Alpine solution to upgrading audio

[X5Dude]

I thought about going with the Alpine solution. It has a really cool looking remote, and allows for relatively smooth integration. Kenwood offers a similar solution in their car portals (KOS-V500 and KOS-V1000). I had made a decision to go with the Kenwood V1000 because the alpine modules are on back order and from what I hear, Kenwood has a better Bluetooth unit - made by Parrot.

At the last minute I decided to go with the Kenwood DNX8120. This meand yanking my factory nav, losing a CD changer and losing some on screen car computer displays. But - it also meant getting an improved navi system (minue the computer sounding voice), excellent bluetooth integration, ipod integration, USB based audio, DVD player, customizable unit wall papers and room to easily add other functionality.

I am not too happy yet with the generic faceplate used for my install. The factory unit was wider than the DNX8120 so I have about 1.5 inches of blank plastic on either side. (If anyone has a solution for this, I'd love to hear it). All in all I have to say that I am happy and living in the current times in terms of car technology.

I wonder if I should sell some of my factory equipment to offset the costs???