SD Card or Ipod

[jjg]

I picked up my 2010 5.2 today and found out that it did not come with the ipod connection. My salesperson said that it can be added now (dont know cost) but that I should consider using the SD card slots. I searched the forum and didnt find an exact answer to my question which is---any advantages/disadvantages of using SD Cards instead of Ipod? Before I make a big deal about my order being "screwed up", would like to know if it really matters. Thanks for any help.

[TonnyG]

I might be wrong but I thought the Ipod interface was standard on the V10.

Tonny

[smoothy]

I use an SD card, I don't download music from Apple (my music is all mp3) so not much need for my iphone to be connected to the car, I don't even synch my phone via Bluetooth with the problems the '09s have with iphone volume and address book (I use a third party Bluetooth box that I can move between cars).

[SteveR]

I'm not 100% sure on this, so others may correct me:

-iPod connection is a no cost option, but it may cost some to add it later

-iPod interface is analog

-SD card interface is digital, so with one less DA conversion the sound quality should be better

-SD card slot is limited to SDHC cards, so 32 GB max. My collection is 30GB, so using the slot may eventually mean multiple cards or choosing what to bring.

I made sure I had the iPod interface in mine, but in the end will probably be using the SD card for the higher SQ and to avoid iTunes, except perhaps for podcasts.

[hmp10]

When I ordered my V10, I had to choose between a CD player or the MMI / iPod interface. (For some reason, you can't order both.) Since I have some classical CD's which I occasionally want to play in the car without bothering to rip to an iPod or without using mp3 compression, I opted for the CD player option which includes 2 SD card slots.

I bought a little $45 gizmo from a computer store (I think it's called a "ClickFree") that you plug in between an iPod and a PC that allows you to download the iPod to the PC. I then simply copied the contents from the PC to a 32 gb SD card. The SD card preserves all the folders as they were set up on the iPod.

Between the two slots, you have 64 gb of storage (same as on the highest-capacity iPod), and you don't have to worry about your iPod bumping around in the car or being stolen.

I would rather have had an iPod interface as well as the CD changer, but Audi simply doesn't make that choice available.

[jjg]

When I ordered my V10, I had to choose between a CD player or the MMI / iPod interface. (For some reason, you can't order both.) Since I have some classical CD's which I occasionally want to play in the car without bothering to rip to an iPod or without using mp3 compression, I opted for the CD player option which includes 2 SD card slots.

I bought a little $45 gizmo from a computer store (I think it's called a "ClickFree") that you plug in between an iPod and a PC that allows you to download the iPod to the PC. I then simply copied the contents from the PC to a 32 gb SD card. The SD card preserves all the folders as they were set up on the iPod.

Between the two slots, you have 64 gb of storage (same as on the highest-capacity iPod), and you don't have to worry about your iPod bumping around in the car or being stolen.

I would rather have had an iPod interface as well as the CD changer, but Audi simply doesn't make that choice available.

Thanks--does that mean that you can't have Audi put in the Ipod interface at the dealership? My salesperson told me that he thinks it can be installed, but has to get back to me.

[hmp10]

I don't know. I was told there is a different head unit if you get the MMI interface. If that's the case, I don't know if you'd have full functionality with an iPod. I've had dealer retrofits of iPod kits into my other cars that didn't have factory iPod interfaces. You can adjust volume and track skip from the main controls, but you have to use the iPod itself to access the main controls, such as playlist and artist selection. I suspect that might be the case with the Audi retrofit . . . but I'm not sure.

[jjg]

Thanks. Dealer is looking into it. If you have the ipod interface from the factory, any idea what they put in the location between the seats where the cd changer is located?

[SDR8]

any idea what they put in the location between the seats where the cd changer is located?

Have you seen picts of the AMI? It is a cover that folds down for access to the port to plug in an audio device.

OEMPlus offers it as an upgrade kit. You can read about the topic in a thread called "Knowledge Base: Audi Music Interface (AMI)" in the OEMPlus section of this forum.

[jjg]

Thank you. I have not seen it, but that post was helpful (and I now see why you cannot have both--thought Ipod connection was in the glove compartment). Sounds like they can swap out the cd player fairly easily, but still curious what happens to the Aux connection in the center console, which I assume wouldnt have been there had the ipod connection been installed from the beginning---would prefer for it to not look like something was modified post factory production.