A Brief History of the Car Radio

By Jeremy Laukkonen, About.com Guide

1990s

• Video head units
• CD-RW compatible head units

CD players became increasingly popular in head units during the 1990s, and there were a few notable additions toward the tail end of the decade. Head units that were capable of reading CD-RWs and playing MP3 files became available, and DVD functionality also appeared in some high end vehicles and aftermarket head units.

Previous

• Mono AM Radio to Touchscreen Infotainment: Nine Decades of Automotive Head Units
• The First Commercial Head Units
• AM Continues to Dominate
• The Car Stereo is Born
• Compact Cassettes Arrive on the Scene
• The Compact Disc Fails to Dislodge the Compact Cassette
• CD Players Become Dominant
• Bluetooth and Infotainment Systems
• The Death of the Cassette and What Comes Next

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