Selecting an android head unit

[T2000]

5 hours ago, alextait said:

 

 

 

The non boot thing is odd, get in touch with them because there is upgraded firmware which sorted an issue I had with the phone hanging, it also adds default boot screens and other stuff.

 

Not sure on the spotify I'll try mine, haven't really used it much.

 

Google maps is only good if you are connected to the net, you have to use it offline which means downloading a map section beforehand.

 

I think you can turn off autoscan on the radio.

[northturton]

Do these bolero replacement android units still work with the existing car functionality? i.e. reverse sensors, air con settings, radio, blue tooth phone?  Does bolero link with maxidot or are they separate?

[therev]

Are the units your using coming with the satnav already on the sd card ? 

[T2000]

1 hour ago, northturton said:

Do these bolero replacement android units still work with the existing car functionality? i.e. reverse sensors, air con settings, radio, blue tooth phone?  Does bolero link with maxidot or are they separate?

Yes, obviously the Bluetooth and radio is built in, will intergrate with maxidot and shows radio frequency and track number and will work with steering wheel.

[T2000]

16 minutes ago, therev said:

Are the units your using coming with the satnav already on the sd card ? 

Yes on mine it comes with an 8GB SD Card with IGO on it.

[therev]

So how good is the satnav because I would use the feature a lot and I would hate it if I had to connect it to my phone for internet usage like mentioned obout google maps ? Has anyone put a tomtom satnav on these units before if so how do u do it  Kev 

[T2000]

I find the IGO pretty good for a freebie but you can put any Sat Nav on you want that runs on Android, just download from the play store direct to the SD card over wifi.

[DBT85]

35 minutes ago, therev said:

So how good is the satnav because I would use the feature a lot and I would hate it if I had to connect it to my phone for internet usage like mentioned obout google maps ? Has anyone put a tomtom satnav on these units before if so how do u do it  Kev 

Any non live sat navigation will have its limitations, it's why I'm getting rid of the Columbus. I use Waze exclusively because it's so damned good. Tethering to my phone is no issue for me. 

 

My 9" octacore will be here tomorrow. 

Edited 3 April, 2017 by DBT85

[northturton]

Would you use a Skoda dealership to acquire and fit one, or are there any franchises that will fit what they have for you?  I've no idea what to do with car electrics etc etc. so I must rely on someone else to do it. I'm in Lancashire.

[T2000]

Just now, northturton said:

Would you use a Skoda dealership to acquire and fit one, or are there any franchises that will fit what they have for you?  I've no idea what to do with car electrics etc etc. so I must rely on someone else to do it. I'm in Lancashire.

Anyone who is handy will be able to fit it, pop off the fascia, 4 torx screws, unplug quadlock, aerial, on new stereo plug in quadlock, aerial, GPS and wifi antenna and refit the torx screws and fascia, it is really easy to do, no splicing of wires needed.

[therev]

1 hour ago, DBT85 said:

Any non live sat navigation will have its limitations, it's why I'm getting rid of the Columbus. I use Waze exclusively because it's so damned good. Tethering to my phone is no issue for me. 

 

My 9" octacore will be here tomorrow. 

nice 1 will post some pics and let me no how it performs cheers kev

[alextait]

21 hours ago, T2000 said:

 

 

The non boot thing is odd, get in touch with them because there is upgraded firmware which sorted an issue I had with the phone hanging, it also adds default boot screens and other stuff.

 

Not sure on the spotify I'll try mine, haven't really used it much.

 

Google maps is only good if you are connected to the net, you have to use it offline which means downloading a map section beforehand.

 

I think you can turn off autoscan on the radio.

 

What is the easiest way to upgrade the firmware please T2000?

 

Thanks

 

[DBT85]

On 4/3/2017 at 18:57, northturton said:

Would you use a Skoda dealership to acquire and fit one, or are there any franchises that will fit what they have for you?  I've no idea what to do with car electrics etc etc. so I must rely on someone else to do it. I'm in Lancashire.

 

It's really quite simple, the pain is just getting the wiring to stay out of the way when you try to put it all back. As with every radio I've ever done, there is ton's of room in the dash, none of which you can get the huge connections through to use, so you jusst ave to faff around until it all goes in. I've just done mine. 3 cables (GPS, Aerial and main loom) to put in the back of the radio and one has to connect to the car loom. 

 

22 hours ago, therev said:

nice 1 will post some pics and let me no how it performs cheers kev

 

Well my PB96MTVAPL is in. No pics as the sun was in exactly the wrong place by the time I finished. Overall very happy with the unit. There is no SD slot at all, but it does come with 32GB of storage which should suit me fine as it's all I've ever needed on my phone anyway. As I said above, pluggin it up was easy, getting all the wiring out of the way was a pain in the knuckles as always.

 

Got Spotify and Waze on it no problem and both running well and concurrently. Can also use the forward/back buttons on my wheel to change tracks in Spotify which is nice. Something the car with its BT connection can't do with my phone for some reason.

 

Unit seems to actually switch off when turned off, but I've taken a note of the battery voltage so I can check it a bit later. My phone loses the BT connection with the unit about 5 seconds after you pull the key.

 

More bits later!

 

 

[therev]

3 hours ago, DBT85 said:

 

It's really quite simple, the pain is just getting the wiring to stay out of the way when you try to put it all back. As with every radio I've ever done, there is ton's of room in the dash, none of which you can get the huge connections through to use, so you jusst ave to faff around until it all goes in. I've just done mine. 3 cables (GPS, Aerial and main loom) to put in the back of the radio and one has to connect to the car loom. 

 

 

Well my PB96MTVAPL is in. No pics as the sun was in exactly the wrong place by the time I finished. Overall very happy with the unit. There is no SD slot at all, but it does come with 32GB of storage which should suit me fine as it's all I've ever needed on my phone anyway. As I said above, pluggin it up was easy, getting all the wiring out of the way was a pain in the knuckles as always.

 

Got Spotify and Waze on it no problem and both running well and concurrently. Can also use the forward/back buttons on my wheel to change tracks in Spotify which is nice. Something the car with its BT connection can't do with my phone for some reason.

 

Unit seems to actually switch off when turned off, but I've taken a note of the battery voltage so I can check it a bit later. My phone loses the BT connection with the unit about 5 seconds after you pull the key.

 

More bits later!

 

 

nice 1 please get some pics if ya can mate also if i bought this unit could i play films through the usb cable via a memory stick ??

[T2000]

14 hours ago, alextait said:

 

What is the easiest way to upgrade the firmware please T2000?

 

Thanks

 

Get in touch with the seller or I can send you the link.

[alextait]

6 hours ago, T2000 said:

Get in touch with the seller or I can send you the link.

 

Thanks... have contacted seller.

 

 

 

 

[DBT85]

11 hours ago, therev said:

nice 1 please get some pics if ya can mate also if i bought this unit could i play films through the usb cable via a memory stick ??

 

I believe this is possible yes, though I've not wired up either USB so I can't check that. It can also pump video to the headrest screens if you have them I think.

 

I need to get into the password protected menu today to swap the drivers side over as currently the doors think they other side is open. I also need to double check the phone options. My car has its own BT connection which still works, but while people can hear me, I can't hear them. Alternatively I can connect my phone to the radio and use it's BT connection, but I don't think I can then control it from the wheel, which is what I would really prefer. Need to have a fiddle and see what's what.

[alextait]

Not sure if this will help anyone... but this handy little app will auto turn on your wifi hotspot on your phone when it is connected to a bluetooth device.

 

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=de.thjunge11.autohotspotfree

 

If you go pro you can selected specific devices which trigger the hot spot.

 

Thanks

[T2000]

3 hours ago, DBT85 said:

 

I believe this is possible yes, though I've not wired up either USB so I can't check that. It can also pump video to the headrest screens if you have them I think.

 

I need to get into the password protected menu today to swap the drivers side over as currently the doors think they other side is open. I also need to double check the phone options. My car has its own BT connection which still works, but while people can hear me, I can't hear them. Alternatively I can connect my phone to the radio and use it's BT connection, but I don't think I can then control it from the wheel, which is what I would really prefer. Need to have a fiddle and see what's what.

Try 3368 to get into the factory settings

[DBT85]

Just a couple of photos of the PB96MTVAP unit in place. 

 

The password for this radio is 126 to get to the settings. Though it is a different unit from yourself @T2000.

 

Overall very pleased. The Spotify and Waze apps both work well, I can skip tracks from the steering wheel which is nice and the GPS is dead on.

 

You can't remove a lot of the apps from the home pages but you can move them around or install a new launcher which would give more customisation.

 

Sadly the unit cannot seem to receive audio from my Octavias built in BT unit. While I can use it to talk to people, I cannot hear them. This means I have to connect my phone to the radio and use its built in Mic, but that also means I can't control the phonebook from my wheel. Largely I'm only ever answering calls anyway so probably not a bit deal, but an annoyance.

 

I have installed that hotspot app @alextait and it's working well. I paid the 70p and now when the phone connects to the radio the hotspot turns on and it joins the Wifi.

 

The unit is fast to turn on (immediate) and I've had no issue with battery drain overnight. The loom it comes with has a little toggle thing that you're supposed to connect if you're not using the CANBUS. I think that is what would be needed to halt battery drain. My cars battery is a little low right now but that's from playing with it for 3 hours yesterday with the engine off lol.

 

The unit is nice and fast to do anything, the sound from Spotify is great, the screen despite being a low resolution is much nicer than I expected. I'm used to my phones 1920x1080 5" screen but since this 9" screen is a few feet from your head it looks fine.

 

I've not tried playing video on it as I'll never use that feature. For me this unit was all about having Waze and Spotify running on it rather than on my phone. 

 

As you can see, I think it looks quite nice in the car too.

[DBT85]

I made a video of the Xtrons PB96MTVAPL radio if anyone wants a goosy

 

 

 

 

[therev]

really nice video mate head unit looks smart only thing i would like to see on these andriod units is to display climate control like the bolero but thats just me looks smart in your car as well thanks for sharing the info mate 

[DBT85]

14 minutes ago, therev said:

really nice video mate head unit looks smart only thing i would like to see on these andriod units is to display climate control like the bolero but thats just me looks smart in your car as well thanks for sharing the info mate 

 

I can't recall how the Bolero does it! 

[Redfab]

DBT85's video does display the climate etc at around 8.38. Is that not what you mean or something different?  The bolero flashes up the changes for a few seconds on the full screen but the android seems to be a bar at the bottom for a few seconds, so you do seem to get it.

 

DBT85, as your car has the built in bluetooth module, dont you need to disconnect that so that it pairs from the start with the android rather than the one which is already in your car?  

 

I dont have a bluetooth in mine and I would expect it to pair with the new andriod straight away.  Just a thought..

[DBT85]

45 minutes ago, Redfab said:

DBT85's video does display the climate etc at around 8.38. Is that not what you mean or something different?  The bolero flashes up the changes for a few seconds on the full screen but the android seems to be a bar at the bottom for a few seconds, so you do seem to get it.

 

DBT85, as your car has the built in bluetooth module, dont you need to disconnect that so that it pairs from the start with the android rather than the one which is already in your car?  

 

I dont have a bluetooth in mine and I would expect it to pair with the new andriod straight away.  Just a thought..

 

Yep @therevaround 8 minutes in you see the heating controls. 

 

Also just a side note, the screen doesn't actually cut off at the bottom like it appears, its just set about 5mm back into the radio so from that camera angle it looks cut off!

 

@Redfab I have indeed disconnected the cars own BT unit, though nothing changes as a result of doing that other than it now doesn't appear on my Maxidot. Whether it is plugged in or not, you can still connect direct to the radio itself.