The Sony CDX-GT420U Car Stereo with USB (but not for the iPod). Grrr.

I'm not a car stereo guy. I've never bought an amp. I don't own a subwoofer. I wouldn't even know what to do with such things were they given to me. But I do like to listen to audiobooks in my car. And since I'm too cheap to buy audiobooks, I check them out of the library and put them on my iPod and listen to them as I drive to work.

The problem is, it's illegal to drive with earbuds in your ears, or so I'm told. Why that's any different from the guys who drive with their stereos blasting ten thousands decibels, I have no idea. They can't hear horns honking at them either.

In any event, my old stereo wasn't designed to accommodate an iPod. It's five or six years old and was introduced just before the iPod boom. So there was no auxiliary input on the front.

I had tried doing to the iPod FM transmitter thing, but that was a pain as it was always a hassle to hard an empty FM frequency and then to configure the iPod to play on it. Plus there was the issue of sound quality. Audiobooks are generally harder to hear over the roar of the engine than music is, and the diminished sound quality with the FM transmitter made it too hard to make out every word the audiobook reader said. And there's nothing more frustrating than not being able to hear a book being read to you, especially when you're really into the book and are desperately trying to find out what happens next.

So my old stereo was doing me no favors, and Lauren kindly agreed that a new model was in order. I admit I didn't do my homework as much as I should have, but the Sony stereo I saw at Wal-Mart was too much a good deal to pass up. The box came with both a stereo head unit and two very good Sony speakers. Since my two rear speakers were broken (and had been for years), I thought this the perfect option, particularly since the front of the book advertised a USB plugin on the front of the stereo.

Wow, I thought, a USB plugin. The box further explained that the plugin was designed for MP3 players, allowing the user to play and charge their MP3 player at the same time. Awesome!, I thought. That's exactly what I need. I can plug my iPod into the USB, control the menu through the stereo unit and charge my iPod while I drive.

So I bought it.

Little did I know that the Sony CDX-GT420U does not, in fact, support the iPod. And believe me when I say that Sony makes no effort whatsoever to communicate this. In fact, Sony is outright secretive about the iPod's incompatibility. When I plugged in my iPod (after painstakingly installing the stereo), the stereo told me that it did not support the device.

When I opened the brochure, it was no help. There was no list of compatible devices. When I went online, the Sony website dedicated to the product was no help. In fact, on the Frequently Asked Questions page there was a question: What USB devices does the stereo support? The answer blew it away. It simply said: See compatibility list.

I thought this ridiculous. Wouldn't this question be the perfect place to show said list? Or at least offer a hyperlink to this supposed list?

Apparently not. Sony merely tells you to see the "Compatibility List" and wishes oyu well in your journey.

But allow me to spare you the trouble. There is no Compatibility List. I searched high and low throughout the Sony website and entered every search box and peeked under every rug. It doesn't exist.

And why doesn't it exist? Because Sony doesn't WANT you to know that the iPod is not compatible. They want to sucker you into thinking that this system works with your iPod in the hopes that you'll buy it.

Too harsh an accusation? No. Because iPod has like a 75-80% market share in the MP3 market. To tell you that iPods are not compatible with the USB port is to drive away most of their potential customers. So they're deliberately evasive. They make you think they're being helpful by providing a FAQ website and carefully crafted brochure, but all the while they're concealing the information you want.

Shame shame shame on you, Sony.

So what does the USB port support? I have no idea. I can only assume they're devices that no one owns. Like Sony's MP3 player, The Walkman. In other words, the USB port on this machine is completely worthless to the vast majority of people who are naive enough to buy it for that feature.

Granted, my iPod does work with the auxiliary input, but nearly every after-market stereo offers that these days. No big whoop there. An auxiliary input is par for the course. That's standard. Anybody can do that. And it doesn't charge my iPod either, so I'm only getting half the benefit I wanted.

As for the speakers, they're fantastic. My audiobooks are loud and crystal clear. Love the speakers.

And other than the USB scam, I dig the stereo. The sound quality is top notch, or at least it's perfect enough for my untrained ears.

So do I regret buying it? No. I just wish Sony had been a little more responsible and divulged what the USB port can really do, or in my case, CAN'T do.