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Use An Android Phone As A Dashcam

Use An Android Phone As A Dashcam
This is at least the 60th car accident I've been in this year. I swear it's not my fault but as soon as the judge sees my driving record, I'm toast! I've been telling myself that I'm going to get a dashcam for the past few years and I just never get around to it. If a dashcam is just a camera that starts recording when the car is moving, then why can't I just use that old Android phone that's collecting dust in my BDSM chamber? Well now you can!
This will work best with a phone that has lots of storage or an SD card slot.
To convert your phone into a dashcam, you'll want to use the app DailyRoads Voyager.
Download DailyRoads Voyager
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You'll want a sturdy window mount to get the best footage. you can find them on Amazon for around $20.
Here are some of the features you'll get with the DailyRoads Voyager app.
Background video/photo capture, with optional buttons over other applications
Auto start and shutdown based on car dock detection and related options
Videos/photos are timestamped & geotagged
Automatically determine street address of retained videos/photos
Display videos/photos location on a map
Display speed, elevation, timestamp and GPS coordinates on videos/photos
Option to change speed units (km/h, mph) and date format
Overheating protection
GPS can be disabled to reduce power consumption
Brightness adjustment option allows less distraction when driving at night
Built-in file manager, video/photo browser
There are several apps that offer dashcam recording but this one definitely has the most useful features. Give it a shot and stop putting off getting that dashcam!

perfect
This is a great idea! I am going to try this out with my old phone.

This looks great, going to give it a go with an old phone. One question, can you have the phone screen off while driving and it still records or does it need to be on?

obsidianwings said:
This looks great, going to give it a go with an old phone. One question, can you have the phone screen off while driving and it still records or does it need to be on?
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Click to collapse
The screen has to be on but you can just set it to be very dim.

AutoGuard supports background recording:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hovans.autoguard

This is a nice idea that maybe 90% of the people already looking for a dash camera thought about.
The real problem here is not finding a suitable application (like the one you thoughtfully suggested) but having your phone actually behave like a normal dash camera: turn on when the car turns on, turn off after you turn off your car. Especialy, not having the huge delay in starting up as every android phone has: a dash camera starts up (I mean from totally off, with a dead battery sitting idly in there) in just a few seconds.
The first problem might be solved with tasker, joining the "charger on/off" event to the video recording app, the second one is not easily solvable IMO.
I wouldn't know tho, since I own a chinese dash camera which sadly has no GPS, but which I paid less than any decent second-hand android phone (16€ because I wanted a "good" one) and worked as intended straight out of the box without any intervention on my part other than setting up the resolution

ephestione said:
This is a nice idea that maybe 90% of the people already looking for a dash camera thought about.
The real problem here is not finding a suitable application (like the one you thoughtfully suggested) but having your phone actually behave like a normal dash camera: turn on when the car turns on, turn off after you turn off your car. Especialy, not having the huge delay in starting up as every android phone has: a dash camera starts up (I mean from totally off, with a dead battery sitting idly in there) in just a few seconds.
The first problem might be solved with tasker, joining the "charger on/off" event to the video recording app, the second one is not easily solvable IMO.
I wouldn't know tho, since I own a chinese dash camera which sadly has no GPS, but which I paid less than any decent second-hand android phone (16€ because I wanted a "good" one) and worked as intended straight out of the box without any intervention on my part other than setting up the resolution
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Click to collapse
Well, the solution is not let the phone switch off. I don't think its much of a problem considering the fact that it will be connected to the charger throught out the drive

Pauses when the veihicle is turned off might drain the battery in standby for so long that the phone could turn off automatically. Chances are also that the old phone you put in your car for this purpose already has a dying battery (not that brand new battery won't die pretty fast by being on charge during most of the time)
Unless you take power from a different outlet than the cigarette lighter, which is powered on only when the car is on, but that in turn will drain the very own car battery, albeit it's got way more power reserves, but still a overdrain risk if your car stays off for long periods.
Having to remember to turn the phone off and on again when you need it is still bothersome, plus as I said it will take some time to be operative when you turn it on.

I thank the op and others for bringing up the two suggested dashcam apps (DailyRoads Voyager & AutoGuard Dash Cam), and I agree that a phone doesn't "act" like a built-in dashcam (e.g., go on and off with the ignition switch) but I wouldn't expect an Android dash-cam app to be as good as a built-in system anyway.
It just needs to work, where I'll test the two suggested dashcam apps on my next road trip, but I will note for others first that I had to loosen my FOSS Google Play Store client to even find the two suggested apps above (both, unfortunately, require GSF and both even more unfortunately, contain ads).
DailyRoads, free, contains ads, requires gsf, rated 4.1, 1M+ installs
AutoGuard, free, contains ads, requires gsf, rated 3.8, 1M+ installs
The goal, of course, would be to find a dash cam that is at least as good as those two but without those two unfortunate developer decisions (which I understand why they choose them).
UPDATE: The AutoGuard Dash Cam app requires a login to a mothership which, even though it allows for "guest", seems like something an app suggested for general purpose use should never need, given the obvious negative privacy implications. Maybe someone can expound on why it needs any login to anything when all it's supposed to be doing is recording onto your own personal device.

Android tablet in your car instead of these head unit

I am really thinking about going this route.
With all the issues surrounding these headunits, why not get an android tablet which will cost about the same or a little more and install it as your head unit. You can then use an amp for the sound.
I mean what can these head unit do that an android tablet cannot do?
The tablet are much brighter, have more power (cpu) and memory.
I already have an android head unit that was made for my car, all I will have to do is remove the screen and attach the android tablet screen to it, et voila.
Your thoughts?
http://www.androidauthority.com/tablet-car-dash-install-631519/

Well,.....
1) power on and off with the ignition switch.
2) relay a bluetooth phone call
3) 4 speakers
4) If I cared enough, I could think of at least a dozen more.
Oh, you think you want to hack those into a tablet? So youre going to end up overwhelming your USB2 OTG port, add a bunch of flaky USB connections, a 16 port usb hub, and then all the software to run it all? Good luck with your "issue free" tablet.
Oh, as for your "brighter, have more power (cpu) and memory." --- uh..... nope.
The video is talking about a Nexus 7. The Nexus 7 2013 had... APQ8064 (a bit weaker than the Intel x3-c3230RK in new head units), 2 GB RAM (the SAME as the new head units), and sorry, but no, the screen brightness of a Nexus 7 is nothing special.
Another thing that will happen with that Nexus 7, is when you're running your GPS NAV program, it will actually DEPLETE the battery, and eventually SHUT DOWN. It will burn more power than the charger supplies.
If you're really interested in the chewing gum and duct tape solution (like the velcro and sticky tape the video site was talking about), then this is for you; http://www.redgreen.com/

doitright said:
*** Mindless *****ing deleted ***
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You are by far the biggest troll I've come across in quite some time. Congratulations :highfive:
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Lol, he sounds very discouraging and negative, doesn't he?
It can be done, but it is going to be challenging for a seemless integration. Every feature of these head unit can be accomplished with a tablet, all the tools are there, and lots of ressources available online.
Nexus 7 is old, I am talking about the newer tablets on the market.
I came across that page and it made me wonder why not. If I go this route, it will probably take me some time, but I am sure at the end I will have a great head unit. These head unit are nothing more than modified tablet made for your car.

I am thinking of the iWork 11 tablet on aliexpress, they will make a perfect candidate, dual boot android or win10, Intel atom 4x core, 4gb/64gb, usb OTG, seperate dc charger so you can use the usb for other things, mini hdmi, etc...
Aliexpress and search for iwork 11.
I am sure you can hack them to make a perfect head unit. I will keep researching on them

Actually, I am. I had the Joying double din and wasn't satisfied. This is the plan.
I bought a Kenwood Mechless Single Din. Fiberglassing a slider kit over the top. Using a Nexus 7 to handle all the content via Bluetooth or USB control.
The plus is I have 6 channels from the single din with a crossover built in, I retained my steering wheel controls and have some extra controls over sound.

with the newer Joying 2GB of RAM Intel units, I dont think a tablet is worth it at this point. with my old MTCD it was pretty laggy, and I was considering it, but at this point, the new Joying is pretty quick, supports microsd card, etc.

checksum123 said:
I am really thinking about going this route.
With all the issues surrounding these headunits, why not get an android tablet which will cost about the same or a little more and install it as your head unit. You can then use an amp for the sound.
I mean what can these head unit do that an android tablet cannot do?
The tablet are much brighter, have more power (cpu) and memory.
I already have an android head unit that was made for my car, all I will have to do is remove the screen and attach the android tablet screen to it, et voila.
Your thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it depends on what you want it to do. Some aspects of a car stereo/GPS unit are harder to duplicate on a tablet installed in a car than others. I really considered it. But, eventually decided against it and went with a Joying head unit. In particular, I couldn't think of a clean way to handle 4 speaker volume fading from the tablet interface. I ended up with a Joying JY-UL135. It's a 1 GB model based on an older processor, and can be a little laggy immediately after boot and if you run some arbitrary apps. The Swiftkey keyboard seemed to really make it lag. But, for the music apps and navigation, it works pretty well. The bulitin MP3 app doesn't seem to handle playlists. It is also Android 5.1.1. But, it was less that $270.
One thing about putting anything Android in the car that needs to be considered, is how you handle your Google account. If you don't have some way to secure the login, or don't want to log in every time you get in the car, a head unit will leave your Google account completely exposed if the unit is stolen or someone else uses your car. Of course, the same thing is possible with you phone or tablet, but for some reason, I'm more concerned with the ability to protect the head unit.
I considered making a new Google account for the head unit that wouldn't compromise my entire world if it were compromised. But, I decided that I just don't leave the head unit logged in to Google. I only log it in to update something from the play store.

if you use Android Device Manager, you should be able to wipe that device if someone steals the headunit. you would have to wait until they connect to wifi, but it is something

CadillacMike said:
if you use Android Device Manager, you should be able to wipe that device if someone steals the headunit. you would have to wait until they connect to wifi, but it is something
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. I thought about that. I just decided that for me, leaving it logged out felt the best. I don't use it for email or social media. So, leaving it logged out only impacts play store updates for me so far.
People just need to be aware of it and decide how they want to handle security. Actually, the same goes for phones and tablets. Many people have no security lock on their phones. Phones and tablets don't get left in mall parking lots for hours though.

Well, for those that have followed my indecision around these units lately, I've decided to run the Tablet route for a little while. I hope to continue working on a more permanent install based around an SBC (Inforce 6540), but it's going to take a lot of my time to get up and running .. something I don't have a lot of these days.
I have a Nexus 9 that barely gets used, so I went and bought an inexpensive JVC media headunit that supports bluetooth. I needed something 'mechless' so that I could recess the unit in the dash a bit, and leave room for a nice tablet holder/slot/etc. While I'm gather the rest of the cables (Need some OTG & Charging stuff), I'll just velcro it to the dash. Hopefully within a week or so, I'll have something a little cleaner.
I'll try to take some photos/videos of what I come up with.
BTW. One of the things that was keeping me from going this route was my back up camera. Ended up buying a cheap USB AV-In dongle that I *hope* will work. I've seen some other posts of people doing this successfully.

mwrutherford said:
Yes. I thought about that. I just decided that for me, leaving it logged out felt the best. I don't use it for email or social media. So, leaving it logged out only impacts play store updates for me so far.
People just need to be aware of it and decide how they want to handle security. Actually, the same goes for phones and tablets. Many people have no security lock on their phones. Phones and tablets don't get left in mall parking lots for hours though.
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Click to collapse
well for me I use Google Play Music, so my gmail is tied to that, so it stays logged in

Zaphod-Beeblebrox said:
BTW. One of the things that was keeping me from going this route was my back up camera. Ended up buying a cheap USB AV-In dongle that I *hope* will work. I've seen some other posts of people doing this successfully.
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Good luck with that. I've got two of those that look identical with EasyCAP printed on them.
One exposes the camera as a USB webcam the other requires a special Windows driver to work at all.
If you have any problems maybe one of those rear view mirrors with a built in camera screen might be another way to go.

leonkernan said:
Good luck with that. I've got two of those that look identical with EasyCAP printed on them.
One exposes the camera as a USB webcam the other requires a special Windows driver to work at all.
If you have any problems maybe one of those rear view mirrors with a built in camera screen might be another way to go.
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Supposedly this is based on a UVC chipset/driver. I popped the case apart and it seems to have the right chipset as indicated by a few apps I've seen in the store.
Wouldn't be the first time I threw chinese electronics in my trash can

Actually the best bet would be to seperate hardware into two parts. Monitor and CPU.
If you would find a good capacitive 4k monitor you could make a permant install and run windows or android mini pc or whatever os you want.
I bought Pipo X9 dual os tablet for some reason. If the hardware survive I think there wont be any problem when compared to head units/
to me headunits are expensive right now and their screens outdated(there are 4k retina tablets at 150 usd )

I second what you just said, these head unit are so outdated and far behind what is out there right now. Joying just came out with a 2gb/32gb head with an Intel cpu and running 5.1.1. Looks like they are moving in the right direction, but still far behind.
Now you can get an octacore tablet with 3gb/32gb with a high resolution amoled display for around $300 running the latest android. Full integration in your car will not be easy, but it can be done and will take some time to figure everything out, the options are endless if you go this route. Music, bluetooth, backup camera, steering wheel control, radio, etc... all can be integrated within a tablet, but you will have additional components added and you will need to figure out how to put all that together. I have seen many successful android tablet built over at mp3car.
I am really thinking going this route, I just need to figure out how to build a bezel that will fit nicely in my car. And the best part, you will have a lot of fun building everything from scratch and the joy when everything works, you will get a big kick out of it.

For those who are so worried about the security of the google account, I am pretty sure that the chance of your phone being stolen or lost is much higher than your car being stolen... I wouldn't worry too much about it, just enable safety features or even use Cerberus, and you'll be fine and you'll be able to wipe the device remotely. Another thing is that it's very easy to disable the login from a device in your account settings. Just use 2-step verification, and you're good.

checksum123 said:
I second what you just said, these head unit are so outdated and far behind what is out there right now. Joying just came out with a 2gb/32gb head with an Intel cpu and running 5.1.1. Looks like they are moving in the right direction, but still far behind.
Now you can get an octacore tablet with 3gb/32gb with a high resolution amoled display for around $300 running the latest android. Full integration in your car will not be easy, but it can be done and will take some time to figure everything out, the options are endless if you go this route. Music, bluetooth, backup camera, steering wheel control, radio, etc... all can be integrated within a tablet, but you will have additional components added and you will need to figure out how to put all that together. I have seen many successful android tablet built over at mp3car.
I am really thinking going this route, I just need to figure out how to build a bezel that will fit nicely in my car. And the best part, you will have a lot of fun building everything from scratch and the joy when everything works, you will get a big kick out of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bezels are sold seperately. You may buy and modify it to your neeeds.
There is no bezel for my car and I am modelling my bezel in 3d max right now and i am planning to use friends 3d printer
The below lcd housing is what i did in the past. Its hand made from carbon fiber.
http://smg.photobucket.com/user/cucuman/media/technics/DSC_4171.jpg.html

Nice,
I will look into 3d printing, since I am not very good at fabrication. My radio opening is big enough to accommodate a 10 inch screen. I want to go either 8 inch or 10.5. Right now I have a 10.2 inch android head unit in there.

My experience so far
Hi guys,
I've made a permanant headunit install with a LG G pad 7.0 since a bit less than a year now so i wanted to share my experience with you. And so far it's quiet good!
I've managed to install the tablet in the place of my old 2DIN radio (with minimal cuttings) then wired it to an amplifier for the sound. I then installed a bunch off apps to have everything needed ( Headunit launcher, GPS apps, Music player, shortcuts ...). And finally, i had to automate a few things for when i jump in and out of the car like swithcing the music or the screen. For this i used the app called "AutoMate"
But i also experienced a few problems and limitations that you should consider :
The first thing is that in summer the tablet can overheat if you are parked in the sun (especially in my black car). So try to keep the tablet easily removable in this case.
The second issue may be related only to my tablet but i'm still seeking for solution. (maybe somone will have an idea here ???) When i'm playing sound throught the jack of the tablet to the amplifier, everything is fine. But if the sound stops (if i pause the music for exemple) after 5 seconds, the audio driver of the tablet goes into some kind of "standby mode". I suspect this standby mode to somhow disconect the audio line witch leads to a massive intrusion of interferences in the audio line. I found a little patch for this problem by having a script that plays a mp3 with no sound when i don't play music. but it creats more problems than it fixes....
The last problem (or more limitation) i'm having now is the single USB OTG port of the tablet. It is already used for charging so it's apparently not possible to plug a hub or something like that to expand it's capacities (USB keys or steering wheel controls for exemple).
But other than that it's all working fine and it's really great to have built this for a fraction of the cost of an normal head unit! ( less than 150€! )
I'll try to stay tuned on this thread if i can give you more infos!

New Pumpkin 7.1 Nougat 2GB Ram, 32GB Rom and Fast-Boot Model AS0272B

I just picked up new Pumpkin stereo and I'm pretty excited as it is my first true Android powered car stereo. I have been looking at them for a long time and the biggest hesitation that I had was the complaints that I had heard of slow start-up times. I have been looking around at stereo options for my 2003 Silverado recently, and noticed that all of the higher end name brands were just so expensive. And they are only now just starting to get the Android Auto integration. That led me to look and see if there were any new improvements to the true Android stereos. Then I came across this Pumpkin unit that had every option that I was looking for; HD capacitive touch screen, Steering wheel integration, Bluetooth 4.0, phone mirroring or Google Navigation (this has both), and a rear backup camera input.
I really haven't had a lot of time to play around with the head unit, but so far I'm very impressed. One of the things that I was concerned about was having something that wouldn't be easy to navigate for my wife. I installed last night and when she got in my truck this morning, she was very impressed. I really like the UI that it comes with stock. Some of the icons are locked, but I'm ok with that. There are a ton of great pre-loaded apps such as Torque, and the Navigation app that came standard is Google Maps. Once I get to play around with it more I may make a video of the operation to help others make a decision. The unit is just as advertised for the quick boot up times. When I first booted up the unit it took only about 15 seconds and then every time after that it comes on almost instantly playing my music.
I'm hoping to finish up the install this weekend and play around with the placement of the wi-fi and GPS antenna's. I also want to wire up the backup camera and get that functioning. I will keep this updated as I progress through installing the rest of the components.
Unboxing it:
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Couple installed pics. I will get some better ones this week.
Thanks,
Ryan

Hi, your pumpkin looks just like the one I bought and installed last week but mine came with android 6.
Could you please post a pic of your about device screen under settings. Just wondering if the hardware is the same?
Cheers

jimsey said:
Hi, your pumpkin looks just like the one I bought and installed last week but mine came with android 6.
Could you please post a pic of your about device screen under settings. Just wondering if the hardware is the same?
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me know if this is what you were looking for:
I finished up the physical install of the radio last night. My factory truck harness to the original stereo didn't have a dimmer light or switched 12v+ so I added those pins to the truck side of my harness so that I didn't have to have any extra wires to unplug if/when I ever need to pull mine out.
Home screen:
Radio:
It's been a few days now and I am very happy with the radio overall. There are two quirks that may just be user error, but sometimes the radio app doesn't want to stay open and will close, but the music still plays? If I open it up and push another button it will stay on though? The other is I have a fairly significant amount of static when making a bluetooth phone call? Maybe I am getting some sort of interference with the radio antenna or something? Otherwise it has been smooth sailing and I'm mad I didn't do this sooner! I'm hoping to get my backup camera hooked up this weekend and then the install is complete.

Looks good, you've got a px3 processor which is different to my px5 and explains why you've got a newer version of android to mine even though the radios look identical on the outside.
Not sure about the static, they do have their quirks but there's not much that people on here have xperienced and fixed.
Pumpkins own forum also has good support from pumpkin staff.

I'm not too familiar with the hardware, but hopefully my PX3 is a good processor. That's a great tip on the Pumpkin forum. Maybe I will search over there to see if I can find out why I am getting the static.

Looking at one of these units. I notice it doesn't have a normal wiring harness and has RCA type ends on the wires. Am I correct?
Sent from my SM-G935W8 using Tapatalk

I picked up one too. Not this exact model but it is the Octacore 7.1.2 version and 6.2" screen. You def have a newer build version than mine.
Processor Type - UltraOcta-T8
Android Version - 7.1.2
MCU Version - T8.3.19-11-00-453101-171129-UNIVERSAL
System Version - V9.2.2_20180120.164839_KED3-5
DVD Version - 2.13.15-860MC-160106
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am having problems with the Radio not changing frequency and not showing RDS on all my stations. Old headunit did. Also my fast bootup doesn't work all the time. Pumpkin gave me a new version to download and install, but I haven't done that just yet.

Pimptorious said:
Looking at one of these units. I notice it doesn't have a normal wiring harness and has RCA type ends on the wires. Am I correct?
Sent from my SM-G935W8 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
There are the RCA connections for back up cameras, and a bunch of other inputs, but there is also the regular unterminated ends that you have to solder to your existing radio or radio harness adapter. They called it an ISO plug in my instructions and I ended up cutting that off to splice on the adapter for my truck.

L-ight said:
I picked up one too. Not this exact model but it is the Octacore 7.1.2 version and 6.2" screen. You def have a newer build version than mine.
I am having problems with the Radio not changing frequency and not showing RDS on all my stations. Old headunit did. Also my fast bootup doesn't work all the time. Pumpkin gave me a new version to download and install, but I haven't done that just yet.
Click to expand...
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I'm not very savvy with the technical side of the radio for installing different versions, but I haven't had any issues with mine. The only issue I have with RDS is that when I have a weaker radio signal it will spell out gibberish, but that is understandable given the weak signal. Other than than it works perfectly and tells me the artist and song that is playing, or the radio station. As for the fast boot not working, did you hook your wires up properly to switched 12v+, constant 12v+ and ground? Make sure those connections are rock solid. I soldered all of my connections and heat shrink to protect them.

I was googling these updated units as I have an older Pyle PLDNANDVR695 and it's just driving me nuts with how slow it is and the issues I have. I came across Pumpkins new unit that is an octa-core with 8.0 (https://www.autopumpkin.com/pumpkin...screen-octa-core-with-gps-navi-bluetooth.html)
Has anyone tried this one yet? The specs look great... I realize there will always be issues with these types of head units and I really want to upgrade from my current unit but I also don't want to have a bunch of new issues to deal with.

JLaCroix said:
I was googling these updated units as I have an older Pyle PLDNANDVR695 and it's just driving me nuts with how slow it is and the issues I have. I came across Pumpkins new unit that is an octa-core with 8.0 (https://www.autopumpkin.com/pumpkin...screen-octa-core-with-gps-navi-bluetooth.html)
Has anyone tried this one yet? The specs look great... I realize there will always be issues with these types of head units and I really want to upgrade from my current unit but I also don't want to have a bunch of new issues to deal with.
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Click to collapse
I actually have the 7.1 unit I just bought last week. I am going to return it and get this one. Just hoping it gets on Amazon soon as my return window closes March 2nd. So far the headunit has been good. I did have to update the MCU which fixed the buggy radio. Now it works well. I also thought I purchased a fast boot unit. I did not. So that is another reason I am returning it. Takes around 25 seconds to boot. This new one takes 1 second supposedly which is awesome!
I have an aftermarket system hooked up to it as well and it sounds fine. The presets aren't bad either. I tested the headunit's clipping volume on my O-scope and I was able to turn it up to max volume without the unit clipping. Impressive if you ask me. The rule most go by is 75% max volume then do all your tuning from there.
I got rid of the crappy factory look and downloaded Nova Launcher that I use on my phone. I will be doing the same with the new unit. Though one thing is when you add a new launcher you can't add a radio widget like the factory one has. I just bypass this by hitting the "band" key on the left.

L-ight said:
I actually have the 7.1 unit I just bought last week. I am going to return it and get this one. Just hoping it gets on Amazon soon as my return window closes March 2nd. So far the headunit has been good. I did have to update the MCU which fixed the buggy radio. Now it works well. I also thought I purchased a fast boot unit. I did not. So that is another reason I am returning it. Takes around 25 seconds to boot. This new one takes 1 second supposedly which is awesome!
I have an aftermarket system hooked up to it as well and it sounds fine. The presets aren't bad either. I tested the headunit's clipping volume on my O-scope and I was able to turn it up to max volume without the unit clipping. Impressive if you ask me. The rule most go by is 75% max volume then do all your tuning from there.
I got rid of the crappy factory look and downloaded Nova Launcher that I use on my phone. I will be doing the same with the new unit. Though one thing is when you add a new launcher you can't add a radio widget like the factory one has. I just bypass this by hitting the "band" key on the left.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cool, thanks for the response! A lot of the issues I have with the Pyle aren't necessarily show stoppers, but they are absolutely maddening to me. For instance, it always delay initiates my amp by like 3 seconds... I have all my fronts through two crossovers into to a JL HD600 and I have the rears hooked into the HU directly; music starts playing and then the amp kicks in with the front speakers. Could be my issue but I've had a setup like this before on other headunits and it was never an issue. Also the auto-dimming is broken and manually changing it has this really weird issue where you change it, it switches back almost immediately and you have about a 1 second window to change it again... it's almost like it has a Min & Max value of brightness and it just jumps back and forth. Insanelyyyyyyyyyy annoying at night time as you're trying to turn it down and it will just go super bright and blind the piss out of me.
Anyways, I am pretty close to wanting to order this unit anyways and just try it out. The specs look fantastic and hopefully it's just a generally better experience than what I'm having now. The Pyle was my first android based unit and overall it's been cool, I just want a bit more out of it and expect a better experience overall.

JLaCroix said:
Cool, thanks for the response! A lot of the issues I have with the Pyle aren't necessarily show stoppers, but they are absolutely maddening to me. For instance, it always delay initiates my amp by like 3 seconds... I have all my fronts through two crossovers into to a JL HD600 and I have the rears hooked into the HU directly; music starts playing and then the amp kicks in with the front speakers. Could be my issue but I've had a setup like this before on other headunits and it was never an issue. Also the auto-dimming is broken and manually changing it has this really weird issue where you change it, it switches back almost immediately and you have about a 1 second window to change it again... it's almost like it has a Min & Max value of brightness and it just jumps back and forth. Insanelyyyyyyyyyy annoying at night time as you're trying to turn it down and it will just go super bright and blind the piss out of me.
Anyways, I am pretty close to wanting to order this unit anyways and just try it out. The specs look fantastic and hopefully it's just a generally better experience than what I'm having now. The Pyle was my first android based unit and overall it's been cool, I just want a bit more out of it and expect a better experience overall.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That sucks about the delayed amp. I have my remote wire from my two amps spliced into the red (acc) on the head unit which then goes into the pac harness for my truck. Soon as I turn my ignition on it powers up my amps. Though I am not sure if yours boots up quick or not, but maybe mine taking close to 30 seconds to boot my amps have time to turn on. For now I have changed the settings to where the headunit powers down after 10 mins when ignition is turned off. This allows for a quick start up of less than 5 seconds. Obviously this is for quick stops like the store or something. Overnight it is of course a cold boot.
The dimming on my is not auto either. I didn''t hook those wires up as it was a bit confusing which ones were the dimmers. Though the volume knob is actually the dimmer as well. You press it in and it goes from Bright, Dark, Off. I can adjust it more by pulling the system settings up, but the dark setting is perfectly fine at night.
I really think you'll be pleased with this unit. I am impressed by my current one and I have used nothing but top of the line Kenwood units for the past decade. I wanted more freedom in my headunit so I took a plunge at the low cost of these. Of course there will always be pros and cons. I also love using my phone as the hotspot and playing Spotify/etc from my headunit. Of course I did this with my old units but that was through BT. No need for BT now. I also don't care to have BT calling either.

L-ight said:
That sucks about the delayed amp. I have my remote wire from my two amps spliced into the red (acc) on the head unit which then goes into the pac harness for my truck. Soon as I turn my ignition on it powers up my amps. Though I am not sure if yours boots up quick or not, but maybe mine taking close to 30 seconds to boot my amps have time to turn on. For now I have changed the settings to where the headunit powers down after 10 mins when ignition is turned off. This allows for a quick start up of less than 5 seconds. Obviously this is for quick stops like the store or something. Overnight it is of course a cold boot.
The dimming on my is not auto either. I didn''t hook those wires up as it was a bit confusing which ones were the dimmers. Though the volume knob is actually the dimmer as well. You press it in and it goes from Bright, Dark, Off. I can adjust it more by pulling the system settings up, but the dark setting is perfectly fine at night.
I really think you'll be pleased with this unit. I am impressed by my current one and I have used nothing but top of the line Kenwood units for the past decade. I wanted more freedom in my headunit so I took a plunge at the low cost of these. Of course there will always be pros and cons. I also love using my phone as the hotspot and playing Spotify/etc from my headunit. Of course I did this with my old units but that was through BT. No need for BT now. I also don't care to have BT calling either.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I like your idea a lot about splicing the remote turn-on into the ignition on. I think my amp boots pretty quick but I will still plan to do what you've already done. That way it can also make sure that the remote turn on isn't losing connectivity and causing this 3s timeout. As I mentioned before, it's really weird because it does it for every song or transition of apps... insanely annoying.
The other question I had is how did you set yours to do remote shutoff after 10 minutes? One thing I haven't been able to do is this... not sure if my Porsche supports it or if I need to find an alternative power source that has this function built into it that keeps power for X# of minutes after the ignition is shut off.
I'm most likely going to order this updated unit this week... the only downside is I'm impatient when it comes to buying/shipping. I checked Amazon, nothing. with the updated unit There is an EBay store but it's coming from Hong Kong as well so it still has ~2-3 week delivery. I will likely order directly from Pumpkin because I want to order some of the add-on products directly from them (OBD2 and the 3/4G wifi dongle, which I'm super excited for since I have a spare, free sim).

JLaCroix said:
I like your idea a lot about splicing the remote turn-on into the ignition on. I think my amp boots pretty quick but I will still plan to do what you've already done. That way it can also make sure that the remote turn on isn't losing connectivity and causing this 3s timeout. As I mentioned before, it's really weird because it does it for every song or transition of apps... insanely annoying.
The other question I had is how did you set yours to do remote shutoff after 10 minutes? One thing I haven't been able to do is this... not sure if my Porsche supports it or if I need to find an alternative power source that has this function built into it that keeps power for X# of minutes after the ignition is shut off.
I'm most likely going to order this updated unit this week... the only downside is I'm impatient when it comes to buying/shipping. I checked Amazon, nothing. with the updated unit There is an EBay store but it's coming from Hong Kong as well so it still has ~2-3 week delivery. I will likely order directly from Pumpkin because I want to order some of the add-on products directly from them (OBD2 and the 3/4G wifi dongle, which I'm super excited for since I have a spare, free sim).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not sure about the Joying units, but I would think they are pretty similar to the Pumpkin when it comes to wiring an amp(s). Usually you have a blue/white for your remote off the headunit. Though I do not recall seeing one on these. Also the subout is usually two rcas and not just one. So I had to buy a Y adapter to plug my sub into it.
You go into settings, then car settings and there is an option to turn on the option. It gives you 10 mins, 30 mins or 1 hour shutoff. It actually puts it into sleep mode. This allows the screen to turn off and not display while you are out of your vehicle for potential thieves. Hopefully I won't need to use this on the new unit.
Yes I have been trying to get ahold of Pumpkin on when they will be releasing the new unit on Amazon. I get 5% cashback and Amazon is just easier to deal with. As I mentioned before I hope they get added before March 2nd which is the last day for my return window on my current head unit. Do you not have a hotspot on your phone? Verizon is what I have and I have the unlimited plan so using Hotspot is free. I thought about grabbing the 3g/4g dongle but I didn't trust it. Testing the hotspot proved to me that I don't need the dongle. I also use the OBD2 BT device to track my vehicles sensors/gauges. Works well. Even though the headunit comes with Torque Pro already installed. I ended up having problems with that one. So I uninstalled it, purchased from App store and it ended up fixing all my problems. $5 is not bad for the app either.
Another thing I would like to add is the GPS. I am not sure if it is because I have the antenna inside the dash or what, but it tends to skip and not follow me very precisely like our phones do. I think I need to relocate the GPS antenna outside the dash and have it sit at the bottom of the windshield out of site. This is something I will test when I get my new unit.

I also just saw you posted on the Pumpkin forum, just responded to yours on there!

JLaCroix said:
I also just saw you posted on the Pumpkin forum, just responded to yours on there!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm...I do not see any posts on that board since yesterday. Can you send me a direct link to the post please?

L-ight said:
Hmm...I do not see any posts on that board since yesterday. Can you send me a direct link to the post please?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apparently mine didn't post correctly, but basically was saying I also didn't see any Amazon store but found one on Ebay... but unfortunately it's still coming from Hong Kong.
---------- Post added at 12:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:54 PM ----------
Also just tried to post again, I realized that it has to be approved by a moderator before being allowed to show up...

JLaCroix said:
Apparently mine didn't post correctly, but basically was saying I also didn't see any Amazon store but found one on Ebay... but unfortunately it's still coming from Hong Kong.
---------- Post added at 12:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:54 PM ----------
Also just tried to post again, I realized that it has to be approved by a moderator before being allowed to show up...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea I fotgot about that. My first couple posts needed to be approved. Though they always responded within a day. They have replied back at all and it is making me impatient. I see they have one on Amazon now https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079N9XDFT/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ANVW61FB1ZGIJ&psc=1 but I am not paying $350 for it when it was $310 on their actual site.

L-ight said:
Yea I fotgot about that. My first couple posts needed to be approved. Though they always responded within a day. They have replied back at all and it is making me impatient. I see they have one on Amazon now https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079N9XDFT/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ANVW61FB1ZGIJ&psc=1 but I am not paying $350 for it when it was $310 on their actual site.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the link. I agree with you, ALTHOUGH on the same point I could receive it earlier and return it if there are any issues.

Looking for help with new iDoing PX6, Android 10, rk3399 hexacore

I've struck out when looking for fixes or help with this Android unit.
I have a few issues with it that I'm hoping people have solutions for.
Capacitive buttons don't illuminate anywhere except in the "Element" settings where you can choose what color they are. No matter if I set display mode to dark or light, the touch buttons don't ever illuminate. Not a huge deal, but I would like them to be lit up red to match my other lighting (2011 Subaru STI).
Auto shutdown after ACC power loss. There is a setting for this and it's on "auto" by default. Setting it to any setting doesn't have any affect. I would like it to be 5 or 6 seconds, but 30 seconds is the lowest. No matter what, the unit shuts down after about 2 seconds, which is manageable but not optimal for me since I have keyless push-button start and can't go from car running to accessory power without the car shutting off first. And the push-button start takes about 1 full second to register presses, so I have to get the timing just right if I want the HU to avoid shutdown.
Auto brightness does nothing. During the night, it's still at full brightness and using the white/light theme, not the black/dark theme. I figure I can use an app like Lux to control the actual brightness and just leave the theme set to dark. The HU does not have an orange illumination wire like all other stereos I've installed, so I figured it had a light sensor on it but it doesn't seem to. Not 100% sure yet.
I don't think there is a solution to this, but more like I'm curious if other Chinese Android units all do this: white-noise humming that you can hear when there is no music playing. Sure, I can't hear it when my car is running, but there is an audible hum in all speakers and subwoofer. I've minimized it by turning down the gain on my amplifier and subwoofer, but it's annoying and reminds me of cheap crappy stereos that don't filter out noise like this one, but this one is $360 and not cheap in my opinion. I'm curious if the Joying units do this when using the pre-outs specifically. This iDoing unit does not have an amp built in, despite it saying on the page that it has 4x50W output. Just looking at the output label, you can see there are zero speaker output wires.
Is there a way to do manual updates on this unit? When I search for MCU and System updates, it doesn't find any. I guess maybe it's up to date and there is no fix for the 3 problems I mentioned above.
I don't see any custom ROMs for this unit, just for the Android 9 PX6 units. I am going to check out some custom launchers since the iDoing launcher is super basic and uninspiring. Then again, I am mostly just inside of Apple Carplay the whole time, so the launcher doesn't matter much.
Thanks for any help!
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Really wished I would have seen this unit before I ordered and installed mine:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32950726060.html
It's got 8 cores, A75 and A55s, and has LTE modem built in, which I really wanted since I have an free phone line that I don't really use through T-Mobile. That unit also comes with adapters to use the OEM aux and USB ports in the center arm rest / storage, and I think a 20-pin harness to plug directly into the Subaru.
It probably has the same issues I'm talking about in my original post though, so I shouldn't fret....I guess. BUYERS REMORSE IS REAL, UGH!

So I just ordered the uis 7862, Even Idoing say the Px6 version is more "mature", but I opted for the faster proc and 4g and hoping the bugs get nailed soon. Keep in mind the 4g per IDoing will only work with t-mobile and i question even that(but am hopeful).
I went with IDoing for two main reasons. Primary reason being they are the only ones who support the HK audio in m 2018 WRX, and second they are extremely responsive to question(at least during sales). It took me 3 days to get a "No" from Joying, whereas I have spent nearly 2 hours on chat with Idoing. They also upgraded my shipping to DHL at no cost and am expecting my unit on friday(one week from order).
There is very little on the IDoings here apparently. Look forward to hearing how you are making out, with luck i'll have mine installed this weekend.
On your issues... Have you reached out to IDoing? They seem genuinely interested in helping.
Hoping your buzzing issue either is uncommon or irrelevant when using the canbus adapter to the HK.
I'm a verizon sub, but if it works with tmobile I may get a cricket wireless plan just for the car.
Any issues loading apps on the unit. I really just need fubo, spotify, a flac player, youtube, and waze, but loading other apps would be cool.

Idoing are a reseller of units. What hardware did you buy? Guess you might not know until it arrives, but the picture above lists an MTCE unit (mtcd)...wondering why this thread isn't in the MTCD section.
All of these chinese android grey boxes have bugs, they all copy each other and all make the same mistakes, some horrendously worse than others, but they're all buggy.
If you have started from low expectations, the unit might work out.

marchnz said:
Idoing are a reseller of units. What hardware did you buy? Guess you might not know until it arrives, but the picture above lists an MTCE unit (mtcd)...wondering why this thread isn't in the MTCD section.
All of these chinese android grey boxes have bugs, they all copy each other and all make the same mistakes, some horrendously worse than others, but they're all buggy.
If you have started from low expectations, the unit might work out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not the OP, but I ordered a UIS7862 unit specifically for the WRX.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32869243167.html
with the canbus for my HK system.
Based on reviews from other WRX owners and my discussions wit IDoing, my expectations are moderate. I know i'm taking a risk but the looks and fit of this for my car(again from reviews) is far superior to my kenwood double din and kit from crutchfield. Add to that I really hate AA and Mirrorlink.
After dealing with Wireless AA and mirrorlink issues with both my last and current car, it would need to be pretty buggy for it to not surpass that experience.
I'm pretty experienced with android development, so i can dig in and perhaps work around some of the issues, depending on what they are. Obviously if the Canbus is a failure then it's a non-starter.
I just want a hand full of apps to run and to be able to wifi tether to my phone, or use a tmobile sim if by some miracle the 4g modem works. If AA works that's a plus, but my whole reason to buying this is to avoid AA and of course the OEM look of this.
Again for the cost (less than the kit to wire my existing kenwood) like most people here, I'm willing to take the risk and if it doesn't work out then I go back to the kenwood and either return this or rip it apart as a science experiment.

with regards to the illumination of the keys, did you wire the Illum(orange wire)? also on mine at least you need to have the head lights on for the Illumination to work.

Did you ever fix the buzzing sound?

aznriceballman said:
Did you ever fix the buzzing sound?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, the subwoofer output was unusably bad and the hum at all times is only audible if I'm in the car with the engine not running and the stereo turns on with no music. And this is with my amp turned up pretty high. If I play radio at 50% volume, it will hurt my ears, so most people won't have this issue unless they also use an amp and turn it up fairly high.

I was using a USB-connected Carlink adapter for more reliable wireless Carplay, and it has slightly better resolution than the ZLink version. However, this Carlink adapter loses connection when I hit 24psi of boost in my car. It makes no sense. The adapter doesn't physically come out or anything, but the iDoing loses connection to it. I started using the ZLink again and it's working pretty well, though sometimes it's slow to connect and I can still tell the resolution is a little lower but it's still fine.

Audi S4 Headunit from AliExpress (Nunoo)?

During a recent sale at AliExpress, I ordered an Android headunit that replaces the factory screen for my 2016 B8.5 Audi. I ordered from the "Nunoo" store due to them listing a Snapdragon 665, and I ordered the supposed 8 GB/128 GB model for my MMI car.
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805118631091.html
The unit hasn't shipped, so I messaged the store asking what's up and making sure that the order was going to fit my particular car (needed an Air Bag light relocation cable and AMI cable). I also asked to confirm it actually had the Qualcomm chip. The seller messaged me back saying that it would instead ship with a 8581 processor due to issues with the 665:
"The cpu will become 8581, because 665 CPU with some problem"
I'm getting sketchy vibes. Is there any hope that these units are worth messing with? Since ordering this, I've done some more reading around and see where Chinese sourced units often mis-report hardware, versions of OS's, etc.
I'm currently running an android box that attaches to the stock, non-touch screen in the car and allows for wireless Android Auto. It connects to Canbus and the MMI audio system, and is generally OK. It just has no touch screen, so I thought I'd upgrade. Should I bail on this order before they try to ship and look around for another seller?
Is there a Android head unit issues for dummies I should read to catch up on the state of these things?

Heya, the Listing only mentions an 8 Core Processor in the Pictures itself. It mentions the Snapdragon 665 Version down below but that is not selectable. I only know that because I myself just ordered one of those for my A6 4F MMI 2G. I had to search a bit for that Version. Just click a few different Listings on Aliexpress if you want that version.
I myself used an Android Head Unit in my Older A6 4B with a generic 8 Core CPU and that was more than enough Performance. it never had any lags or other things.
My Unit used an UIS7862, the 8581 seems to be a less powerful version of it. It could be Powerful enough to work without Lags but if you want to be really sure maybe search for reports of Headunits with the Spreadtrum UIS8581 CPU or try finding the Snapdragon 665 Version but be prepared that it's gonna be a whole lot more costly. And don't settle for the 625 Version, that is a pretty old CPU and all I could ever find about those Versions where lackluster performance and other issues

My unit finally shipped, so we'll see what I get.

Sweet, please report about that CPU Version Performance and stuff
It's sadly quite hard to find any Information about the Nunoo Headunits.
I'll try to keep this updated about the 665 Version that I just bought too

Well..... don't keep us in suspense.
Report back because i'm looking to buy a Nunoo 665 as well.

Sure, I put it in a couple of weeks ago. I did receive the 8581 chip version.
Some notes on use:
Install went about as expected, with the exception that to mount the included dash bezel that the screen attaches to over the old hole, you can only access two screws on the new mounting plate instead of 3...unless you want to drill into your original dash to pass the third screw. I doubt I do that as I want it to be reversable.
I did have problems with an ABS light. My car has the combo hazard button and passenger seat Air Bag light (to show if passenger AB is disabled due to not having enough weight in the seat). Once confirmed the wiring hookup configuration for the hazard button relocation harness, I was a bit frustrated that the light was still on. It might have eventually cleared itself after a few ignition cycles, but I really wanted to figure it out so I used my OBDEleven OBD2 scanner to reset the code (ABS ground fault). No problems since.
I haven't 100% put the dash back together yet because I'm going to try a GPS splitter cable to tie into the stock antenna instead of using the included one. I tried the included one with a GPS testing app and could never get acceptable signal strength vs what I could get on my phone, even if I ran the included receiver all the way to the top of the windshield. This probably is irrelevant as it doesn't affect Android Auto/CarPlay, which rely on the phone GPS. I'm just curious about the built in navigation and it wasn't a bunch to spend to try out. Once that comes in, I'll put the main dash bezel back in the car. If it doesn't work, that's not a deal breaker. Was just curious if I could improve things. If it does work, I don't know why this wouldn't really be the included option vs a whole receiver. (BTW, if anybody else goes this route, get the right angle SMA connector. The straight one won't fit in the space available.) https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256...st_main.5.1c3518024jcmmd&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa
Wireless connection is iffy at times. Sometimes it's great, sometimes I can watch the bluetooth connect on my phone then try to hand off to wifi for Android Auto and it will just cycle the wifi connection to the head unit over and over. Other times it works right away and stay stable. Can't figure out if there's something that can resolve this. Still playing around. Wired Android Auto is fine. According to the seller, I have the latest software and Zlink versions. Is there a way to update Zlink OTA if a new version becomes available? I can go into the settings and check and it says I'm up to date, but just wonder if that's possible in the future. I've not done a ton of research, but what I have says Zlink licensing might be weird. This inconsistency is my biggest annoyance with the unit.
Unlike my old unit that just tapped into the factory screen, I can't long press the steering wheel phone button to activate the assistant. That's annoying. Have to do verbal commands only or use the touch screen button. Not the end of the world, I just got used to using the hard button.
Just like my other unit, the Audi console volume knob allows you to skip forward and back (by pushing sideways on the knob) just like the stock MMI, however, pushing it down only mutes audio. It does not behave like the MMI and pause streaming audio. So whatever you're listening to plays in the background during the mute. Annoying for podcasts and books. You can touch the screen, but having that hard button work would be nice.
This unit tries to emulate the HVAC temp changes that happen on the stock interface. Audi shows whichever side of the car is turning up or down the temp and what the setting is on the screen. However, this unit just puts up a graphic that instead of the temp shows "HI". So half done UI. My old unit had no HVAC interface at all when in Android mode.
I've still got the protective film on the screen right now until I take it back off to put in the stock bezel, but I could do with a bit brighter screen. It's not unreadable, but 20% brighter would be nice for sunny days.
Just like the old box I had for Android Auto, this one doesn't change the day/night mode on maps. You have to manually set it to dark or night if you want it to change depending on lighting conditions. At least it's easier to access in the menu now that I have a touch screen.
I logged into my Google account on the stock Android part of the unit to install a couple of apps (GPS tester, etc.). Somehow the thing deleted ALL my google contacts when the account synced up. I restored them from trash and could see the device that did it, so I know it's this unit. It was fine for a few days, then did it again. Might be when I connect to wifi at home to go to the Play store that it does it. Probably a setting to turn off sync, but I haven't looked into it yet.
It currently mutes Android Auto if I switch to one of the stock screen views except I think the backup camera. I think that it initially did it on the camera, but there's a setting to change that. I just need to find that for if I look at one of the other screens like drive mode.
Overall, the navigation speed is good enough. If I can get the auto-connect wifi cycling resolved, I'll feel a lot better. Would I buy this unit again? I might try one of the other brands honestly. Just because this one feels ALMOST there, but just cheaped out a bit on processor and screen. But if you get a good deal, it's totally functional with a few quirks.
The other brand I was considering seems to have more sales. That is Coika. Who knows if they're really the same thing from the same factory. Wouldn't be surprised, but it would be good to compare back to back. I'm just not going to do it Either of these options are half as expensive as RSNAV or some of the other more Audi forum prominent brands.
That in depth enough?

Conveniently the GPS cable arrived today that allowed me to tap into the car's GPS antenna. Big win if you ever want to use the built in navigation. Works great, although the cable I ordered is a bit tight. Now I can pull out the other GPS antenna that I had routed behind the glove box to go up the A pillar.
While installing, I googled B8.5 MMI GPS hookups to make sure I had the right cable off the back of the MMI unit. Apparently I wasn't exactly an original thinker, at RSNAV already offered these cables. This is the way to go and the AliExpress sellers should 100% include these instead of the full antenna that you have to mount somewhere.
Audi Original GPS Antenna Splitter Cable for S2, S3, S4
Audi Original GPS Antenna Splitter Cable for RSNAV S2, S3, S4 Android system on Audi Vehicles with Audi Navigation System only. - Best reception of GPS signal for your RSNAV S2,S3, S4 Android system - GPS hot start, super faster time sync - Work both for Audi MMI system and S2, S3, S4, This is...
rsnav.com
*I have not tested the stock nav yet, but I never use that anyway. I'll try to remember to look to confirm that's still working. Might be some kind of time interface into the car that it grabs from GPS, so it might still be important. I'll do it before I reinstall the dash. I just wired it enough to verify via the GPS testing app that it was better than the included antenna (it was).

Thank you Andy, much more detail than i expected.
Really appreciate the quick writeup esp the notes on the gps issue and getting a splitter.

Andy S said:
This probably is irrelevant as it doesn't affect Android Auto/CarPlay, which rely on the phone GPS. I'm just curious about the built in navigation and it wasn't a bunch to spend to try out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great review and very interesting because I'm looking at getting the same car. Just a small point, Android Auto does in fact use the car's GPS where possible. Waze uses the phone GPS but Google Maps and Sygic can use the car's GPS, for example.

Cutprods said:
Great review and very interesting because I'm looking at getting the same car. Just a small point, Android Auto does in fact use the car's GPS where possible. Waze uses the phone GPS but Google Maps and Sygic can use the car's GPS, for example.
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I doubt it would in this case, as Zlink as I understand it is kind of a hack to make AA work. On a truly integrated solution, I'm sure you are right.

Andy S said:
I doubt it would in this case, as Zlink as I understand it is kind of a hack to make AA work. On a truly integrated solution, I'm sure you are right.
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Works with the Headunit Reloaded app, that I use on my older PX5. I don't know if you can use that on your new HU? Zlink and Easy Connection never worked well for me.

Cutprods said:
Works with the Headunit Reloaded app, that I use on my older PX5. I don't know if you can use that on your new HU? Zlink and Easy Connection never worked well for me.
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I might try it to see if it will solve my wireless issue. This is my first real Android head unit other than the pass through box I used before that isn't really a head unit. Is there a best way to install? Just from the Play store?

Heya, sorry I completely forgot to post about my Qualcomm 665 8/128GB Unit that I bought after putting it in.
Here's my thoughts:
Short TL;DR seems to be: Don't buy Nuuno or the other brands, according to BMW Forums get a Navifly Unit. (They seem to cost as much as the Nunoo or others but give far better configurability thanks to mods and seems to be more known):
The Configurations to look for seem to be Qualcomm 450/625 with 2GB/32GB or 4GB/64GB
For REAL Android 11 and from what I read even Android 12 it would be: 4/64, 6/128 or 8/256 (Look at the 6/128GB, all the other Units normally have 8/128GB)
Here's for more Information on how to get one and being sure that yours is legit and where I got this from (I hope XDA allows the Links, if not Google for "BMW KSW Android 10" and use f30.bimmerpost):
10.25" Android 10 HU discussion
10.25" Android 10 HU discussion
f30.bimmerpost.com
10.25" Android 9/10 HU theming and discussion
10.25" Android 9/10 HU theming and discussion
f30.bimmerpost.com
Android 11 HU discussion
Android 11 HU discussion
f30.bimmerpost.com
But since we're here about the Nuuno let me add some stuff about mine:
The Package with the radio arrived pretty swiftly and pretty much everything you need to tear apart my A6 4F was included.
Sadly the new Plastic Insert for the Radio/Dash is the wrong color (My older 4F uses a dark gray and the new one is silver like for the newer 4F) but that's not much of a issue, still looks good. BUT the fit is not that well done, it has quite a few bigger gaps all around compared to the original plastic. You tend to forget about it though the longer you have it in your car up to the point you won't even notice it yourself anymore or even care.
Same problems with GPS here, the Signal is pretty bad to okayish at best so also need to try to get the original GPS antenna connected but it's not a huge breaking deal since using Android Auto it still works well and I dont care about the built in one.
Android Auto Wireless is also iffy here, sometimes it tries to connect, the fails and never tries again until I disconnect and reconnect my Phones Bluetooth connection to the headunit, then it works first try. What also seems to help is immediately after the Unit is booted up opening the zlink app, Then it also seems to work 90% of the time for me. Wired Android Auto works 100% of the time.
Using the Steering Wheel Controls is perfectly fine, I can even skip songs ahead or go back with the left one that normally selects the Input. That is something my older Android Auto retrofit module couldn't do.
NEVER EVER LOG INTO YOUR MAIN GOOGLE ACCOUNT ON THESE "FAKE" OR OLDER UNITS. That is sadly a well-known practice in most of the Android Car Radio Forums since many seem to have that annoying bug that deletes your Contacts. The Navifly/KSW Android Radios seem to not have this/or it got fixed.
Better be safe and always use a throwaway account on these things.
The Muting Sound when going to one of the original Car Menus is pretty bad, or well on mine it doesn't actually mute, it stops playback. If I start the music again from my phone I can listen to my Music and go through the original Car Menus. It sadly aslo cannot be deactivated this "Feature". Only on the Navifly/KSW Units mentioned in the BMW Forums you seem to be able to do it which is probably why I will get me one of those. Hopefully I won't forget to write a bit about that one too.
Lastly the AC: On my MMI 2G 4F the Display shows the correct Temperature that I set on my AC in the Display..
I hope this also helped a bit since these Units don't seem to be well known about only or atleast reported biut if you look on Aliexpress they're pretty much the first 10 you get shown when looking for Audi

Thanks for the info @Darthsternie. Do either of those brands make a unit that works with Audis? I briefly looked and couldn't find anything. I hate to end up buying a third unit for my car, so I guess I'll keep this one for the time being. I just really want to get the wireless piece figured out.
I just went out and put my stuff back together to confirm the GPS splitter cable did not interfere with stock nav, and it doesn't. So whatever the car might use GPS for should still work. While doing that, I confirmed what Darthsternie said about switching to the stock interface, it does pause playback. Not just mute. I assumed that was correct, but wanted to confirm on my unit. Backup camera has an option to disable this, but if you go into anything else from the Audi MMI, it pauses.
Also, thanks for the info on the temp. I'm on the 3g MMI "High" on my 2016 S4 (B8.5). "High" I believe means has stock NAV. Might ask the company about my issue. To be honest, since I have the dual temps shown on the temp dials, it's not really something I care much about.
I did log out of my google account and used an abandoned account I used years ago for a specific purpose that I no longer need. Should have known better. My concern was for apps I may have purchased like Torque. Don't really want to buy again. Wonder if I can put my other account in my family? Will look up how many people can be in a family. I think I'm at 2 right now.
As to the wireless, once I get in a bad state where it's constantly looping the connection attempt, I've been unable to solve it without a reboot. I can kill Zlink. I can cycle bluetooth on the phone. I can manually navigate to Zlink, but that's not the problem because I can even auto-launch Zlink at start and it still does it.
Will have to investigate a replacement for Zlink if that's possible on these. I just haven't really dug into Android head units enough to know anything at this point. Need a good wiki or something

Navifly is not a guarantee either, they also sell snapdragons as well as MTK units, you want the legit snapdragon with the KSW software if you want to have a compatible unit with what most of the modders are using. I got mine a few years ago from Navifly and it is a P60 cpu MTK unit and it works well and gets the job done, but I would much rather have a KSW based unit.
I also have a B8.5 Audi.
You should download Device Info HW from the play store and it will give you a breakdown on the unit and let you know if they are faking the android version, etc.
Device Info HW - Apps on Google Play
Hardware and software information app for Android devices.
play.google.com

twist said:
Navifly is not a guarantee either, they also sell snapdragons as well as MTK units, you want the legit snapdragon with the KSW software if you want to have a compatible unit with what most of the modders are using. I got mine a few years ago from Navifly and it is a P60 cpu MTK unit and it works well and gets the job done, but I would much rather have a KSW based unit.
I also have a B8.5 Audi.
You should download Device Info HW from the play store and it will give you a breakdown on the unit and let you know if they are faking the android version, etc.
Device Info HW - Apps on Google Play
Hardware and software information app for Android devices.
play.google.com
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Click to collapse
Suspiciously, Device Info HW will install, but fails to run on launch. Will dig a bit more.

I finally heard back from these guys and got a screenshot. Here is the link for the unit.
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803161214499.html?spm=a2g0o.cart.0.0.3a3738dazQvvo3&mp=1&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa
And here is the screenshot he sent. This is the newer KSW software and it should be a legit snapdragon 662.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
Talking to these guys through their aliexpress translator is almost futile. I ended up sending him a screenshot with the APP Ver highlighted on a different older KSW unit and then he sent this back.

I have just bought this one for my Audi A6 C6 from 2005.
https://de.aliexpress.com/item/1005005240382533.html
I hope it's a real 662 Unit but according to the seller and a screenshot from them it is.
I will try to report back again when it arrives and compare it to the Nuuno Unit that I have now

Hi,
Ive just ordered 2 weeks ago a Nunoo 12.3 128+8GB device with Snapdragon 665 for my A5 B8 Pre-Facelift. Ive asked the seller to confirm if its really 665 and he did. I can also confirm, that my device have a 665 if i can trust CPU-Z this device info software shows also Android 12S. I dont know, if its better to have this MTK8581 CPU like on the COIKA devices or the Snapdragon 665. I just can say i was focused on the 665 because this is that, was RSNAV uses.
I had before an RSNAV S1, so the first generation in 10.25". This unit was also for sure not bug free and i switched it because it was now fully bricked. I got random bootloops and blackscreens, even after factory reset. My brightness control was buggy, it was inverted and dark at day and bright at night. Support from RSNAV haven't helped me with that. Finally, I also had no GPS reception any more. I had used the roof antenna from the A5 for the S1, without the splitter. However, as the roof antenna is a known problem and tends to break down overnight, I assumed that this problem had now also affected me. But that's not true, because the roof antenna now showed 15 satellites when connected to the MMI again After research, I found out that this was also a known problem with the RSNAV S1, that the GPS transistor burns out and that this is not repairable.
I don't have any further experience with the new Nunoo device yet, I need a few more days for that. I can report back then. What I noticed is that the frame that was sent to me has a much worse fit than the one I had with the RSNAV S1. Let's see if the support team can do something about that.
By the way, some people have already reported that the RSNAV firmware runs just as well on the Nunoo devices. I have not yet tried this out myself. However, this could fix some bugs and possibly bring a few more options.

RSNAV was a major rip off IMO, they are just selling the same Chinese units at a markup and the markup is not worth what little support you might get, that is just my opinion and I know many will disagree.
The snapdragon is going to be way better then the MTK I had an MTK previously and it worked fine but I was unable to change launchers or do anything outside of what they supply, the MTK units are super locked down and proprietary, the snapdragons have all kinds of fun mods and capabilities so you can really dial in your head unit how you want it to be.
I don't personally know anything about nunoo but these units are almost all made by Mekede / Navifly and being resold by multiple different stores just rebranding. I am sure there are some other companies making fake units, but a lot of the chinese stuff all comes from the same factory and then a ton of other companies rebrand them and resell them.
Even my previous Mekede MTK unit was fake android 10, it was really android 9, the fraud and scams on aliexpress is so unacceptable, which is why I buy very little there, these headunits were the only 2 purchases I have made on there in the last 2+ years.