Alpine Electronics is showing off its new iDA-X001 head unit at Macworld Expo San Francisco this week.

Designed for those who seldom travel without their iPod, the iDA-X001 is a standard-size head unit with an AM/FM tuner and extensive iPod integration; there's no CD/DVD slot nor an auxiliary input jack. Instead, the iDA-X001 features extensive iPod integration, with a 320x240 pixel TFT display and large dial for controlling the iPod.

The iDA-X001 features a dedicated USB iPod dock connector cable in the rear of the unit, designed with the glove compartment in mind so that users can keep their iPod tucked away and charged while also enjoying an all-digital audio connection. The iDA-X001's display duplicates the iPod's menu system (Artists, Albums, Podcasts, Genres, Composers, etc.) and can display the currently playing track's information or just the artwork.

The iDA-X001 provides full digital audio using a 24-bit Burr Brown DAC and has a built-in 18 Watt x 4 amplifier (at CEA-2006 power ratings) and 3 pre-outs.

At present, only the fifth-generation iPod is fully supported with the USB connection, but Alpine expects the iPod nano to be supported in the near future with a firmware update from Apple. Other iPods will be supported with Alpine's Full Seed iPod cable, sold separately for about $30, although that connection is not digital.

The iDA-X001 will be available this spring for around $450. Alpine has yet to post information on its Web site regarding the device.

Alpine Electronics iDA-X001