Please see ebay link below

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Car-DVD-GPS-SEAT-VW-SKODA-PASSAT-TIGUAN-TOURAN-GOLF-PIP-/320641992853?pt=UK_AudioTVElectronics_GPSSystems_GPSSystems&hash=item4aa7c08895

This unit looks just like Columbus unit and has a lot more features such as TV......

Has anybody bought one and what are your impressions/feedback

I have a new SE on order and thought the DVD/GPS/TV function would be good for our trips with the kids over to France and it still retains the OEM factory streo look.

You certainly get a lot for your money, built in bluetooth is good but the TV is £30 extra. I did consider one of these units before going for the Columbus but I really wanted the Maxidot integration, navigation is so much easier that way.

Being Windows CE based also appealed to the technofiddler in me too, less likely to end up with a brick that way.

I fall asleep watching TV so having it in the car would not be good for me.

They are rubbish, for want of a better word. They are a cheap chinese clone of the Columbus, yes it does everything it says on the tin but it does them very badly. Several have purchased simillar units on here, and were sent back. They have a poor interface, software glitches, and things just dont work as it would on a better headunit. MP3/Ipod navigation is via an 8.3 filename for example, the mic placement for bluetooth is designed for LHD, so you will need to shout in your RHD car so that you can be heard as the microphone is placed on the left side of the unit.

Thanks for the feedback so far, looks like it may be worth opting for a used Columbus to fit in it. Any other feedback appreciated.

Edited 16 January, 201115 yr by joela

There is Zenec version which is supposed to be very good try this link http://www.puresounds.co.uk/product/Zenec_Skoda_-_Zenec_ZE-NC2010_Double-Din_VW_%26_Seat_DVD_Monitor_%2B_skoda-ZE-NC2010

I like that Zenec one, looks very good.

Watching the video clip on the Zenec link, the GPS lock seems very flaky!

I think all of these dodgy Chinese efforts are to be avoided. Cheap crap despite being more expensive than a second hand Columbus.

Even though they claim to look like the OEM unit, they actually look really cheap and nasty.

Pile of poop!! As experienced by others on here...

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/166412-my-chinese-sat-nav/

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/167218-update-to-the-chinese-sat-nav-saga/

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/163191-columbus-gps-alternatives/

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/135829-would-this-fit-the-skoda/

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/156823-anyone-purchased-one-of-these/

The first two posts are by the same person.......

Well anyways, more than likely going get to some reaction......

I have just bought one of these ''cheap' units 4 weeks ago and here is my honest opinion......

there are several different versions of these chinese clones and i did a lot of research on which ones are more reliable...and the timeless long 7501 seems to have the better reviews, so that is the one i bought for £320

After 4 weeks of having it my vrs, i am reasonably happy with it, it’s not perfect, but then again the Columbus isn’t either...

One of the reasons i got a Chinese clone is because, it is oem looking , price and it does everything a columbus does... a second-hand Columbus from... 'Lithuania'... will cost you around 450ish and then you have to dig deeper to find at least another £250 if you want all the bluetooth kit to work, so that’s nearly £800, alot of money, for me anyway....

If a Columbus is that good, why are their so many on ebay ??

It all depends what people want, i had a aftermarket pioneer unit in my car, and it irritated me so much, because it had a blue display and it would not fit flush with the dash and generally, i thought it spoilt the dashboard as it was not oem looking.

So for me £800, was a hell of lot of money to justify paying, when you compare it to the chinese clones for less than half the money... yeah i wiil accept that a columbus is most probably easier to use, but for the money, provided you buy the right chinese unit, then they are good value...

Now after saying that, my Chinese clone is most probably going to breakdown! :wonder:

Edited 16 January, 201115 yr by studmuffin

If a Columbus is that good, why are their so many on ebay ??

Because some of them are stolen, had the codes extracted by soldering onto the eprom chip and listed on ebay and simillar. There are a lot of them because the sellers know they can sell the stolen units easily and make a small fortune at the same time. I advertised my old columbus headunit and it was snapped up in days, there is strong demand for the headunit and thieves know it. You only have to look at how many are stolen in Holland and across mainland EU, so many in fact that VW now offer a security device which is basically bolted over the headunit to reduce the theft risk.

Not all are stolen, but I would hazard a guess and say the vast majority are.

Because some of them are stolen, had the codes extracted by soldering onto the eprom chip and listed on ebay and simillar. There are a lot of them because the sellers know they can sell the stolen units easily and make a small fortune at the same time. I advertised my old columbus headunit and it was snapped up in days, there is strong demand for the headunit and thieves know it. You only have to look at how many are stolen in Holland and across mainland EU, so many in fact that VW now offer a security device which is basically bolted over the headunit to reduce the theft risk.

Not all are stolen, but I would hazard a guess and say the vast majority are.

i would not buy anything knowing it was more than likely stolen, and if that is the case, are ebay aware of it ?

The first two posts are by the same person.......

Well anyways, more than likely going get to some reaction......

I have just bought one of these ''cheap' units 4 weeks ago and here is my honest opinion......

there are several different versions of these chinese clones and i did a lot of research on which ones are more reliable...and the timeless long 7501 seems to have the better reviews, so that is the one i bought for £320

After 4 weeks of having it my vrs, i am reasonably happy with it, it’s not perfect, but then again the Columbus isn’t either...

One of the reasons i got a Chinese clone is because, it is oem looking , price and it does everything a columbus does... a second-hand Columbus from... 'Lithuania'... will cost you around 450ish and then you have to dig deeper to find at least another £250 if you want all the bluetooth kit to work, so that’s nearly £800, alot of money, for me anyway....

If a Columbus is that good, why are their so many on ebay ??

It all depends what people want, i had a aftermarket pioneer unit in my car, and it irritated me so much, because it had a blue display and it would not fit flush with the dash and generally, i thought it spoilt the dashboard as it was not oem looking.

So for me £800, was a hell of lot of money to justify paying, when you compare it to the chinese clones for less than half the money... yeah i wiil accept that a columbus is most probably easier to use, but for the money, provided you buy the right chinese unit, then they are good value...

Now after saying that, my Chinese clone is most probably going to breakdown! :wonder:

CAN THE 7501 DO GREEN BACKLIGHTING AND A SKODA BOOT UP LOGO?

CAN THE 7501 DO GREEN BACKLIGHTING AND A SKODA BOOT UP LOGO?

yes it does both.

if you dont want to 'risk' a chinese clone, and you want to spend a bit more, the zenec 2010 has good reviews, but it only has white lighting and not the green skoda lighting

Edited 17 January, 201115 yr by studmuffin

Thanks, where do I get a 7501 from?

Thanks, where do I get a 7501 from?

i got mine from here http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250505663896&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT ,if you order by phone, you will get it cheaper, i paid £320+£10p&p

it is uk based

Edited 17 January, 201115 yr by studmuffin

I think that if u wanna spend 350 for a clone of Columbus , better way will be wait a bit , put some more money (approx 200 more) and You will get a nice Columbus which i used to have in my vRS - i can say easily - it was great !

I think that if u wanna spend 350 for a clone of Columbus , better way will be wait a bit , put some more money (approx 200 more) and You will get a nice Columbus which i used to have in my vRS - i can say easily - it was great !

columbus does not have built in bluetooth, you will have to find 'another' approx £250 for the module, if you want handsfree, making it close to the £800 mark, and for that kind of money, i would rather have the zenec 2010 which i would say is a better unit than the columbus. if you could buy a columbus with the blutooth module for £500, then i would say....go for it, but for £800 there are better units....

Edited 17 January, 201115 yr by studmuffin

I am looking at going down this route myself, the only issue is having read through this thread all the links & ebay adverts are dead.

Is this the unit you all have?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-Din-Car-DVD-GPS-Player-SKODA-OCTAVIA-II-III-FABIA_W0QQitemZ260746223434QQcategoryZ67772QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp4340.m263QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DDLSL%252BSIC%26its%3DI%26itu%3DUCI%252BIA%252BUA%252BFICS%252BUFI%252BDDSIC%26otn%3D8%26pmod%3D250505663896%252B250505663896%26po%3D%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D8033599499685558281#ht_2815wt_905

Further down the line, how have people found it? Still a good purchase, any regrets?

a question i do have is the fact i dont own an Ipod, so dont want to have the icon on screen. Can the icons be removed?

Cheers guys