I don't really need a GPS but I thought it might be kinda interesting to get a cheap'n'cheerful unit and then probably the basic Microsoft streetmaps package for a bit of fun. I don't want to spend a lot, but obviously I would still like it to work! I've narrowed it down to one of two GPS units, and I wonder if anyone here has any comments on them?
BT-77 (£39.99 plus VAT from http://www.inter-activeinformation.com/uk/product_info.php?products_id=31)
8590 (£39.95 inc VAT from http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/product/8590.htm)
* They both have USB and in-car cigarette-lighter style chargers, which will allow me charge my MDA Vario in the car too, so that's useful.
* The 8590 uses the same Li-ion battery as my old Nokia phone, so that could give me an extra charged battery to keep in the car.
* The 8590 also has a USB port, as well as the Bluetooth connection, so I could connect it directly into my laptop if I wanted to - although I do have a bluetooth dongle for the laptop anyway, so that's not really a major factor.
* The BT-77 has 16 channels while the 8590 only has 12 - how much of a factor to consider is that?
* The BT-77 appears to have slightly better battery life, according to the comments I've seen.
* The BT-77 is a bit more expensive and has a two-week delivery wait at the moment (not critical, no real urgency).
So - does anyone have any experience with either of these units and might care to comment on which would be best, or anything else for me to bear in mind?
Regards,
Andre (very new to this whole GPS lark!)
I use a Fuzion Solar GPS which has a solar panel to keep it charged up. It was £59 from next Generation Sales on Ebay. After a little bit of a sweat trying to set it up with TomTom 5 I've been pretty impressed with it.
It apparently works for 30hours but I haven't had cause to check it as it's not used that long and I leave it by the window when not in use. It uses a Nok3650 replaceable battery so you could keep a spare in the unlikely event of it running flat.
For those with similar problems you need to search for the device in Bluetooth and accept the serial port option. In Windows Make sure blutooth is switched on then go to the CABLE settings in TomTom and set the Baud Rate to 38400. Then click done and go to other bluetooth gps device and in my case it was now available on com 6.
i bought the 8590 from mobilefun last week, it was a good little device but i found it a bit too slow to get a lock, especially in london, sometimes it never got a lock
I returned it and have now got a Holux GPSlim236, which was 70 notes, but you certainly get what you pay for. This device gets a lock a lot quicker and is more appears more precise than the 8590. It also has a usb charger, pairs with Tomtom no problems and is slighty smaller than the 8590.
Perhaps i could have lived with the cheaper device, but now i have the holux i dont think i would go back...
andrewilley said:
I don't really need a GPS but I thought it might be kinda interesting to get a cheap'n'cheerful unit and then probably the basic Microsoft streetmaps package for a bit of fun. I don't want to spend a lot, but obviously I would still like it to work! I've narrowed it down to one of two GPS units, and I wonder if anyone here has any comments on them?
BT-77 (£39.99 plus VAT from http://www.inter-activeinformation.com/uk/product_info.php?products_id=31)
8590 (£39.95 inc VAT from http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/product/8590.htm)
* They both have USB and in-car cigarette-lighter style chargers, which will allow me charge my MDA Vario in the car too, so that's useful.
* The 8590 uses the same Li-ion battery as my old Nokia phone, so that could give me an extra charged battery to keep in the car.
* The 8590 also has a USB port, as well as the Bluetooth connection, so I could connect it directly into my laptop if I wanted to - although I do have a bluetooth dongle for the laptop anyway, so that's not really a major factor.
* The BT-77 has 16 channels while the 8590 only has 12 - how much of a factor to consider is that?
* The BT-77 appears to have slightly better battery life, according to the comments I've seen.
* The BT-77 is a bit more expensive and has a two-week delivery wait at the moment (not critical, no real urgency).
So - does anyone have any experience with either of these units and might care to comment on which would be best, or anything else for me to bear in mind?
Regards,
Andre (very new to this whole GPS lark!)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use the GlobalSat BT-338 receiver which has 3rd generation SiFr processor, can lock 20 satelites. I use Destinator mapping software on my Wizard. Go to buyGPSnow.com for good prices and support. Good luck.
Thanks for the advice everyone, I've just bought a Holux 236 on eBay for £57 (plus import duties when it arrives from far off lands).
So if it doesn't work, I'll be coming after you Lyallb...
Andre
I second the Holux 236. I'm in Shanghai and consistently get a 10-bird lock within two minutes of turning it on. However, the first unit I bought had a bad bluetooth radio and had to be returned.
andrewilley said:
Thanks for the advice everyone, I've just bought a Holux 236 on eBay for £57 (plus import duties when it arrives from far off lands).
So if it doesn't work, I'll be coming after you Lyallb...
Andre
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ive heard the ones you get from overseas are a bit dodgy... :wink:
im confident i wont have to look over my shoulder....
BT-77
I have a BT GPS that is the same make as the BT-77 but branded under another name (Wonde-X BT GPS).
It sometimes takes ages to lock on, and this is with the plug in antenna.
Then on some days it takes 30 seconds, so I really don't know. There are better BT GPS out there, so I would give this one a miss if you have another option.
lyallb said:
Ive heard the ones you get from overseas are a bit dodgy... :wink:
im confident i wont have to look over my shoulder....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess I'm in a bit of a Catch 22 situation then. If the GPS works fine, I won't need to find you... but if I can't get the GPS to work, I won't be able to find you!
Andre
gps
I have a polestar BT gps which I aquired from http://www.deluoelectronics.com. I like it a lot, it works well, about the size of a zippo cigarette lighter, and the 3 ni-mh AAA batteries last a long time (although after having it about 18 months I finally had to replace the ones that came with the unit, something about being left in my jeep and freezing in the winter and melting in the summer )
This unit is small enough to toss in your pocket, the batteries are placed on the bottom so if it sits on your dash its not top heavy. Even has some rubber feet so it doesnt slide all over. In my jeep (which I take off roads quite often) it has never fallen over which suprises me becuase a few times my jeep almost fell over
Solarius V3 Bluetooth GPS Receiver is great
I just bought Solarius V3 Bluetooth GPS Receiver with Tom Tom software - it is simply great. I'm using it my Cingular 8125 (HTC Wizard). The pairing was a breeze, getting Tom Tom to activate was another matter.
The GPS unit has solar panel for backup power - supposedly lasting for as much as 30 hours between charges. Here's a link to where I got it from:
http://www.semsons.com/soblgpsspofa.html
jwzg said:
I second the Holux 236. I'm in Shanghai and consistently get a 10-bird lock within two minutes of turning it on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that was pretty painless... The Holux 236 arrived this morning (Monday - and I only paid for it on eBay last Tuesday and it had to come from Taiwan to the UK!) Nothing extra to pay at the door either, which was good news.
First reaction: Gosh, it's tiny isn't it?!! I almost thought they'd forgotten to put the GPS unit in the box! For anyone who's not got one, it's far smaller than half the size of the Wizard.
Second reaction: Bluetooth connected perfectly, first time. Couldn't get GPS software to see the unit at first - until I remembered to create an outgoing COM port in the Bluetooth Config screen, after which it all worked straight away. My phone talked me all the way to work half an hour later, how cute is this technology?
Thanks to everyone for all the advice.
Andre
I've got a Holux GPSlim 236 for almost a year now and for me it the best ever. It worked with my Magician and now with my Wizard. When it has a lock it stays locked even when i'm in side my house. You can navigate to the toilet if you want!
It's lays in the back of my car in a closed compartment were it has a 12V connection. When i fire up TomTom it's up and running in 3 seconds.
So you understand by now that i recommend the Holux GPSlim 236.
marshall_teller said:
It's lays in the back of my car in a closed compartment were it has a 12V connection. When i fire up TomTom it's up and running in 3 seconds.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was thinking of doing that too. Do you just leave it switched on all the time, and is it only supplied with power with the ignition switch? Using a permanent 12v supply seems a good idea, and would keep the internal battery trickle-charged, but I wondered whether it might run down the car battery if left parked for a while as the receiver & bluetooth would always be running? On the other hand, if it's on a switched power supply, the Li-ion battery will continue to drain and go flat overnight while the car is parked, and then start re-charging when you're driving, which as far as I know isn't ideal for Li-ion batteries.
Andre
marshall_teller said:
When it has a lock it stays locked even when i'm in side my house. You can navigate to the toilet if you want!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bloody hell, how big is your house.....!!!! :lol:
Anyone have experience with the i-Blue Receiver? I like the sleep mode...goes into super-low powermode until a paired device tries to access it again. You can get several weeks of usage on a charge this way. Reviews are good and the price isn't bad.
Anyone have experience with the i-Blue Receiver
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been using one of these for the last 6 months. It's great. Never seems to run out and locks on Sats very quickly too.
pewe said:
Anyone have experience with the i-Blue Receiver
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been using one of these for the last 6 months. It's great. Never seems to run out and locks on Sats very quickly too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Excellent! I'm having a hard time keeping myself from buying one. Hell, I don't even have a car nor do I travel all that much and I know NYC like the back of my hand. I need an excuse to buy one so the girlfriend doesn't freak out! Maybe I'll get into geocaching...hmm..
guys i bought a iBlue and am trying to pair it with the wizard... no luck. I can see the device in BlueTooth settings but it will not catch a signal
Pocket Streets
Earthcomber
or GPSView will not show any location????
help any suggestions
rc said:
guys i bought a iBlue and am trying to pair it with the wizard... no luck. I can see the device in BlueTooth settings but it will not catch a signal
help any suggestions
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you set up a new outgoing COM port in your bluetooth setup screen? (I set mine up for COM7, which was free) Everything worked fine after that.
Andre
I've installed a Parrot Asteroid (digital media head unit with hands free calling) in my wife's VW Passat and think it might be one of the best purchases I've made this year. Install on the Passat (2001.5) was almost plug and play. The only change I had to make was switching Battery and ACC on harness. The antenna adapter (unpowered) is a standard item and was available from a local source.
With CM9 (nightly 0508 currently) USB and Bluetooth tethering work.
Contacts are shared with the Asteroid and voice dialing is accurate (the Parrot seems to grok what I am saying).
Music selection (media on SDHC card in Parrot) via voice is failrly accurate but I have noticed a few inaccurate responses.
Hands-free calling is crystal clear and the music quality is awesome.
Some have reported buggy or defective units, but I have had no trouble with it over the last week with my I777. We'll see what happens with my wife's iPhone...
I am considering same setup into my 2004 Passat. Thanks for posting the picture, that certainly clears my concerns about how does it look in the car as the console is same as yours.
How is sound compared to original VW radio you had before?
Do you mind if I ask you to share with us what components went into your install beside of course the Asteroid? Especially what adapter for the wiring harness you used.
I am using (primarily) Galaxy Nexus on CM9, so I'm pretty confident hooking the Asteroid to the phone shouldn't be a problem. Thanks in advance!
Edit: forgot to ask about button backlight - from what I see on the Internet it seems to be white, is it adjustable so it can be made to match the OEM backlight on the Passat (red)?
leobg said:
I am considering same setup into my 2004 Passat. Thanks for posting the picture, that certainly clears my concerns about how does it look in the car as the console is same as yours.
How is sound compared to original VW radio you had before?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my opinion (these things being subjective), the sound is excellent. Like most Android devices, the Asteroid has a built in equalizer and other sound tweaks. Much better than stock.
Do you mind if I ask you to share with us what components went into your install beside of course the Asteroid? Especially what adapter for the wiring harness you used.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe all B5.5 Passats use a ISO connector for the stock stereo. The included Parrot wiring harness adapter works out of the box. I only had to flip Battery and Switched Power (ACC). The Parrot adapter is designed to allow quick changes to these leads and this is documented in the included instructions. The only thing I had to buy was the antenna adapter. I picked that up for about $15 US. I used the unpowered version.
I am using (primarily) Galaxy Nexus on CM9, so I'm pretty confident hooking the Asteroid to the phone shouldn't be a problem. Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
CM9 works quite nicely with the Parrot with one caveat. Bluetooth audio was great (both music and hands free calling). No problems with pairing so far. I tried connecting my SGS2 USB storage to the Parrot but it is not recognizing the SGS2 mass storage (micro SD card). This is not a show stopper for me as I have a 32GB SDHC card installed in the Asteroid.
Edit: forgot to ask about button backlight - from what I see on the Internet it seems to be white, is it adjustable so it can be made to match the OEM backlight on the Passat (red)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No such luck from what I have seen. You have have a choice of white, white, or white. You can adjust the intensity of control backlight and LCD backlight for 'Day' and 'Night' modes. 'Day' and 'Night' modes are toggled by a long press on the 'Parrot' button.
The Asteroid is not perfect but it seems to be the only device of its kind at the moment. I am surprised that more car stereo companies are not leveraging Android into their equipment lineup. Both OEM and aftermarket vendors seem to be utterly clueless when it comes to emerging technologies. Who uses CD (or for that matter DVD's) anymore?
When we bought our Passat I was shocked and appalled that the head unit had a CASSETTE deck! There was a CD changer in the trunk but that meant pulling over to change CD's. Clueless, utterly clueless...
In any case, good luck. The install is pretty easy. Do some research on some of the issues some seem to experience with the Asteroid. I have not seen any major problems on firmware 1.5 as yet but your mileage may vary.
*Edit: One other thing -- the Asteroid does not fit flush with the dash like the stock head unit. It sticks out approximately 1/4 inch. Aside from doing major work to modify the dash, I could not think of any way to make the Parrot fit flush. It does not bother me, but it may pose aesthetic issues for you. I actually have grown to like it. It makes finding controls easy without taking my eyes off the road.
Oh -- and one last thing. This 38 second video is priceless for removing the stock head unit.
http://youtu.be/KNSYBSGzUuQ
One last edit -- here is the antenna adapter. $7 through Amazon.
http://goo.gl/39rIO
Thanks a bunch!! So your 2001.5 came with the singe DIN unit. B5.5's 2002 onward ship with double DIN unit, so I would need to find a tray to place in (and fill up the gap) which will be very handy as I could keep the phone (or other junk in there. I've heard Parrot is coming up with a double din unit with slightly extended functionality: http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/08/parrot-asteroid-ck-asteroid-nav-asteroid-2din-infotainment-sys/. They mention late 2012 availability, wondering if I want to hold my horses for that one. Since it doesn't have physical buttons to require backlight, there won't be an issue with the look, but I like the buttons and especially the rotary ones, so this (for me) is as disadvantage as much as advantage. And probably the cost will double. Though integrated Google maps navigation would be terrific! Decisions, decisions...!
Yeah. The stock unit was single DIN. I believe you can buy the pocket if you have a double DIN OEM head unit and want to install a single DIN.
I like having physical controls -- perhaps I am getting old. The lack of apps does not particularly distress me.
I'd like to use the Parrot UNIKA steering controls interface but it does not look like B5.5 Passat is supported yet.
By the way, I'm listening to one of your (Canadian) exports today -- a band by the name of Elliott Brood from Toronto. Not bad for Canadian hacks. ;-)
http://www.elliottbrood.ca/
All the best,
Edward
Does anyone have any experience/recommendations for an Android-based car stereo head unit? My old stereo has just died, so I am interested in what people think of the currently available ones. I have a double din space.
eBay seems to have several available that are similar to this: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/15/ca-fi-is-an-aftermarket-android-car-stereo-that-wont-fit-in-you/
There are ones where the Android part is essentially a separate tablet (probably not what I'm after, judging by the videos) http://www.erisin.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=253
Parrot make this single-din stereo: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Parrot-Aste...?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1343930713&sr=1-24
There are no doubt many others too. Prices seem to be in the £200 - £280 range which is about my limit.
Nobody has any experience of these or opinions at all?
I think I'm leaning towards the Parrot as it's rootable, and the single-din size is more likely to fit whatever car I get after my current one.
Bump for this thread. I just recently thought about getting into one of these units too, my only concern is how "locked down" they would be in terms of getting rid of their default launchers and crap they have. I basically want a way to just have android by itself running on the car - I can get apps for just about everything else. Ideally I want a clone of my phone on the car that would sync with my phone. Or better yet, simply a way to have a "remote display" for my phone. That way, anything I'm doing on the car side of things would be the same on my phone, like a received email, new internet bookmark, or something like that.
~T.J.
I just picked up a "Road Cyberman" from China Jiaho (actually they call it something else, but it's the same as Chinavasion's Road Cyberman, except $100 cheaper).
It's running Gingerbread 2.3.5 and proving difficult to root. No adb on the usb (even with debug option), no google apps (although I found some apks that sort of work) and no adb wireless available.
The devices works fine, but I would like to have a little bit more control over it.
I've tried Gingerbreak and the other get root apks, but no luck so far.
Yeah, I have seen a lot of those units, but I kind of changed my mind. I have recently been looking into doing something like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Q-UXDi3dm3U
I have been following that company for a while, and they just recently released that video and are taking pre-orders for the new board. My biggest hold up at this point is that I would like to use a single DIN stereo for the "amp" by running the audio from their device into the aux input of my existing stereo. I need to find room to mount both the double DIN screen and a custom spot for the single DIN stereo I already have. I would then have the choice of using the stereo without plugging in the phone if I didn't want to for whatever reason. Alternatively, if I can find a good FM tuner app for my phone and a good customizable dock mode, I could eliminate the stock stereo and just run the inputs into a standard automotive 4 channel amp. This of course means you get nothing for a car stereo unless you connect the phone though, unlike the other plan.
Of course, another thought I had was getting a used double DIN touch screen DVD player and using their interface board to convert it to run the Android screen through it, then run the audio straight into the aux input of the touch screen DVD player. That way you have the ability to use the system "as is" out of the box, OR run the Android device through the screen. I think this is the best option, but it also takes the most money since you have the expense of the used double DIN touch screen unit first. I also wonder about picture quality and touch screen sensitivity with the built in touch screens on those units.
Anyway, just food for thought!
~T.J.
EDIT: One of the other hold ups is the calling. I would like to use an external mic and have audio come through the car speakers, currently using that board you are still calling through the device, thus you would need a Bluetooth headset from my understanding. I would like to avoid that if possible also. This is another good reason to go with the double DIN stereo since some of those support Bluetooth calling already and you could probably make/receive calls that way completely hands free.
EDIT #2: If you were into car monitoring and such also, you could easily get a bluetooth OBD interface and run the software on the phone (such as torque) so you could display live data from your car on your dash also. Something like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ay-ZvTn3fLo&t=45s
I picked up one of these after my buddy sent me this thread. It's got the power, but needs a root bad. Wish I knew how to find root for an Android device.
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17228
After using this for a few weeks I just wanted to report my experience using it with the Note 3.
My brother has the similar Belkin kit and it is absolutely TERRIBLE. It flashes red and refuses to connect to anything for days at a time then seemingly works for a month or two, the speakerphone is absolutely unusable, the precise timing required to use the ONE button for Play, Pause, and Next Track is maddeningly difficult (leaves you blindly wondering if it is paused, resumed, or skipped), and it is simply too expensive.
I am happy to say that I didn't have any of those issues with the Kinivo kit. It sticks with a double-sided sticky foam disc instead of the two-part magnetic base that the Belkin uses but I don't plan to move it around and it's not like Belkin included two bases anyway. With it stuck solidly on the dash, I kinda wish it had a twist to skip function but the dedicated buttons are certainly good enough for that! The wireless connection is solid and the controls feel/work great. I have no idea if it is using Apt-X or not but it supposedly supports it for higher-quality A2DP streaming over Bluetooth (as does the Note 3). The quality sounds much better but that could just be my car having better speakers compared to my brother (I am no audiophile).
Unlike the Belkin, it auto-connects when you start the car. That would be fine if it didn't cause the phone to also auto-answer! Further compounding it is the fact that it comes on even when your stereo is off so you may have no idea that it grabbed the call (you can't hear the caller without powering on and switching inputs). Obviously, there's no easy way for them to integrate with your OEM stereo to only operate when the stereo is on and AUX input is selected, which is the drawback to having an adapter kit. I don't know if the auto-answering is bad behavior on Samsung's part or if it does that with every phone so I'll have to test. There have been times leaving work with my ringer silenced when it would answer a call I didn't even know was incoming and then I drive around completely unaware that someone can hear everything going on in the car. Galaxy Charging Light reports 1800mAH charge rate through the built-in USB port, which is as fast a my phone charges from the stock 2-amp wall plug, but I do wish it had a second USB port or was de-coupled so that you could bring your own. The Belkin does have a smaller plug but they both occupy the whole power socket, they both only have one available USB port, and they both are permanently wired for their own power.
Speakerphone is a million times better than the crappy Belkin unit. I'd barely be exaggerating to say that the Belkin is completely unusable for phone calls while driving. This actually WORKS. I am somewhat hard of hearing which is why I'm no audiophile, but this was perfectly adequate.
There is no battery and thus no need to charge it. It really came down to the Belkin and Kinivo for me purely because I didn't want one of those rechargeable units. A significant number of users reported feedback issues when charging in many vehicles and I don't want to deal with worn batteries. While I can't confirm that wired units are immune to this, I didn't have that issue in my 2011 Corolla or my brother's 2009 Aveo. People act like you just have to suck it up and buy the fix (ground loop isolator) if you have this problem but I ask "why can't it be built-in?" If possible, I expect that.
I hope I can fix the auto-answer problem with an Xposed tweak or something. All in all, I am very happy with it and I want to make sure none of you waste your money on the terrible Belkin version! I decided on this back when it and the Belkin kit were the only two similar options but I see a new "iClever" Bluetooth 4.0 kit has showed up on the market. It costs less, includes a dual-port charger (occupies one port but at least it's de-coupled so you can BYO), doesn't mention Apt-X,
but I'd love to hear from anyone with experience with it.
Kinivo BTC450 kit:
http://www.amazon.com/Kinivo-BTC450...9545&sr=8-1&keywords=Kinivo+Bluetooth+car+kit
Belkin kit:
http://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Han...r=8-2-fkmr0&keywords=Kinivo+Bluetooth+car+kit
iClever Himbox HB01 kit:
http://www.amazon.com/iClever-Bluet...ncluded/dp/tech-data/B00GJFGDUQ/ref=de_a_smtd
Thanks for the ad XDA
Have viewed your forum many times, first time poster,
I have recently upgraded my vehicle, the Mazda has an infotainment system. Apple car play is wireless whilst Android Auto (AA) is cable USB. When I connect my Samsung note 9, it chops in and out of connection. Thinking it was the lead I bought a new expensive lead-no change. Though it might be the charging port, I then tried my second phone Samsung S10+. On plugging this in there was no reaction at all. The head unit won't even display the AA icon.
Both phones will pair via Bluetooth no problem, but this offers limited usability. There is no facility in settings to upgrade the revision on the head unit (dealer only?) I have used numerous leads now to no avail. Phones are reasonably current and in good working order, AA app is up to date. Un-installed updates and re installed with no joy.
Miracast works but is lack luster with such a small picture on a large screen.
I've been android from the start, don't really want to go to Apple.
Starting to run out of idea's, anyone else had similar problems? Maybe offer a fix?
TIA
Car tap code