Mercedes has a new $298 accessory available now that adds another level of smartphone compatibility to its existing in-vehicle controls of iPods and aux audio. The Media Interface Plus allows the car to stream audio from an iPhone, BlackBerry, or any other compatible Bluetooth music player (we're guessing A2DP, though Mercedes doesn't specify). The MIP can also control the Pandora app on the iPhone and BlackBerry, and other features like SMS and email reading / writing are forthcoming. There are iPod / iPhone and Mini-USB plugs for charging, and an optional cable can pull video from your iPhone as well and display it on your in-dash screen -- when the car is at a standstill, of course.
