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Plinkey posted:My car's bluetooth was super easy to set up and it's even got RCA aux jacks  I would assume Germans have very little tolerance for poor UI bullshit and such so I'm not surprised, but it's still nice
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Dec 19, 2017 02:05
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Plinkey posted:My car's bluetooth was super easy to set up and it's even got RCA aux jacks Ford's sync system is hot garbage and we actually had one lemon'd because it was so non-functional.
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Dec 19, 2017 02:18
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uPen posted:Ford's sync system is hot garbage and we actually had one lemon'd because it was so non-functional. That's what mine is and I've had zero problems with it except that the maps suck compared to literally any other phone app.
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Dec 19, 2017 02:35
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uPen posted:Ford's sync system is hot garbage and we actually had one lemon'd because it was so non-functional. The Microsoft powered Sync (the one in older Ford vehicles, identified by a green VFD display) was/is incredibly bad in the Bluetooth department. But I guess when you are using the Bluetooth stack from what is essentially Windows Mobile/CE, you can expect issues. They released a update on the MySync website a couple years ago that greatly improved reliability, but in my experience the Bluetooth will still on occasion completely crash. The only way to bring it back is to pull the fuse for the Sync module so it has to completely reboot. The one in my Fusion was bad enough I used a power tap to connect a switch to the fuse so I could easily flip the switch to kill power to the module instead of having to pull the fuse every time. It was quite annoying as I used the bluetooth a lot. It would crash about 1 in every 10 times it was used. Edit: For those of you with misbehaving factory systems, check the manufacturers' owners website. Many of them often have customer installable updates. I know at least both Ford (Sync) and Chrysler (UConnect) do provide updates you can stick on a USB stick to update the car hardware. stevewm has a new favorite as of 03:29 on Dec 19, 2017 |
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Dec 19, 2017 03:27
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If you have access to line input, use that and a  Bluetooth audio receiver and skip infotainment stack bullshit.
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Dec 19, 2017 03:30
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Mein Kampf Enthusiast posted:
My old 2008 Rabbit had an aux jack standard, but they put it in the glove box, so to be able to control the iPod/iPhone meant either picking a playlist before driving and locking the device in the glove box, or pinching the hell out of the cord and stressing the latch by running it out of the glove box. It worked, but I don’t know why they didn’t place the jack in a more convenient spot. I have CarPlay in my current ride, and it’s awesome and I won’t willingly drive anything without it from now on.
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Dec 19, 2017 04:10
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The system in my recent Mazda is very basic but works just fine and dandy if you forget about the voice control function (which is obviously hilariously bad) Never had bluetooth problems even with my old Nexus 6P which apparently had awful bluetooth Carplay would be nice to have but it seems kinda garbage compared to Android Auto - it only works with Apple apps and none of them are particularly competitive.
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Dec 19, 2017 04:45
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I just wish car manufacturers would all start including a nice convenient spot on the dash to mount your phone. With a nice standard mounting option and a nice USB power socket right nearby. I use a clamp-style phone holder that hangs on to a dashboard vent slat for dear life. It works, but I live in fear of breaking the vent, and the power cable drapes all the way down in front of the radio to connect to the cigarette lighter. Also, in winter, when I'm blowing very hot air out of that vent, I worry about overheating the phone. Overall this setup works, but just imagine if every car had a well-placed, standardized mounting point.
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Dec 19, 2017 04:52
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Powered Descent posted:I just wish car manufacturers would all start including a nice convenient spot on the dash to mount your phone. With a nice standard mounting option and a nice USB power socket right nearby. This takes away from including their ~PREMIUM ENTERTAINMENT WITH SOUND ENGINEERED BY WHOEVER~ option money, and opens them up for consumer complaints that their mounting option breaking phones. They will never ever do it.
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Dec 19, 2017 05:12
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Powered Descent posted:I just wish car manufacturers would all start including a nice convenient spot on the dash to mount your phone. With a nice standard mounting option and a nice USB power socket right nearby. Just give me a magnet spot somewhere that it doesn't block vents or controls and I'm in. Also those magnet mounts are the best way to mount your phone.
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Dec 19, 2017 05:33
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Pretty sure the Bentley Mulsanne has a nice phone storage drawer. So all you need is a car that costs more than some houses.
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Dec 19, 2017 05:44
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empty baggie posted:My old 2008 Rabbit had an aux jack standard, but they put it in the glove box, so to be able to control the iPod/iPhone meant either picking a playlist before driving and locking the device in the glove box, or pinching the hell out of the cord and stressing the latch by running it out of the glove box. It worked, but I don’t know why they didn’t place the jack in a more convenient spot. The '07 Subaru Legacy I drive has the aux input in the center console but the were thoughtful enough to put a little cutout for the wire. So you can still close the lid with the wires coming out. They didn't make it easy to put an aftermarket head unit in though. If you got regular HVAC controls you're good. If you got auto climate control like my car you're gonna need a $300 kit from Japan and some weird wiring harness adapters. I want a nicer stereo but not that bad. I'm fine with the 6 CD changer and a line level adapter for my little amp and subwoofer for now.
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Dec 19, 2017 07:21
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ReidRansom posted:Pretty sure the Bentley Mulsanne has a nice phone storage drawer. So all you need is a car that costs more than some houses. And use a last generation mobile phone. (I am pretty sure that when iPhones were A Big Thing, all the luxury cars came with fittings for elderly Nokias)
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Dec 19, 2017 09:11
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dissss posted:The system in my recent Mazda is very basic but works just fine and dandy if you forget about the voice control function (which is obviously hilariously bad) Yep, exactly how I feel about the system in my CX5. It works quite well. If I had some way to toggle between the "tabs" [mostly to switch between FM and Aux] via steering wheel control, I'd never have to touch the touchscreen again.
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Dec 19, 2017 09:18
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I own a Ford Fiesta with the apparently godawful dry dual clutch automatic and the first-gen Sync system and neither has given me a single problem. I'm incredibly lucky.
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Dec 19, 2017 09:59
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New car models take about 5 years to develop from concept to production ready, and specs for things like the infotainment system have to get locked in fairly early. Hence, car systems are perpetually 5 years behind what you've got in your pocket by the time they hit dealerships, and always will be.
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Dec 19, 2017 10:03
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Also stuff like bluetooth has certain versions that might work with things like phone calls, but not be able to output music.
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Dec 19, 2017 10:26
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How it works on the Kenwood thing I got installed in my partner's car for her birthday to replace the increasingly broken OEM touchscreen nightmare it came with: 1. Hit "source" until you cycle through to "Bluetooth" 2. Do it again because you missed it the first time round 3. Turn Bluetooth on and off on your phone three times until it acknowledges that it's paired 4. Give up and switch to aux or usb after five minutes if you're in the middle of a city because interference keeps making it cut out That last step is actually pretty rare and it works fine most of the time. I do know from experience that this particular unit has a limit of remembering something like four or five paired devices, though, and you gotta slog through a total nightmare of menus to delete existing profiles, so I'm not looking forward to eventually having to do that after we both eventually get new phones. Also the equivalent of step 3 on the old setup was to literally stop the drat car and kill the engine so it could power cycle and hopefully work this time, so improvements all around tbh
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Dec 19, 2017 10:42
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Enourmo posted:New car models take about 5 years to develop from concept to production ready, and specs for things like the infotainment system have to get locked in fairly early. But I'm obviously talking out of my rear end.
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Dec 19, 2017 10:43
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I had a modern android app that seemed designed for a blackberry with a physical keyboard. It was a driving app that turned on with the phone. It was meant to automatically activate when it detected driving to give quick access to a few other apps while driving: maps, music, etc. It also had a standby mode where a chunk of the screen would be reserved exclusively for swipping the app "on" if it happened to be minimized. That made the app useless if one wanted to dial the phone with the app in standby. Because the space the app reserved covered the 1, 4, and 7. So the only way to restore functionality to the rest of the phone would be closing out of the driving app completely. Edited for clarity. RandomPauI has a new favorite as of 12:50 on Dec 19, 2017 |
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Dec 19, 2017 12:31
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Sounds like a feature, not a bug.
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Dec 19, 2017 12:40
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It'd be a feature if the app didn't come on at startup, staying on until it was closed. Which it'd need to be if I wanted to use the phone as a phone when not driving.
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Dec 19, 2017 12:46
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Powered Descent posted:I just wish car manufacturers would all start including a nice convenient spot on the dash to mount your phone. With a nice standard mounting option and a nice USB power socket right nearby. I guess one problem is size. If they designed a phone slot in 2010 it'd now be too small. Conversely, a phone slot constructed in 2015 may be wide enough, but too short now that everyone is moving to longer, thinner phones. They could make a big slot and then sell silicon inserts, but that would be too easy. My 2013 KIA has an USB/AUX combo port that uses a special cable to interface with my iPhone. But it's a 30-pin adapter and no one has 30-pin ports anymore and they've never made a new version of this cable. Newer versions of Bluetooth allow you to control everything from your steering wheel buttons, but not the 2013 version of Bluetooth. So I'm stuck with a very expensive dongle. It's like they immediately wash their hands of a car the moment it rolls off the assembly line. Nothing is ever upgradeable. That's part of the reason why Tesla is so disruptive is they'll upgrade your car's software to add new features. Speaking of 30-pin adapters, how can there be so many peripherals that use that still port? Every hotel has a clock radio with a 30-pin port. Every month or so there's a Groupon deal for a speaker that's only compatible with 30-pin. Did Apple surprise so many manufacturers that there is still unopened new-in-box stock half a decade later?
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Dec 19, 2017 13:57
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I think it's more "the old 30-pin was so insanely ubiquitous that there's still unopened new stock being sold" I can definitely recall a time when finding a mini or micro USB cable was harder than finding a 30-pin cable. iPod market dominance was real as hell.
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Dec 19, 2017 14:07
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Krispy Wafer posted:That's part of the reason why Tesla is so disruptive lol
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Dec 19, 2017 14:18
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Yeah I was about to say claiming that things like head unit design and software are locked down five years before release kinda sounds like tales from my rear end, but then I got to that post and lmao, that's even more funny e: But to be actually constructive, I don't doubt that car manufacturers lag behind in design because poo poo takes time. Probably not five years or however much that other guy said though. And re: that Tesla comment, Tesla didn't invent updating software on cars to add features nor are they the only ones doing it. There is also nothing disruptive about that, it's just a logical conclusion to come to now that we have the technological ability to do something like that. Before this sort of thing would've happened when you took your car to the shop for regular maintenance. Ruflux has a new favorite as of 14:35 on Dec 19, 2017 |
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Dec 19, 2017 14:31
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Ruflux posted:Yeah I was about to say claiming that things like head unit design and software are locked down five years before release kinda sounds like tales from my rear end, but then I got to that post and lmao, that's even more funny Serious question, what other car manufacturers let you add features to a car? Because everything I've seen is this poo poo is locked down right to the point where they've tried using the courts to restrict access to software. I don't particularly like Tesla so I'm not a Musky-eyed fanboy by any stretch, but I have seen exactly one other car manufacturer offer a meaningful update after the fact. That was when KIA allowed some models of their cars sold before CarPlay was an option to later upgrade to it. I'm genuinely curious what other upgrades have been offered that were not fixes to something broken or safety updates.
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Dec 19, 2017 14:41
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I know Honda and I think Ford added Android Auto to a couple of previous year models very recently.
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Dec 19, 2017 14:49
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Powered Descent posted:I just wish car manufacturers would all start including a nice convenient spot on the dash to mount your phone. With a nice standard mounting option and a nice USB power socket right nearby. I like my phone holder from ProClip USA. https://www.proclipusa.com A set is a little expensive for just a phone socket and YMMV depending on your car. Mine is clipped into a slot below the stereo, and it just slides in and out. I do have a car with an AC outlet in the arm rest, and an AUX port for the stereo, so that also does help.
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Dec 19, 2017 14:59
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They are behind because they are monolithic bureaucratic dinosaurs.
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Dec 19, 2017 16:55
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TinTower posted:It’s the sweet spot between charging you through he nose for necessary features and not putting profits towards providing them. As long as they're only switching FM, okay. AM is amazing because you can practically build a receiver out of sticks and rocks and receive signals from a couple hundred miles. It should stick around if only for public safety reasons. Enourmo posted:New car models take about 5 years to develop from concept to production ready, and specs for things like the infotainment system have to get locked in fairly early. Hence, car systems are perpetually 5 years behind what you've got in your pocket by the time they hit dealerships, and always will be. 3.5cm audio jacks are half a century old, the electrically compatible quarter-inch ones over a century. Keiya has a new favorite as of 17:05 on Dec 19, 2017 |
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Dec 19, 2017 17:02
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Keiya posted:As long as they're only switching FM, okay. AM is amazing because you can practically build a receiver out of sticks and rocks and receive signals from a couple hundred miles. It should stick around if only for public safety reasons. AM is cool, it's just unfortunate that the content is garbage. Sports talk radio, politics talk radio, Christian radio, and some Spanish-language stations whose content I can't be sure of but I assume is about as riveting as the English-language stuff. There's a single secular music station 70 miles away and sure the music is great but it comes in a lot better on their local FM repeater. Shortwave and AM could do with a revival but the FCC are real cocks about it. Shortwave stations aren't allowed to target American listeners, so the only thing that gets broadcast from the US is religious poo poo because they don't care who hears it. AM and FM licensing is a huge clusterfuck where they haven't given out new licenses in years, so the only way to get on the air is to buy someone else's license and of course the highest bid is usually either Clear Channel fuckheads (oops sorry, iHeartMedia, they wanted to get away from their bad reputation by changing names) or a church if it's a lower-power license.
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Dec 19, 2017 17:10
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I thought AM had been deregulated a long time ago. I remember building a little AM transmitter in the 80's on a radio shack "100 project kit."
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Dec 19, 2017 17:28
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Iron Crowned posted:I thought AM had been deregulated a long time ago. I remember building a little AM transmitter in the 80's on a radio shack "100 project kit." Low-power AM and FM transmitters are allowed under Part 15: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Title_47_CFR_Part_15#Unlicensed_broadcasting The specifications of Part 15 allow those little FM transmitter dongles you used to play music from your phone in an old car. The kind of power they're talking about means you could set up a little AM transmitter in your house and listen to music as you moved around the house and yard, but nobody past your immediate neighbors will hear you. It's still illegal to set up a proper AM broadcasting station without a license from the FCC, and they literally refuse to accept applications (https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/how-to-apply#AM scroll down and see the same "no applications" message for AM, commercial FM, noncommercial FM, low-power FM, and FM translators).
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Dec 19, 2017 17:35
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Krispy Wafer posted:Speaking of 30-pin adapters, how can there be so many peripherals that use that still port? Every hotel has a clock radio with a 30-pin port. Every month or so there's a Groupon deal for a speaker that's only compatible with 30-pin. Did Apple surprise so many manufacturers that there is still unopened new-in-box stock half a decade later? I used to be in hotel management, so I can answer part of that question. Shortly after hotel chains made it mandatory for every room to have an iPod/iPhone compatible clock radio (which would run the hotel around $100-120 per room like the iHome ones I had to purchase for my property), Apple came out with the lightning port on the iPhone 5, which rendered the new clock radios obsolete within a year or so’s time. The individual hotels had already sunk thousands into the clock radios, and since they all also have aux jacks on the back of each clock, the hotels didn’t see the need to spend any more money on more clocks that, as far as they knew, would potentially be outdated within a few years time like the 30-pin ones they just wasted money on.
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Dec 19, 2017 23:19
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Code Jockey posted:Yep, exactly how I feel about the system in my CX5. It works quite well. If I had some way to toggle between the "tabs" [mostly to switch between FM and Aux] via steering wheel control, I'd never have to touch the touchscreen again. I think I have a slightly different system - on mine the touchscreen gets disabled when the car is in motion anyway
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Dec 19, 2017 23:56
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The 30 pin connector was a stupid design anyway.
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Dec 20, 2017 00:12
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Y'all should just get a $100~$200 in dash android deck off amazon. I got a 7" double din unit on flash sale for $75. Came with a reverse camera, functional Bluetooth, and two USB ports so two phones can charge off of it and you can play music from either. Or you could put up with frustrating bullshit for the lifetime of your car I guess.
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Dec 20, 2017 00:26
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dissss posted:I think I have a slightly different system - on mine the touchscreen gets disabled when the car is in motion anyway Mine only disables stuff like setting up new bluetooth devices, and manually scrolling long track info fields on the HD radio channels
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Dec 20, 2017 00:48
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Pham Nuwen posted:Low-power AM and FM transmitters are allowed under Part 15: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Title_47_CFR_Part_15#Unlicensed_broadcasting Ever since I found out I could set up a teeny-tiny TV broadcasting station to stream over the air from videos on my computer - https://antiqueradio.org/HomeTVTransmitter.htm - I've wanted to, but  and yeah but speaking of radio, the neat-o shortwave radio I bought a few months back seems more or less castrated unless I build or buy a much bigger antenna setup, which and also  since there is still a lot of pure listening pleasure bouncing around out there without car dealership commercials every seven minutes
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Dec 20, 2017 00:53
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