Mpow Streambot Z Bluetooth FM Transmitter

 Upon receiving the Mpow Upgraded Streambot Z I was skeptical on its performance. Surely a device like this cannot perform as well as plugging in my device into the AUX port. I was right. The Mpow Upgraded Streambot Z does not perform as crisp and clear as using the AUX port on my radio, but then again it should not. There are many factors that affect a device that uses FM frequencies, signal strength of other radio stations, how many radio stations are in the area, your radio and even your spark plug cables can have an affect on a device such as this. I found the set up really easy, plug it into your power port, tune your radio to an un used station, pair it to your device and you are done.
In my testing I used a Lumia 640, Lumia 520, iPod touch 5, Nexus 7(2013) and a cheap LG phone from TracFone. Each device easily paired to the Mpow Upgraded Streambot Z and I never lost a connection or had the volume drop. I did notice however some radio stations work better than others. What I mean is some stations had more stactic(hiss) than others, some stations had a higher volume output than others and some had a bit of bleed through from other stations. When I finally found a good station to test on I found that I had to turn the volume up all the way on each device and the Streambot itself then used the radios volume last. It was still at a lower volume than using the AUX port but then again I expected that.
Despite the volume issue I found that the Mpow Upgraded Streambot Z performed really well, as I mentioned earlier I had no signal loss or dropped volume. I even drove over as many potholes as I could to see if jarring the device would have any effect on it and I am glad to say it did not. There is a USB port on the Streambot so you can charge a device while streaming, it easily charged each device with no problems. Taking calls was not that fantastic, the callers mentioned that I was a bit quiet, that might be due where my power port is located but I did hear the calls quite well. The Streambot is made primarily from plastic, to me it felt sturdy and not cheap and it did fit really snug into the power port.
You will see two bands of metal on the device the bigger one is the volume control and the thinner one is to tune the device to the radio station. On the top where you see the Mpow logo that is the power on/off button and you get two buttons for skipping forward or back. THe LED read out is red and is very clear to read, just under the read out is a small hole that is the microphone. There are a few negatives, the first is the part that plugs into your power port is five inches long, depending on your power ports depth this device may stick out too far you you to use or plug something into the USB port, so measure the depth of your power port(cigarette port) and do the math to see if this device will work in your vehicle, actually you should do this for any device like this.
Another negative is the adjustment knob, despite my fingers fitting nicely in the curves the knob is a bit too thin, I felt as if it might break if I have to keep adjuting the device. The last negative is the volume, the Mpow Upgraded Streambot Z is a bit quiet, if Mpow can boost the volume by atleast 10 percent I think that would make quite a difference. If you do not have an AUX port or a Bluetooth option on your radio I would recommend the Mpow Upgraded Streambot Z, it is a good option to stream music or audio books through your radio. Is it perfect, no, depending on your location, radio, radio signals you will have some static and the volume is a bit low but it is a good work around. Remember try different un used stations to find the best one, do not just go for the first one you find, there is a difference.