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- Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 17 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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8 out of 8 people found this review helpful
5.0 stars
"Awesome Device! Great Price! No Wires on your dash."
Pros: No Wires, Great Sound, No clutter!
Cons: Small Remote!
Summary: Just got it for X-mas. My girlfriend hates that i love Howard Stern, but she knew Sirius and Howard was the only thing I wanted for X-mas.
She initially got me the Siruis Sportser Replay ($170 for unit). And that unit was big, ugly (the blue backlight is gross)and came with so much wires and clutter that it looked like an octopus on my dash after we set it up. After a few minutes I could not bear to have it in my smallish 3 series BMW sedan. NOTE: if you have the spaciousness of a SUV cabin then the enormous Replay may suit you.
Anyway I wanted a more portable device with minimal wire clutter and a screen/backlight that was not too gaudy and bright.
The Xact Visor for only $40 was a far better replacement. Bestbuy charged me $40 to hard wire the antenna and power cord cables behind my dash so I have no wire clutter at all. And the visor sits snug on my windshield at the drivers side A-pillar (to the left of the steering wheel). The orange backlight is very clear and matches my BMW's orange dash...so that effect is also cool.
POSITIVES: Easy to use, cheap and quick to set up in your car, it is both low priced and good quality-something that has become a rarity in the electronics business. Easy to unclip from stand and take inside your house or lock away in glovebox. The small size is a big plus. The Sporter Replay could not even fit in my glovebox and that was a negative. This is important and something a consumer is not going to realize until he/she is setting the unit up in the car and realize that there are already DVD/GPS units, Radar detectors, iPods, cellphones, cupholders, air fresheners and a bunch of other in car gadgets sharing the cigarette lighter, dash space and glove box space. The visor literally saves you from sacrificing anymore space. For me that was MOST important. Sound quality thru the FM transmitter was way clearer than the FM stations themselves. It comes thru clear and loud with NO static. I mean absolutely NO static. I previously had an iPod hooked up with an iTrip FM transmitter and the sound quality was horribly low and full of static. This is unlike that. All other positives can pretty much be extended to the Sirius programming that must be experienced to really get a sense of how amazing satellite radio is.
CONS:
Like every in car remote control I've ever seen and used, the visor's remote is no exception in being small, dark, plagued with low profile buttons and impossible to for the driver to use safely whiles driving. Even passengers at night will find the dark, small buttons hard to see. My advice is leave it in the backseat. The unit is much easier for the driver to use without the remote. Another Con is not inherent to the device but has to do with the Law in certain states that prohibits radar detector. Two days with the visor and everyone who has seen it my car has asked me "When and why did I get a radar detector?" It looks exactly like one. Buyers of the Visor should get ready to explain to the Highway Patrol all about satellite radio and how you got the Visor because someone gave it a great cNet review.
A final con is the homekit; it is hard to find and pricey ($50.00...which is more than the cost of the unit). The homekit basically consist of another antenna, a 12v AC adaptor and an extra stand for the Visor, also audio cable plugs are included.
I found that a trip down to the Radioshack allowed me to get the AC plug for $5.00 the audio cables for $4.00 and I bought the Xact brand general sirius home antenna for $10.00.
BOTTOM LINE: There is no bottomline; get this device now!
Where to buy
Xact XTR3CK Visor (Sirius):
$29.95
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Amazon.com Marketplace
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$29.95 | Yes |
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