Blaupunkt Car Radio Leaves CDs in the Dust

Blaupunkt Melbourne SD 27 car radio. Click any photo for high resolution JPEG image file.

Broadview, IL (9/20/07) -- Blaupunkt is now shipping the Melbourne SD27, an attractively-priced car radio that skips the CD player altogether in favor an SD/MMC card slot to accommodate the digital-savvy customer who wants to eliminate discs from their music diet. In addition to the SD/MMC card-slot, the radio's sleek front-panel features a convenient plug and play input for portable audio players as well as controls for the built-in 25-preset AM/FM radio. Finally, the Melbourne is designed for use with Blaupunkt's optional iPod and Bluetooth/USB interface modules to integrate with cell phones, portable players and MP3 storage devices.

"For more and more people, compact discs have become obsolete," comments Blaupunkt USA General Manager Lutz Marschall. "They buy their music from the internet, download it to their hard-drive music server, and take it with them on their iPod. The last holdout for many of these consumers is their car radio, which still requires them to burn CD-R's with either audio or MP3 files. The Melbourne is a far better solution for these consumers – no CD required: they just plug in a memory card or portable MP3 player and they're on their way."

The Melbourne SD27 radio supports both MP3 and WMA audio files at bitrates of 8 to 320 kilobits. The front panel display accommodated up to 127 directories of music, and displays ID3 tag information up to 30 characters in length. The 3.5 mm front-panel auxiliary input is compatible with the headphone or aux outputs of nearly any portable device, and an optional interface can be added to enable control of an iPods from the radio front panel.

The Melbourne is a full-fledged car audio centerpiece, including multiple options for expansion and integration into sophisticated car audio systems. It delivers 4 x 45 Watts of power, and includes four channel pre-outs to accommodate external power amplifiers. There is a TEL/NAVI input for integration of cell phone and navigation systems, and an optional Bluetooth/USB module enables the addition of Bluetooth or USB compatible devices including phones, MP3 players, and USB-based hard-drives for an entire library of MP3 files.

The Blaupunkt Melbourne SD27 includes adjustable bass, treble, and X-Bass EQ functions that let listeners dial-in sound for ideal performance. Additionally, there are selectable EQ presets designed to optimize playback of different program types, such as rock, pop, or classical music.

The Blaupunkt Melbourne SD27 car radio is currently available at a suggested retail price of $159.95.

Blaupunkt, a company belonging to the Bosch Group, is an internationally leading manufacturer of driver information systems, car radios, car speakers and vehicle antennas. Blaupunkt has its main headquarters in Hildesheim, Germany, and maintains other production sites in Portugal, Hungary, Tunisia and Malaysia. The company posted sales of more than Euro 1.4 billion in fiscal year 2005 and employs some 9,000 people worldwide. For Blaupunkt North America dealer locations and product information, call 1(800) 950-BLAU [2528] or visit the company’s website at www.blaupunktusa.com.

# # #