Not like anyone cares but here's a review of the Pioneer Appradio 2 I got, because I said I would. My review of the original go at an Android based Headunit.
Before I start, I wanted to make sure this headunit is probably not for everyone. It is VERY smartphone centric. As a standalone headunit itself, it sucks. It's a glorified radio and nothing else as there is no CD slot, HD radio receiver, satilite radio, streaming A2DP bluetooth or built in GPS software (it does have a GPS receiver and ipod connectivity though.) And once it's connected to your phone via bluetooth, you can have access to your contacts, calling, and some limited functionality. Also, to unlock the most potential of the unit, you have to be using an Android based smartphone/tablet in conjunction to the headunit and more on that later.
Here it is all nicely installed. The 7" screen is nice. I've mounted it as far as it can be out so I don't have to cut support brackets in the back. It's as plug and play as it gets.
So my ideal setup for a headunit was a touchscreen radio that has HDMI IN so I can mirror my phone's screen and control it from the HU's screen. I'll have my radio and infotainment stuff like OBD2 reader, navi and videos from my phone. I've looked around for a bit and the only options at the time was the Appradio 2, and some Sony' headunits with Mirrorlink. Both of these headunits come with their respective Appradio/Mirrorlink apps and will allow you to control "approved/supported" apps like pandora, navigation, mixtraxx, etc on the headunit's touchscreen. There are only a handful of apps that are approved and they say there are going to be more but I won't hold my breath. iPhone and standard Android users can stop here cause you'll need to take the red pill after this.
Now you're a slightly advanced Android user, you've rooted, customized and what not.
What if I told you there's an alternative so that you can control your ENTIRE phone from the touchscreen of the headunit? You wouldn't be restricted on using only "approved/supported" apps. Well, here's where ARliberator app for the Appradio 2 comes in. This app allows you full control of your phone, mimicking the touches from the HU screen to your phone. You can play videos, look at pictures, stream videos, play angry birds, whatever. In conjunction with a beefy data plan, you can basically have the entire internet in your car. Yes it can be VERY dangerous/distracting, but it's no different from people putting on makeup, eating, reading books, grooming, dozing off, texting etc. I myself only put on content that I've already watched before so I can just listen and drive. It's really for the passengers.
Here's an action shot. This is a Samsung Note 2 connected via MHL/HDMI multi-window Dashcommand, Waze navigation and Music playing. Sound dims as navigation is read, I also have full control from the HU screen.
Backup camera still works like before. You can mix radio and phone sound as well.
Sound quality is suprisingly good from the stock speakers. I do get an occasional noise from the radio in certain places but not as bad as the last headunit I had.
All in, I spent $367 after rebates and discounts.
This includes:
Pros:
Low cost compared to other headunit solutions
Multimedia Potential - Also not limited to a headunit's built in navigation software or media players
Nice sized screen / Capacative touch
Calling quaility
Flush mounting / Aesthetics
Wow factor
Cons:
Needs a smartphone connected for all the multimedia, if someone uses your car and they don't have the phone setup, they're stuck with just a radio
Longevity - eventually you'll switch your smartphone, hopefully ARLiberator will support your new phone/tablet in the future
Power consumption of phone - this can be resolved with custom roms/kernels to increase charging rates, dimming phone screen, turning off phone GPS (and use the HU's GPS receiver), without it you can lose 30% of your power per hour even charging
iPhone users have limited options, non smartphone users are SOL
Needs root access / knowledge
No radial knob for volume
There are probably other options out there now but it's probably 2x the cost. I hear about parrot asteroid smart is a good alternative as well but I didn't have $500+misc costs to drop into it. Longterm wise, they are probably the better solution. I've heard of people using Raspberry Pi's / Android sticks as they do have HDMI outputs. The smartphone can be replaced by that for the multimedia. Calling would be replaced with VOIP solution on tethered internet I guess.
I hope this is helpful to anyone. I wish I had more pictures but there's a bunch of videos online already.
Before I start, I wanted to make sure this headunit is probably not for everyone. It is VERY smartphone centric. As a standalone headunit itself, it sucks. It's a glorified radio and nothing else as there is no CD slot, HD radio receiver, satilite radio, streaming A2DP bluetooth or built in GPS software (it does have a GPS receiver and ipod connectivity though.) And once it's connected to your phone via bluetooth, you can have access to your contacts, calling, and some limited functionality. Also, to unlock the most potential of the unit, you have to be using an Android based smartphone/tablet in conjunction to the headunit and more on that later.
Here it is all nicely installed. The 7" screen is nice. I've mounted it as far as it can be out so I don't have to cut support brackets in the back. It's as plug and play as it gets.
So my ideal setup for a headunit was a touchscreen radio that has HDMI IN so I can mirror my phone's screen and control it from the HU's screen. I'll have my radio and infotainment stuff like OBD2 reader, navi and videos from my phone. I've looked around for a bit and the only options at the time was the Appradio 2, and some Sony' headunits with Mirrorlink. Both of these headunits come with their respective Appradio/Mirrorlink apps and will allow you to control "approved/supported" apps like pandora, navigation, mixtraxx, etc on the headunit's touchscreen. There are only a handful of apps that are approved and they say there are going to be more but I won't hold my breath. iPhone and standard Android users can stop here cause you'll need to take the red pill after this.
Now you're a slightly advanced Android user, you've rooted, customized and what not.
What if I told you there's an alternative so that you can control your ENTIRE phone from the touchscreen of the headunit? You wouldn't be restricted on using only "approved/supported" apps. Well, here's where ARliberator app for the Appradio 2 comes in. This app allows you full control of your phone, mimicking the touches from the HU screen to your phone. You can play videos, look at pictures, stream videos, play angry birds, whatever. In conjunction with a beefy data plan, you can basically have the entire internet in your car. Yes it can be VERY dangerous/distracting, but it's no different from people putting on makeup, eating, reading books, grooming, dozing off, texting etc. I myself only put on content that I've already watched before so I can just listen and drive. It's really for the passengers.
Here's an action shot. This is a Samsung Note 2 connected via MHL/HDMI multi-window Dashcommand, Waze navigation and Music playing. Sound dims as navigation is read, I also have full control from the HU screen.
Backup camera still works like before. You can mix radio and phone sound as well.
Sound quality is suprisingly good from the stock speakers. I do get an occasional noise from the radio in certain places but not as bad as the last headunit I had.
All in, I spent $367 after rebates and discounts.
This includes:
- Appradio 2
- PAC-TR7 warning screen bypass
- Wireharness
- Antenna Adapter
- Mazda 2 Dash kit
- HDMI Extension cable
- Samsung MHL cable
- ARLiberator
- Backup camera
- ELM327 Bluetooth OBD2 reader
- Dual USB Car Charger
Pros:
Low cost compared to other headunit solutions
Multimedia Potential - Also not limited to a headunit's built in navigation software or media players
Nice sized screen / Capacative touch
Calling quaility
Flush mounting / Aesthetics
Wow factor
Cons:
Needs a smartphone connected for all the multimedia, if someone uses your car and they don't have the phone setup, they're stuck with just a radio
Longevity - eventually you'll switch your smartphone, hopefully ARLiberator will support your new phone/tablet in the future
Power consumption of phone - this can be resolved with custom roms/kernels to increase charging rates, dimming phone screen, turning off phone GPS (and use the HU's GPS receiver), without it you can lose 30% of your power per hour even charging
iPhone users have limited options, non smartphone users are SOL
Needs root access / knowledge
No radial knob for volume
There are probably other options out there now but it's probably 2x the cost. I hear about parrot asteroid smart is a good alternative as well but I didn't have $500+misc costs to drop into it. Longterm wise, they are probably the better solution. I've heard of people using Raspberry Pi's / Android sticks as they do have HDMI outputs. The smartphone can be replaced by that for the multimedia. Calling would be replaced with VOIP solution on tethered internet I guess.
I hope this is helpful to anyone. I wish I had more pictures but there's a bunch of videos online already.
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