One major sound improvement:
I bought a “SendStation PocketDock” adaptor for my iPod ($29 or so)
to allow me to connect my car stereo to the “line-out” output of the iPod
(the proprietary Apple connector) RATHER than the 3.5mm “headphone” connector …
and the sound difference is AMAZING: there’s much less hum, and I get the ability
to control volume with the car controls rather than the iPod –

http://www.sendstation.com/us/products/pocketdock/lineout-usb.html

I just got a Dice RDS FM ipod hookup put in yesterday. Cost more (about $120 for the unit, plus install cuz I was busy/lazy), but same idea. Like you say, it’s not CD quality, but it’s probably at least as good as a solid radio station, maybe better. I was flipping between the same song on CD and on ipod last night and, aside from having to turn up the volume to get the same, uh, volume, it was pretty hard to tell the difference unless I was *really* paying attention. Other songs didn’t sound quite as full, but I’m thinking they were ripped at a lower quality.

I hunted around for other reviews of sound quality on the Dice but all I ever found was this one: http://upschporten.blogspot.com/2007/05/review-dice-ipod-integration.html which I would have to say I agree with so far. It would be interesting to hear a comparison of the cheaper Schosche against the Dice. My guess is they are pretty comparable. Somehow my initial impression was that the Dice had a cleaner looking install or was less fiddly or something, but from what you’ve described they sound the same.

Happy listening…