The Alpine CDA-9835

Alpine BioLite
First up: The Alpine CDA-9835. Alpine introduced the BioLite display technology in their 2004 receiver lineup, claiming that it provides "a much wider viewing angle than conventional displays and outstanding visibility, even in harsh daylight." I'll start by saying that I actually own an Alpine receiver (an entry-level model), and have literally only one complaint about it: the LCD display. It washes out in seemingly any kind of sunlight, to the point where I'm forced to shade it with my hand to see what's on my XM, or to adjust any of the audio functions. At night, it's OK. A little nondescript…but OK.

The CDA-9835, on the other hand…well, I'm in love. BioLite lives up to Alpine's description and then some — it gives you plain, simple, black and white text that scrolls seamlessly across the screen. It's wonderful for XM Satellite Radio's detailed song and artist info. The moving graphics (including radio, CD, and XM icons) are confined to a tiny corner of the display, so there's nothing to distract you from the information readout. There's simply nothing frilly or fluffy about it. Some folks might find that boring — I find it refreshing.

Looking for something just a little flashy? You do have the option to change up the color of the button lighting, which is nice. In fact, you have 512 colors to choose from. I flirted with a few different shades before settling on a bright, vibrant blue. Also, you can set the CDA-9835 to display a screen saver if you like (there are five to choose from, including moving clouds.)

I found the CDA-9835's display to be equally visible at night and during the day (it's especially pretty at night, when the button color really stands out). And it's got one really handy "extra" feature — a 3-position tilt button. The receiver opening in my car is up high in the dash, but if yours is down low (like in the early '90s Accord my dad drives, for instance), you'll really appreciate the ability to tilt the display. I suspect that the tilt would also come in handy if the display ever washed out due to sunlight. That never happened to me during the week or so I had the receiver in my car, though. Check out the photos below for a look at the tilt options.

It tilts!