(Credit:
Kenwood)
LAS VEGAS--Yet another car audio manufacturer is testing out the CD-less lifestyle, as Kenwood announces its KIV-BT900 digital car audio receiver. Apparently, people don't just don't use discs anymore.
The KIV-BT900 drops its CD drive like a hot potato, instead focusing its attention on handling digital audio and video from USB-connected portable media players. Named among the supported devices are the iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch, and Zune. USB mass storage devices are also supported for a variety of audio (MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV), picture (JPEG and BMP), and video (MPEG4, WMV and H.264) formats.
When the vehicle is parked, the KIV-BT900 displays its menus, song data, album artwork, and video content on a 3-inch color TFT display. The KIV can also play back video while the vehicle is in motion, but only to an external monitor through its rear video output. Speaking of expandability, a trio of 4-volt preamp outputs allows for the addition of external amplification.
The BT in KIV-BT900 stands for Bluetooth, as the KIV-BT900 features Bluetooth wireless ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
Pioneer drops the CD drive with its MVH line of receivers.
(Credit: Pioneer)LAS VEGAS--Pioneer is taking steps into a segment of the car audio market that up until now has been monopolized by Alpine, with its first ever mech-free receivers, the MVH-P8200 and the MVH-P8200BT.
The V in MVH means these receivers can play back video.
(Credit: Pioneer)Tossing out the often-unused CD drive, the single-DIN MVH-P8200 has no moving parts--hence the designation "mech-free." The receiver was designed to work best with Apple's iPhone and iPod, but it should play back MP3, WMA, and iTunes AAC music files via USB and SD memory card. The USB port is located directly on the front face of the receivers and the SD memory card slot is located behind the removable front face.
In the case of the P8200BT, A2DP Bluetooth stereo audio-streaming and hands-free calling are also added as audio sources. Users can browse their media libraries on the P8200's 3-inch color TFT display using Pioneer's seven-way rotary encoder, which is a knob-joystick-button ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
We usually enjoy test driving the various Mercedes-Benz cars we get in at CNET headquarters, but the 2010 C350 that recently arrived was the exception. Although the C-class can be a comfortable cruiser and highly competent in the corners, this one was minimally optioned, making us long for the smaller-engine C300 we had tested previously. Lacking a navigation system, the included iPod integration kit had a horrible interface. And without that Harmon Kardon audio upgrade, the sound quality was mediocre. Our car did sport good-looking AMG wheels, but we would much rather have had decent cabin tech.
The painted grille and bulging fenders of the new Suzuki Kizashi give it an aggressive look. With tail pipes integrated into the rear bumper, you might think this is a new sport-luxury driver. But no, it is just another midsize sedan in a crowded market, with a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine under the hood. It does include a well-equipped cabin, with standard Bluetooth phone support, iPod integration, and a thumping Rockford Fosgate audio system.
The SRX name may not be new at Cadillac, but the car wearing it certainly is. The 2010 SRX is radically redesigned from earlier versions, opting for a more carlike suspension, while retaining a five-passenger SUV-like body. Borrowing much from the CTS sedan, the SRX has angular design cues around its body, and a very modern cabin tech suite, anchored by a very good navigation system. Power comes from a direct injection 3-liter V-6.
(Credit:
Magellan)
Following the launch of its turn-by-turn navigation app for iPhone, Magellan has released its Premium Car Kit for iPhone and iPod Touch. The Premium Car Kit features an amplified speaker for spoken directions, a Bluetooth speakerphone for hands-free calling, a built-in GPS receiver that should improve positioning compared with the iPhone 3G's built-in GPS as well as adds GPS positioning to first-generation iPhones and the iPod Touches.
The mount lets you rotate the iPhone to portrait and landscape views, and has a built-in charger. Essentially, it will behave exactly like TomTom's Car Kit; however, the Magellan kit has an adjusting arm that will let it accommodate an iPhone or iPod Touch with a protective case.
The Magellan Premium Car Kit will cost $129.99. When TomTom's kit debuted for slightly less than that price, it was universally regarded as too expensive, so we can already guess what sort of reception Magellan's kit will get.
Magellan's Premium Car Kit for iPhone is available now for preorder.
The Bentley Continental Supersports is the fastest car Bentley makes.
(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)
OK, we are going to get something out of the way from the beginning. The 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports may be the most extreme example of sport luxury available today, putting mere BMWs to shame, but its navigation system is terrible. The maps are very low resolution and, stored on a DVD, are slow to refresh and calculate routes. This navigation system lacks all but the most basic features, with no external data feeds or text to speech. It really doesn't belong in this car.
Let that rest as our main criticism so we can get to the good stuff, which is just about everything else.
Bentley has offered several variations of its Continental coupe since its introduction in 2003, but the Supersports model exhibits the purest level of performance. Bentley tweaked the already massive engine for more power, fitted wheels with big carbon ceramic brakes, and shed 243 pounds of weight, most notably by removing the rear seat.
And you really don't want a rear seat in this car, as you would resent any passengers back there for being a drag on performance, while they would unfriend you on Facebook for being relegated to such cramped quarters.
With its coupe design, the Bentley Continental Supersports cuts a nice profile.
(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)We were actually a little surprised at the manageable size of this car, making it easy to maneuver through parking garages and dense urban streets. Despite its smallish size, the body is a head-turner, with external lighting nicely molded into the body and the signature wire Bentley grille. The glossy black 20-inch wheels added to this car's unique look.
Of course, the engine also announces the Continental Supersports arrival with a throaty roar. When we pushed the start button, the engine's 12 cylinders began to pump, air was forced into the manifold from twin turbos, and 6 liters of displacement hosted precisely timed explosions that turned the driveshaft with 621 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque.
This kind of power means you can lightly tap the gas pedal and find yourself far ahead of the pack of traffic sitting back there at the light, the drivers just putting their cell phones down so they can get back to the business of driving. Put the gas down a little harder and you push up to freeway speeds, the car showing very little effort. Introduce the pedal to the floor and you've begun a career in amateur rocketry.
... Read MoreOn Sale Now:
$273,295.00
View the latest prices for 2010 Bentley Continental Supersports
BMW's X6 is a bit difficult to digest, a coupelike body with the proportions and stance of an SUV, managing to lose the virtues of both types of vehicles. And now BMW has given it the M treatment, putting a massively powerful engine under the hood and fitting the suspension with all sorts of ingenious gear to make this vehicle handle like a sports car. Its greatest asset may be that it defies easy categorization.
Cabin tech is good, with really beautiful maps in the navigation system, but we do think that a $90,000 car should have an iPod connection as standard. The X5 M offers the same tech as the X6 M, yet has practical interior space, making it the more obvious choice. But then again, BMW's M cars have never been about practicality.
The problem with big cars with lots of horsepower is that, unless you live near the Utah Salt Flats, you never get to actually use all that potential. And going fast in a straight line isn't lasting fun. But a small car with good handling and a torque-y engine can lead to hours of enjoyment on winding roads. That's where the Mazdaspeed3 comes in.
This hot hatchback offers tight, quick handling appropriate for tackling mountain roads with switchbacks, while its small, turbocharged engine pours on the twist. The tech features in the cabin are only moderate, but Mazda employs a clever implementation of navigation.
Driving enthusiasts and long-time city dwellers scoff at automatic parallel parking systems, but when it works as well as the one in the Lincoln MKS, well, you just have to marvel at the technology. This new MKS not only has the excellent cabin tech and luxury appointments of the previous year's model, but Lincoln added new tech features, such as the parking system, to really put this car over the top. Couple all that with the new Ecoboost engine, and it's a near technological masterpiece.
