| alpines Iva W200 Mobile Multimedia Station front View
When it comes to aftermarket electronics for your truck, a motorized LCD screen in your dash that plays your favorite DVDs is one of the coolest options out there - especially if it's integrated with a high-power mobile audio system. There are only two potential drawbacks to enjoy-ing video while you drive: 1) cost, and 2) driver distraction.
Currently, 38 states have some kind of law on the books about watching video while driving. In many cases, these laws allow drivers to view a navigation display on-screen but prohibit them from watching DVDs or TV. In one well publicized case in Alaska, a driver was tried for second-degree murder in the deaths of two motorists following a head-on collision allegedly caused by driver distraction (in this case, watching video while driving). Though the driver was acquitted, it prompted the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) to engage its member companies in an effort called Watch the Road.
"For the most part, states with these laws are requiring in-dash video systems to come equipped with an interlock that prevents the display of business- and entertainment-related sources in a moving vehicle," said Megan Pollock, spokesperson for CEA's Watch the Road. "Displays installed in the front-seat area and used for vehicle information, system control, rear or side observation, or navigation are exempt, as are rear-seat video systems."
According to Alpine's Jennifer Quon: "Alpine is a supporter of CEA's Watch the Road initiative and takes this issue seriously by including a safety interlock system in all of our video head units." It prevents the driver from engaging DVD playback while the vehicle is in motion.
Touch screens offer another means of reducing driver distraction by providing a centralized, easy-to-use interface that can control a well integrated audio and video system. Here is an overview of the touch screen head units in the market.
Alpine's new IVA-W200 Mobile Multimedia Station features a 6-1/2-inch touch screen that enables iPod playback through an optional "Full Speed" connector. In addition, Bluetooth wireless technology allows Bluetooth phones to be controlled from the touch screen.
Michael West, marketing director for Eclipse, says that nearly one-third of all those purchasing the new AVN6600 6-1/2-inch touch-screen DVD navigation system also purchase a BEC105 Back-Eye rearview camera, another Watch the Road-compliant product. He adds that the system has a 5-volt preamp output and is licensed with SRS Surround Sound.
Clarion's top-of-the-line VRX765VD single-DIN, motorized, 7-inch flip-out touch screen boasts a soil-resistant finish on the touch screen and improved iPod user interface, including the ability to play back iPod video on the VRX's 7-inch screen (when the vehicle is stationary, of course).
Pioneer's new AVH-P7800DVD features a 7-inch QVGA touch screen and supports a number of high-resolution, multi-channel audio formats. The system features a 13-band graphic equalizer, 3-band parametric equalizer, multi-channel auto equalizer, and auto time alignment. In addition, the monitor receives video information directly from the DVD mechanism as component video.
Panasonic offers the new CQ-VD6503U in-dash, widescreen, color LCD monitor and DVD receiver with a 6-1/2-inch touch screen, 5.1-channel Dolby Digital/DTS decoders with Dolby Pro Logic, optional expansion modules for iPod, Bluetooth hands-free phone, satellite radio, and TV tuner. It also features a dedicated rear camera input.
Sony's XAV-A1 single-DIN mobile A/V unit features a motorized 7-inch QVGA touch screen, picture EQ, 24-bit DAC, and 4-volt preamp output. The system also comes with a wireless card remote.
According to Pollock, a video screen in the dash can either be a source of driver distraction or a solution. depending on how it is used. "As manufacturers continue to make them the center point of a complete multimedia system, these in-dash video units [can be] an ideal component inside the vehicle, consolidating the control of all devices. A lot of it is common sense," she says. As with other sources of distraction (cell phone use, eating, or yelling at your kids): "It can take a mere three seconds of inattention to be involved in an accident, the same amount of time it might take to locate one's iPod while driving and select the desired song."
The bottom line is this: If you get a dash screen, drive safely and don't be an in-dash vidiot! For more information about Watch the Road, please visit www.digitaldriver.org.
