Hi all,

I drive an Octy II PD VRS and was playing with the idea of upgrading the HU but wanted to stay OEM.

What sort of prices should I expect to pay for a second hand Columbus unit???

Cheers.

Hi all,

I drive an Octy II PD VRS and was playing with the idea of upgrading the HU but wanted to stay OEM.

What sort of prices should I expect to pay for a second hand Columbus unit???

Cheers.

Have seen quite a few on ebay for around £500-£550.

Just make sure you get the code included.

Have seen quite a few on ebay for around £500-£550.

Just make sure you get the code included.

Thanks BigC.

For that sort of money, is the Columbus worth it or would it be better buy an aftermarket unit?

Thanks BigC.

For that sort of money, is the Columbus worth it or would it be better buy an aftermarket unit?

I think that is purely down to personal preference - there are pros and cons to both and it just depends what is important to you.

OEM +

- it's OEM!

- probably better quality unit (i.e. less chance of failure/problems)

- good user interface

- English user documentation

- integrates with Maxidot (if you have it)

- built in hard disk (Columbus)

OEM -

- only 5 digit postcode search

- no built-in bluetooth

- no built in DVB-T (this is probably not a big issue to most people...I don't think many watch TV in their car!)

- no built in iPod control

- expensive!

Aftermarket +

- cheap

- functionally rich

- built-in iPod control

- built in Bluetooth

- often built in DVB-T

- usually based on Windows CE so you can load your choice of navi software (iGo, TomTom, etc)

Aftermarket -

- potential reliability issues (though by no means definite)

- user interface not always hugely intuitive

- functionality of iPod/bluetooth interfaces not always that good

- Chinglish user guide (if there is a user guide, that is!)

- no guarantee that Maxidot will work (details from supplier on this can be vague)

- often shipped directly from China, so any faults will mean shipping it back there to be fixed/replaced

There are lots of people on here way more qualified to talk on this than I am, that's just a few thoughts from when I was looking round. Have a search round on here, there are loads of threads on this....Hauptman did a write up on an aftermarket unit he fitted that had some good info in it.

HTH

Edited 22 July, 201015 yr by slicendice