Since it seems like the technology is available, how is it that no one offers an attachment to load tunes onto a hard drive ? Then slip the HD into some kind of interface in the car. The docking in the car will have the profile needed to allow you to controll all via the car's radio.
You load or re-load tunse as needed. The HD would stay docked in the car. And eliminate the need to jockey the Ipod in and out of the car.
Anybody know if somebody is working on this ??

 

Many new cars have this built in. It automatically copies any cd inserted into the player onto the hard drive. The ZDX has it, not sure of the other newer Acuras.

 

Also, not sure that a HD system makes sense as an accessory. You would have to take the HD out of the car to load tunes and people already have their tunes on ipod or similar. Thus, you would constantly be copying tunes onto HD that are already on a similar device. Plus, most itunes cannot be copied onto other devices.

 

When I buy a CD I load it into a PC and then add the data to a MP3 compilation disc to play it in the RL. I then put the CD in the MDX and load it onto the Hard Drive. Lastly, I load the CD into the Bose system in my house so that I can listen to it at any location throughout the house.
The codec in the MDX is quite good but not as good as the CD. An MP3 @320kbs in the RL played back is significantly less quality than the original.
BTW - the Bose records using a propriety MP3 codec and sounds very good.
MP3 is becoming the norm so many people do not hear the true quality of a CD and a CD is an old technology compramise using 16 bits at 44.1KHz clock sampling. As a reference, play your DVD-A using a discrete 5.1, 24 bit 96KHz DTS encoded. This will give you what our systems are capable of.
If the true quality of an IPOD was any good then I might even buy one. Their claim to fame is convenience not quality.