If you tried to get an Intravee a while ago then you would have had problems as there were none available. As of now they have plenty of stock.

Although the Intravee (or to be more accurate Alpine KCA-420i) does lock the iPod click wheel I've not found this to be a problem, in fact it is irrelevant to me as my iPod is in the boot. In the UK at least, I've not had any problem with heat or cold affecting the iPod and over the summer it did get pretty hot.

The Intravee UI means that you just don't need to use the iPod at all. In the UK it is quite likely that if you were seen by a traffic policeman to be using an iPod while driving (including while stationary at lights etc.) that you would be prosecuted for "not being in full control of your vehicle". There is little doubt that the iPod does indeed provide the best way to control the iPod, but not when you are driving.

With the Intravee you can very quickly browse to any Artist/Album/Play List you like because you can select next/prev or next/prev in increments of 5, 10, 20 or 50. It takes a few seconds to find any item.

If you want to maintain a CD changer, to provide 'backup' if you leave your iPod behind for whatever reason, then you can connect both an iPod and Alpine CHA-S634 MP3 CD Changer (actually you can connect up to 6 devices). The Alpine CD Changer is physically identical to the BMW changer and can utilise the same mounting bracket.