yestertech redux

In which it is discovered that Moore's Law applies to car audio equipment.

I can hardly be accused of rushing into all of my technology decisions. Until this weekend my car, which I bought new seventeen years ago, still had its factory sound system installed. The cassette deck died a few years ago, and I have been mulling over replacing the sound system ever since. No need to rush into these things.

Research revealed a plethora of aftermarket audio receivers for the car with CD players rather than cassette decks as a supplement to the admittedly fine radio stations we have in this market.

I was amused, but not surprised, to discover when I strolled into my local car sound emporium that I was apparently the only woman in the building and quite possibly the only person over the age of forty. The bravest salesperson accosted me and I discovered that the exact product I had in mind for my rig was ninety-nine dollars plus tax, installation included. He made one feeble attempt to sell me upgraded speakers which ended when I looked over my reading glasses to point out that I have no ambition to pump bass vibrations into the night air. Wrong demographic.

My new unit now says "hello" on the digital display (more realistically, "07734" upside down) when I turn the car on and "see you" when I turn the car off, an unexpected bonus to my commute. The face plate also comes off so no one is tempted to steal it. Cool.

My first thought upon learning of the pricing was, "I should have done this long ago." My second thought was, "If I had done this long ago I would not have found a deal like this." And this is why being a late adapter of technology is not always bad.