Bit the bullet: NEX4100 being installed this week.

Hummer645

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Me too Phil! I'm excited to get everything up and running. One interesting thing of note, I was looking through the manual and you have to have you phone connected through bluetooth as well as USB. This was never mentioned in any of the info from CES. I was hoping not to have to deal with Bluetooth anymore. Apparently it has something to do with phone calls. We'll have to see how it all shakes out.

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SuperDave479

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Me three! I actually installed it last night, although I can't get my previous parking brake bypass to work for some reason. Ugh. I wonder how the parking brake works in conjunction with Android Auto? Speaking of that, I saw on the comments on a post here that Pioneer said Android Auto is 1-2 weeks out. I wonder if that's true, and how we will know? I don't suppose we'll get a notice saying it automatically installed on our Lollipop device, but maybe so?

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SuperDave479

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That looks great! Nice job. Sans Android Auto, how do you like it?

Thanks! Well, I actually had a Pioneer AVH-X8500BHS before so it's similiar in a lot of ways. At the same time though, it's surprising how many little improvements there are. The color is really vivid (more so than the picture above which kind of washed it out), and the interface has been cleaned up a bit. You can set backgrounds for the main screen, the "playing media" screen and the bootup screen, which is nice. The biggest change by far though is that the resistive screen is surprisingly good! If I didn't know it was a resistive screen, I really wouldn't have thought it was. So overall, I've been very pleasantly surprised.
 

Hummer645

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That's great to hear! I'm excited to get mine installed this weekend. Have you tried Pioneer's auto tune feature for setting acoustics in your car? I have the mic from my setup and home and I'm going to give that a try to see how it comes out. It works pretty good in my house so I'm hoping it works well in the car as well.
 

Insp_Gadget

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Installed an 8100NEX. Just installed the Android Auto app, but still not getting any reaction from either the phone or the head unit. The phone is getting power from the USB cable, so I know the connection is there. The head unit is set for Android Auto (on USB port 2. Port 1 is for Car Play). Tried two different cables. Not sure what's wrong (unless there's more than just the app required).

Nexus 5, Android 5.1.

Early-adopter pains.
 

SuperDave479

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Interesting. Been busy at work so I didn't realize the app was put out there until you posted that. I'll have to try that on the way home. I'm not hopeful though, since my micro USB port on my G3 decided to die apparently last night. It won't charge anymore, so I kinda doubt this will work until I get my replacement phone. Hell, I'll try it with my Nexus 7 if I have to just to see if it works and let you know. I will say that according to the manual on the 4100NEX, it looks like you have to use their MirrorLink cable so that it will work with Android Auto as well. I bought one just in case, so I'll see if that makes a difference.
 

Mike4G

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I guess I just don't understand why $700 for what's basically a pass through device for your phone. I can just put my note 3 in a dock horizontally and it's roughly the same isn't it? Anyone want to try some salesmanship and sell me the idea?

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Insp_Gadget

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I figured it out. For some inexplicable reason, you have to have USB debugging turned on in order for the Android Auto app to do the proper setup and launch on the head unit.
 

Insp_Gadget

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I guess I just don't understand why $700 for what's basically a pass through device for your phone. I can just put my note 3 in a dock horizontally and it's roughly the same isn't it? Anyone want to try some salesmanship and sell me the idea?

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If you don't know why you'd want it, then no amount of "salesmanship" is going to convince you to spend the money. As I play with it, I'm enjoying it more and more. It's real purpose is to get people to put down the phone and concentrate on driving. It does than pretty well.

I now have my dash and vents unobstructed (No more phone mounts). Not to mention, I replaced a 10 year old radio/navigation system, so this was quite an upgrade for me. Well worth the price (for me).

Your mileage may vary.
 

SuperDave479

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Interesting. Been busy at work so I didn't realize the app was put out there until you posted that. I'll have to try that on the way home. I'm not hopeful though, since my micro USB port on my G3 decided to die apparently last night. It won't charge anymore, so I kinda doubt this will work until I get my replacement phone. Hell, I'll try it with my Nexus 7 if I have to just to see if it works and let you know. I will say that according to the manual on the 4100NEX, it looks like you have to use their MirrorLink cable so that it will work with Android Auto as well. I bought one just in case, so I'll see if that makes a difference.

So in case anyone was wondering how this went:
I spent a lot of time tonight trying to make this work. My G3 with it's bad micro USB port of course did nothing. It has CyanogenMod 12 on it (Android 5.0.2) so it probably would have worked if the port worked. I tried side-loading it on my Nexus 7 with 5.1. That didn't work - no prompt and no option for Android Auto on radio. Thanks to my patient wife, who also has a rooted G3 with custom recovery, she let me back up her near-stock Kit Kat ROM and install CyanogenMod 12 on it so I could test. That worked, though not with the official Pioneer MirrorLink cable (like their manual says is necessary), and not with a standard micro USB cable I bought with the intention of using with the stereo. It only worked with my Monoprice cable that I keep in the car to use with a car lighter adapter to charge the phone sometimes. It seems the unit is VERY picky about the cables it likes. The others would say either No Device, or Incompatible USB and flip back to No Device every second. Something to keep in mind. On my wife's G3 with the fresh CyanogenMod install, I didn't even have to have Android Auto installed. It prompted me to install it once I plugged up the phone. Didn't need to connect it to the stereo's Bluetooth first, either. So, when I get my replacement device and I put CyanogenMod back on it, it should work just fine.

Anyway, hopefully that helps some folks as there doesn't seem to be a lot of people trying this yet and there's a real lack of information out there, plus Pioneer's manual is just plain wrong in places.
 

Mike4G

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If you don't know why you'd want it, then no amount of "salesmanship" is going to convince you to spend the money. As I play with it, I'm enjoying it more and more. It's real purpose is to get people to put down the phone and concentrate on driving. It does than pretty well.

I now have my dash and vents unobstructed (No more phone mounts). Not to mention, I replaced a 10 year old radio/navigation system, so this was quite an upgrade for me. Well worth the price (for me).

Your mileage may vary.

All valid points. Thank you. Do you know how Pioneer App2radio head units differ from Android auto head units?

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Insp_Gadget

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All valid points. Thank you. Do you know how Pioneer App2radio head units differ from Android auto head units?

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I have never used a Pioneer App2radio unit, but I see the option in the unit I just purchased. I believe they use something called AVICSync (or similar) and do Mirrorcasting, etc. My head unit supports all of that, but none of it is necessary when running Android Auto. So I can't really answer your question as far as user experience goes with App2radio units. From what I've seen in pictures, they have similar "Pioneer" user interfaces, but of course the smartphone "apps" portions will vary in user interface. Android Auto has it's own "Home screen" UI (looks just like Google Now). Installing apps is simple, because you never actually install anything on the head unit, itself. You install apps on your phone. Just like Android Wear, any apps that are Android Auto "aware" will show up on your head unit within the Android Auto user interface. Right now that means apps like iHeart Radio, Spotify, TuneIn Radio, Pocket Casts, etc. (These all show up under the "headphones" button as alternatives to Google Play Music.)

Outside of Android Auto... Basically, Pioneer put everything in the unit that would be available if you didn't have Android Auto or Apple CarPlay capabilities with your phones... making the units more than just "dumb terminals" for smartphones. These Android Auto head units can function quite well on their own merits without the Android Auto functionality. Given that the prices are the same as last year's equivalent models that didn't have Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, I look at the AA and CP as simple value added on top.
 

hansjs

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Got mine installed today. Overall pretty happy.....except....when I click the microphone icon for voice search....nothing happens. I'll play around with it more tomorrow to make sure there isn't a setting I missed. Anyone else have this issue?
 

Mike4G

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I have never used a Pioneer App2radio unit, but I see the option in the unit I just purchased. I believe they use something called AVICSync (or similar) and do Mirrorcasting, etc. My head unit supports all of that, but none of it is necessary when running Android Auto. So I can't really answer your question as far as user experience goes with App2radio units. From what I've seen in pictures, they have similar "Pioneer" user interfaces, but of course the smartphone "apps" portions will vary in user interface. Android Auto has it's own "Home screen" UI (looks just like Google Now). Installing apps is simple, because you never actually install anything on the head unit, itself. You install apps on your phone. Just like Android Wear, any apps that are Android Auto "aware" will show up on your head unit within the Android Auto user interface. Right now that means apps like iHeart Radio, Spotify, TuneIn Radio, Pocket Casts, etc. (These all show up under the "headphones" button as alternatives to Google Play Music.)

Outside of Android Auto... Basically, Pioneer put everything in the unit that would be available if you didn't have Android Auto or Apple CarPlay capabilities with your phones... making the units more than just "dumb terminals" for smartphones. These Android Auto head units can function quite well on their own merits without the Android Auto functionality. Given that the prices are the same as last year's equivalent models that didn't have Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, I look at the AA and CP as simple value added on top.

Thank you for clarifying. I now see the reasoning behind the price tag.

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Nick Alonzo

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Hey guys this is my first post...

So I have had my 4100NEX installed for a week now and it is running the v1.3 firmware. My Galaxy S5 with Lollipop 5.0 does not work with Mirrorlink or AppRadio. Android Auto works fine. I am using the Pioneer cable, but it is the same as any microUSB.

Has anyone figured out how to get those to work? My phone connects but beyond that no apps show up and mirror doesn't work. I'm pretty pissed because that's exactly why I purchased this radio!
 

Insp_Gadget

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Hey guys this is my first post...

So I have had my 4100NEX installed for a week now and it is running the v1.3 firmware. My Galaxy S5 with Lollipop 5.0 does not work with Mirrorlink or AppRadio. Android Auto works fine. I am using the Pioneer cable, but it is the same as any microUSB.

Has anyone figured out how to get those to work? My phone connects but beyond that no apps show up and mirror doesn't work. I'm pretty pissed because that's exactly why I purchased this radio!
I don't believe you can use MirrorLink and AppRadio functions at the same time as Android Auto. The two are in conflict with how the phone is supposed to function under Android Auto. Either use Android Auto or remove the Android Auto app and set up MirrorLink and AppRadio (via those apps).

If I'm wrong, anyone, please enlighten me.
 

Nick Alonzo

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I don't believe you can use MirrorLink and AppRadio functions at the same time as Android Auto. The two are in conflict with how the phone is supposed to function under Android Auto. Either use Android Auto or remove the Android Auto app and set up MirrorLink and AppRadio (via those apps).

If I'm wrong, anyone, please enlighten me.
I know it only let's me use one or the other... But my head unit is only a blank screen when using mirrorlink. My phone says it's connected but nothing actually happens
 

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