The 4s is compatible, and you should not need to have it in the cradle to pair. Like others above, I have found it difficult to pair and the instructions for my beast do not seem to match exactly what I've had to do (I recall that the telephone button on the steering wheel was the best way to initiate pairing in my case). Good luck. On my 2005 it turned out to be not worthwhile as the whole mic/speaker interface is poor - much better on the 2013 e70.