Alpine Puts Rear Seat Passengers in Control

TORRANCE, Calif, Jan. 8, 2004 -- Alpine Electronics of America, Inc. is putting rear seat passengers in the driver's seat -- of their in-vehicle entertainment, that is. The industry-leading manufacturer of high performance mobile electronics has announced the market's first rear-seat entertainment system that enables back seat passengers to control DVD movies and music, CDs, MP3/WMAs and more all through a touch screen display on their head rest monitor.

"Mom, can you rewind it?" is a familiar refrain for parents with rear seat entertainment systems. Remote controls tend to get lost or become a source for sibling rivalry. The vehicle's safety restraints can make it difficult or impossible for rear seat passengers to control playback from the deck, even when the source unit is installed in the back. But, with a touch screen monitor, all that changes.

In 2004, Alpine will introduce a DVD/CD/MP3/WMA player along with a head rest-style, touch screen monitor that will make road trips a lot less painful. This $1,150 solution pairs Alpine's DVA-5210 DVD player with its TME-M770 6.5-inch touch screen monitor with a high-resolution QVGA display. The monitor's touch screen uses familiar arrow icons for fingertip control of content playback. Users simply touch the icon at the bottom of the screen to play, pause, fast backward or fast forward discs or use the four direction arrows to find content within folders. Brightness, color, contrast, tint and sharpness can all be controlled on the screen, as well as Visual EQ(TM) to optimize image quality. Two auxiliary inputs enable the hook-up of the DVD source unit and another audio or video system.

The DVA-5210, which supports playback of DVD video, DVD-R/RW and CD/CD-R/RW, was designed specifically to handle the harsh automotive environment. In fact, the DVD transport is the same one used in Alpine's industry benchmark AlpineF#1Status(TM) system, ensuring ultimate reliability and playback performance. Support for Dolby ProLogic(R), Dolby Digital(R) and DTS(R) formats is built-in.

Alpine's rear seat entertainment system can be added to any vehicle as a stand-alone system or can be integrated into a multi-zone (front and rear) multimedia system with independent touch control of source selection and sound control. The VPE-S431 system expansion box allows for even more audio and video sources to be seamlessly integrated to create a more sophisticated multimedia system for serious enthusiasts.

"Alpine is taking a leadership role in the step-up rear seat entertainment segment," said Stephen Witt, Alpine's vice president of Brand Marketing. "As in-vehicle entertainment systems evolve, simplified interface and easy control become extremely important. With our 2004 rear seat entertainment system with touch screen monitor, we are putting control at the rear seat passenger's fingertips."

The TME-M770 is expected to be available in March at a target retail price of $650. The DVA-5210 will be available in February for a target retail price of $500.

About Alpine Electronics

Alpine Electronics is the world's leading automotive consumer electronics system supplier and an ISO certified corporation. Alpine specializes in an integrated platform concept for mobile multimedia with premium components for digital audio/video media playback, digital broadcast reception, and satellite linked navigation. With research and development facilities in Asia, Europe and the U.S., Alpine is the global leader for mobile sound systems and in- vehicle navigation for both after-market and OEM factory installations. Alpine Electronics is a consolidated subsidiary of Alps Electric Co., Ltd., one of the world's premier manufacturers of electronic components for computer, communications and car electronics equipment. Visit www.alpine-usa.com to learn more about Alpine products or to find an authorized retailer.