New Dynavin Installed

[Helmuth]

Hi all,

first @fullmetaljacket: Sir, I unfortunately never saw your posts in that thread -that was the only reason for not answering. I did not go for Dynavin or Hualingan. Too much afraid of ending up with something that has not the quality I want.

For the iPad: that would be something you have to take with you everytime you leave the car. Not sure if I would really want that. A question would also be how long that device would work in an environment a car has like all that different temperatures, humidity, vibrations,.......

And last but not least: the iPad is a great device but I think it is too big to be mounted at the dash. You would block a lot of things you need when driving your X.

Good luck,

Helmuth

[e53_guy]

I'll post a picture when I am able. It doesn't take up all that much room when you mount it vertically on the lower part of the dash, slightly angled toward the driver. As far as heat extremes, etc., so far I haven't any problems. It's just an old 1st-generation iPad 1 so it's not the end of the world if it blows up. Also, you don't have to take it with you when you leave the car (-- it's nice to be able to do so though -- you can read the New York Times during junior's soccer practice). I usually just pull it out and stick it under the seat if I'm in an urban parking place.

It's a very simple solution that doesn't involve the slightest degree of permanent alterations to the car -- for that reason alone, I really like it. It looks a little nerdy, but not too much so.

[Helmuth]

To be honest - you might be right.... still thinking about that BUT: with a G1 iPad - I also have one - you can forget the GPS function. The one I have doesn't have that. Only WPS which is a wireless location service and far from a GPS service.

[e53_guy]

Here are a couple of photos of my setup. A fourth grader could do it, and it doesn't entail any modifications whatsoever to the car. If you have an old tablet PC lying around gathering dust, give it a shot -- to my mind, it's a hell of a lot better than installing a Chinese aftermarket unit in your dash, especially if it requires cutting things. Plus you can easily swap it out for successive model iPads as they become available, if you're one of those folks.

One thing that I find just GREAT about this setup is that at night, you can click the iPad off, and have no excess light. But it will still play your audio (whether streamed in or resident on the iPad) and the GPS will interrupt it as appropriate (I find that many times, just the verbal directions from the GPS lady are perfectly sufficient!). Note that even if the iPad screen is turned off, if you're playing iTunes or Pandora, the title of the track that's currently playing will magically appear at the bottom of your instrument cluster. I have no idea how this works, but it works.

The iPad really doesn't take up an inordinate amount of room, and the functionality is just awesome. Can't see how the Dynavin or Hualingen thing could come close -- maybe on their Android version, but I am guessing that would take a ton of work.

(You could of course just use an iPhone for all this. I prefer to keep my iPhone in my pocket; it's just easier to dial, etc., even if you use the hands-free. Plus the buttons are really tiny; with the iPad they are easy to select.)

Anyhow, here are some pics from my phone:

[Helmuth]

Nice setup. You have an iPad first generation and you have full GPS functionality?
And: where from is that mounting bracket and how complicated to mount it?

Thanks in advance

[e53_guy]

Yeah the 3G version of the first-gen iPad has GPS. Actually it's very very good GPS -- acquisition time is basically instantaneous. The apps that they sell for automotive GPS are really terrific.

The mounting clip is from a site I found called proclipusa.com. You have to get the bracket that goes on the dash, as well as the one which holds the device. All in, about $80. It's trivial to assemble and mount it -- takes about one minute.

One nice thing about mounting it there is that you can rest your hand on the shift knob while operating it, which makes everything a lot steadier.

There is probably a more modern version of the DiceLink adapter (mine is from 2007), but this one does seem to work fine. It's just sitting there under the passenger seat. You can readily run the cable from the rear CD changer to that location, with no tools.

The only shortcoming is charging. The DiceLink does charge it, but verrrry slowly. To speed it up, what I did was, I simply put, under the seat, one of those pass-through fittings onto the end of the cable that comes out of the DiceLink. The pass-through fitting allows you to plug in a mini USB power cord. You then just connect that to a 2.1 amp charger that you put in the cigar lighter ($10 at Best Buy -- NB it has to be a 2.1 amp one for the iPad -- it needs more juice than a simple iPod) under the glove compartment, and you have plenty of recharging capability. Trivial to then just tuck the power wire out of the way -- you don't even see it. Then you just run a regular iPod dock extension cable from the pass-through fitting up to the iPad. You then have 100% functionality and quick charging. It sounds more complicated than it is.

Lastly, an iPad obviously has a fair bit of glare, but it seems pretty tolerable. I will order one of those anti-glare screens for it from Amazon; maybe that will help.

[fullmetaljacket]

@Helmuth - I see, no problem. I thought I saw you contributing in one of those Hualingan threads. My bad. I'm really decided to throw the Hualingan in the garbage can and going either for the NEW Dynavin or a Kenwood DNX9980 mounted using this Honest Dee mounting kit...

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@e53_guy - I used my G1 iPad running MOTIONX GPS Drive on a rental when I watched the Pacquiao-Mosley Fight in Las Vegas last June. You're right, it was great all in one "infotainment" gadget for those long freeway drives! However, coming home to the 3rd world, with those short but heavy traffic trips, it's a PITA to be putting the iPad under the seat every time I park :-(

[xyber233]

How are you liking the Dynavin now that you've had a few months with it? Has the novelty worn off at all?

[blueagle]

fullmetaljacket,

Did you finally decide to install a Dynavin unit ?

[Bimmerboy24]

So how did you get the sound to work. Could you send where you got the solution thread.

Thanks man,..... Good luck