I have read a lot of negative reviews about FM car transmitters for MP3 players. I was especially hesitant to buy one from Sandisk because it is not really a well-known MP3 player like iPod, Creative Labs, etc. In the end, I figured it would be worth it because although the Sandisk e140 may not have certain features or size capabilities as others, it was definately a quality product that is very well priced, so I figured the FM transmitter would follow suite. Thankfully, I was right. The FM transmitter is by far one of the best design I have seen. The adjustable neck allows me to set the Transmitter right next to my CD car stereo and tilt it to face me, which allows me to hit the next song button as easy as it is to reach the car stereo. Other products I have seen are limp, or just wires that you have to rest on the center console, or passanger seat. The only downside to this is that although the MP3 player remains powered by the car its indigo light goes off after about a minute so I am unable to see the display. Not really a negative towards the transmitter, but of the MP3 player.
A key element I have read about faulty, or glitched FM tranmitters for MP3 players is that static can be heard in the background no matter how much you turn up the volume, and sound quality is very poor. Regarding the Sandisk, these are not issues at all. There are 3 presets so you dont have to find the good stations every time you use it. In addition, the sound quality is great, perhaps even better than the car stereo sound settings presently depending on the quality of your car stereo. The sound setting can be adjusted on your MP3 player to make the sound quality even more precise than the car stereo's.
Overall, I highly recommend this to anyone who has thought to buy an FM transmitter for their Sansa and avoided it because of other mainstream MP3 brands tainting opinions.
--One last note. I am in Chicago so I dont know if that is a cause for such good empty FM signals for the MP3 transmitter to pick up on.--
Buy SanDisk Sansa e100 FM Transmitter Now
As the other reviewer mentioned, this is an all-around quality product for the Sansa e-series MP3 players. However, its one fatal flaw is that your car's cigarette lighter better be close to the driver as the steel neck on this unit is short.
If your car's cigarette lighter is close to the driver (or in the central console) and you have a Sansa e-series, you can't go wrong with picking this up. But if your car has the cigarette lighter outlet in a non-standard location, keep in mind that this steel neck will not stretch, but will only rotate so you may not be able to read the lcd screen on the mp3 player while driving.
With all the batteries I've gone through listening to my mp3's on the way to work, this product would have been very useful as, once it's plugged in, it consumes energy from the car and conserves the batteries for when you need them most.
Sansa could easily receive 5 stars if they made the neck longer and allowed an option to keep the indigo light permanently on when plugged in. The actual FM transmitter works better than most.
Read Best Reviews of SanDisk Sansa e100 FM Transmitter Here
After reviewing several other FM transmitters I chose this one for my Sansa e100 series MP3 player (the player is also a great product). It is more expensive then others on the market but it has several features that make it well worth the money. Besides not draining the battery in the player it plays great with little or no distortion or background noise. It holds the player securely and allows you to position it with the adjustable neck. Although the back light on the player doesn't stay on when in the transmitter a 5 second setting adjustment on the player will allow the backlight to stay on while the player is on. I personally don't find it to be a problem or flaw; I think it would be irritating at night to have it on all the time. Overall this is a great combo for the car.
Want SanDisk Sansa e100 FM Transmitter Discount?
After trying out a cheap FM transmitter, the SanDisk produced FM transmitter does a MUCH better job. Finding free radio space in Saint Louis is tough but the transmitter seems to be able to even block out a few nasty straggler stations that come in weakly.
I did not like a few things about this purchase:
a.) The fact that the steel neck is SO long creates a wobbly fit. This means that when you hit a bump, your transmitter may start to swing over.
b.) The fit in general is a little iffy. You REALLY have work to get this to fit right in my truck (dodge dakota).
c.) Silicone case if you buy the SanDisk produced silicone case, don't assume that it will fit in your FM transmitter you have to take it out.
d.) FM transmitter is ONLY for your car: There seems to be some ambiguity about this. It MUST be powered by your car no batteries, and the belt clip is just a belt clip, not a way to bring your FM transmiter to other places.
e.) Take it out. The transmitter remains "on" even while your car is off. Take it out or risk losing your car battery.
I did like:
a.) Sends a stronger FM signal out than other transmitters I tried.
b.) The idea and look of the transmitter --even if there are some design flaws.
c.) The option to preset 3 radio stations of your own choosing.
All around I don't know if I would buy this if I had to do all over again, but having bought this transmitter I would not return it.
Save 20% Off
There are problems with the fit in the DC socket. But once you find a frequency free from static, this thing sounds great. Very happy with it in general. I've bought several other kinds at the local target and have never been happy with FM transmitters. This is as close to "happy" I have found so far. You really have to put the time in and go through all the frequencies to find that magic one.
