according to published reports, many of the newer OEM radios are already MP3-compatible and, in many cases, also satellite radio compatible.

A Telematics Research Group (TRG) survey of 264 autos on display at the 2006 North American International Auto Show in Detroit found that 154 car models support MP3 music playback while over 200 models support satellite radio. Ten major auto brands representing 39 models currently sell iPod adapters or radios with auxiliary-input jacks in the U.S. market, said TRG. The research firm forecasts that by 2011 28 million cars in the U.S. and 73 million cars worldwide will be equipped with iPod integration solutions of one kind or another.

So guess what? You don’t have to be Einstein to figure out that aftermarket suppliers are designing headunits and/or adapters to connect and control the user’s favorite gadgets. Industry watchers put growth in the number of iPod-compatible headunits at anywhere from 15 to 40 percent in 2005, and many expect even stronger gains this year.

Alpine has boosted the data transmission speed of its new iPod connector. The aptly named Full Speed Connection for iPod works via a simple cable that directly links an iPod to one of Alpine’s seven 2006 source units, without a bulky hideaway box. The Full Speed Connection for iPod lets users control their iPod through the headunit, with the experience more closely resembling a direct interfacing with the iPod itself. Beyond faster file navigation the connection offers artist, album, song and playlist information displayed directly on the headunit, all while charging the iPod battery.

Clarion has two multimedia units featuring iPod connectivity with complete, on-screen viewing and control of all third-generation and newer iPod units (including Photo, Nano, Mini and fifth generation iPod with video). The brand’s MAX675VD also features a touch-screen, DVD playback, voice recognition control of an optional hard disk drive (HDD) navigation system, 5.1-channel surround processing capabilities, satellite radio connectivity and component connectivity to CD/DVD changers, a TV tuner and additional video monitors. The unit’s iPod functionality even extends to displaying the user’s iTunes library on its 7-inch LCD screen.

Competing MP3 players won’t upstage the iPod in 2006 but to make sure all bases are covered, Dual has the first stereo headunits that will allow device connectivity and playback of content from MP3 players with PlaysForSure technology. When used with its Media Adapter, consumers can command and control playback from their Dual mobile audio systems. The Microsoft Windows Media PlaysForSure logo will appear on a large selection of devices and on verified online music stores to assure consumers that the digital music and video they purchase will play back on the device, every time.

Bluetooth and USB
The appeal of Bluetooth-ready headunits is hard to miss. With more U.S. states passing laws requiring hands-free use of mobile phones in the car, a Bluetooth (which is a wireless standard used to transmit data over relatively small distances) headunit then can act as a speaker phone; a Bluetooth-enabled phone and a connectivity kit are required.

One example comes from Pioneer. The model AVIC-Z1 is a double-DIN sized, multimedia navigation system utilizing Bluetooth wireless technology for hands-free mobile phone operation, including talking via the headunit's microphone and the vehicle's speaker system. Consumers can store their phone’s number book then access it by voice or via the touch-screen display. For even more convenience, consumers can access phone numbers associated with the nav unit’s places of interest database, letting them call the location they are being guided to. The AVIC-Z1 also features a 30-GB HDD to deliver information and entertainment programming to drivers or passengers; ten GB of its HDD space is reserved for a music library.

Another development to watch in today’s headunits is the addition of USB ports for portable flash memory drives. The flash drives are about the size of a small rabbit’s foot and, similarly, can be kept on a keychain. USB drives can store digital tunes, making them a great alternative to carrying a stack of CDs and they soon could bring photos or video to car stereo units. Insert a USB drive into the headunit and it is recognized as a disc with MP3 or WMA files to be decoded and played back.

This is definitely cool stuff. But what if you want to connect an iPod, satellite radio or a hands-free mobile phone to your system all at once? Panasonic has an answer in its CY-EM100U expansion module for Panasonic mobile audio systems. The unit provides interfaces for connection to both Sirius and XM satellite radio tuners simultaneously, up to two iPods to access audio tracks saved to the unit (four if just charging), as well as easy connection to a Bluetooth module, camcorder or video game. You even can connect Panasonic's CX-DP880 CD changer via an optional adapter, and you get an auxiliary A/V input for whatever else you want to add.