aftermarket headunits

[lezmtaylor]

Not to worry, best to have it A1.
Still very interested.
Lez

[x555]

Isn't this the same unit???....http://www.bimmernav.com/store/catalog/ ... system.htm actually for sale!

[squeaky2]

Its effectively the same unit i think. From what i can gather there has been some updates to the Operating system on the one for the e53. Something to do with integrating it with the computer and then just some other teething troubles.

I keep managing to find these units for the e46 and e39 but there does seem to be very limited aftermarket units for the x5. I do keep having a look around though.

[squeaky2]

Right another update............my views so could be wrong

Havent spoken to Car Vision in the last couple of days but he has refunded my money at the moment as he says there are still too many problems.

From looking around on other forums there are still glitches in the software and these are from units that were manufactured for other vehicles and have been since march- april this year.
i.e. Iphone 4 works on bluetooth streaming but not via cable.
Phonebook sync problems
TMC not working
No RDS display.

Cant guarantee these are problems with the BMW unit but to be honest there is a lack of info out there.

There are other companies out there supplying these units but looking into the small print and an email back from one of them they are ordering these units once you have paid for them, the units are then coming from the manufacturer in china. From what i can gather this can take anywhere between 7-10 days but has been known to take over a month.

The e46 model has been supplied since earlier in the year. The e53 model is has apparently only been made available from the 2nd week of August. The 7 series apparently is still not manufactured yet.

It does look like you can get the units direct from manufacturer but i think id rather take the risk with a uk company that i can go back too.

Once again as i find out more ill let you all know.

Steve

[phiggystardust]

hi steve and all

i have been in touch with tv in motion and they too are applying the finishing touche's to these units they have sorted the hardware issues and say they are now being made to thier spec, software changes now include tv in motion, and 3d nav with a possibility of being able to use tom tom nav. they have been trialing these units with customers and are very much bmw chumps, only hope they will stick to thier original pre order price as notice they all seem to have shoved thier prices up.these have 12mth parts and labour warraty rtb, and have the ability to update software. so looks at the mo that these guys are getting my hard earned

[lezmtaylor]

[quote=""phiggystardust""]hi steve and all

i have been in touch with tv in motion and they too are applying the finishing touche's to these units they have sorted the hardware issues and say they are now being made to thier spec, software changes now include tv in motion, and 3d nav with a possibility of being able to use tom tom nav. they have been trialing these units with customers and are very much bmw chumps, only hope they will stick to thier original pre order price as notice they all seem to have shoved thier prices up.these have 12mth parts and labour warraty rtb, and have the ability to update software. so looks at the mo that these guys are getting my hard earned [/quote]


Yes, I have had an email from them as well , and have asked to be put on a pre-order list( if they have one )
Would be nice if it was delivered and installed for the Bristol meet.
Lez

[Sanj]

How are you fellas doing with Car-Vision and TV In Motion? Any updates?

[lezmtaylor]

Hi mate,
had an email from them couple of weeks ago and they are still working on it.
I am still on pre order list.
Lez

[Sanj]

Lez,

Who are you going with? I see two types from each of these sellers - TV In Motion have a different looking unit to CarVision???

[lezmtaylor]

Sanj,
Going with tv in motion, will have a look at Carvision.
Lez

[phiggystardust]

hi guys to carry on with the subject i got an update from tv in motion today , so have tried to copy and paste so here it is p.s i expect a discount from tv in motion promoting this


Why are we awaiting...

I know that many people feel we are taking forever to finalise the launch of the headunit so we thought we would cover some of the reasons for the wait.

Current competitors versions available on the market have the following issues:

Screen glare issues. - Not on ours.
Sound Quality issues. - Not on ours.
Poor TV Reception. - We have the latest DVBT / ASTC Tuners.
Slow Chipsets. - We have faster Chipests than current models on the market.
Navigation Lag. - Not on ours.
Lack of full integration / Crashing. - Not on ours.
Failing DVD Drives. - Only top Quality drives in our units.

No after sales Support (we know this by the amount of emails we get asking for support for other manufacturers units.)

We will only release our unit when we know its perfect

Having run fully integrated car PC's in our Demo car, we have a high level of expectation when it comes to aftermarket integration in BMW's. If we were going to rip out something that is amazing, then we knew we had to make something even more amazing.

We don't just want an aftermarket headunit that looks like a BMW headunit. We want something that is the evolution of the OEM headunit.

Will it fit?

Unfortunately we are still getting inundated with emails on fitment, so much so we have had to work on our email servers.

Simply put it can fit any (non iDrive) BMW that could be bought with a 4:3 or 16:9 navigation from the dealership.

We are putting together OEM retrofit packages for people who have non navigation but still want to fit the unit to OEM standard, although it's not really required, as a community we love our OEM parts so some may still want to go that extra mile.

What make is it?

People are still asking is this a Hualingan, Dynavin, D3 MMI BMW headunit. Well the easiest way to think about it is with watches, is a Chinese Rolex or a Japanese Rolex a Rolex?

No. Yes all the units look the same as their purpose is to mimic a specific item, but internally they are very different.


Vin Numbers at the ready

When we start our online ordering process for these headunits we will require your Cars VIN number. This can be found on the Bottom corner of your windscreen. ( Remember guys the Range Rover Version is coded slightly differently.).

This is mainly so we can advise on fitting and give the relevant instructions.

Pre Orders

After 30 years in business we have always had a strong belief that customers shouldn't be charged until an item is ready to leave the door. So we are working on a fair pre-ordering system that we are happy with.


Don't worry, if you are receiving this newsletter you'll be first to know when the pre-ordering system is open.




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Other news you might find interesting...
OEM AERIAL INTEGRATION
For people with OEM Navigation and analogue TV who want to use the existing car aerials rather than the ones supplied in our kit we have a new piece of kit that will be launched with the unit to allow you to connect any aftermarket kit with the existing OEM BMW system
Reversing Camera's
We have brought out a new range of BMW replacement reversing camera's with high quality picture output. These unit's are the perfect accessory for your headunit installation. We now have a range from £99.99 to £2000.00 ( for those of you that want that real James bond Night vision)
Read More

The quick Faq's section
Here we will run through some of the most common question's emailed into us.

Does the unit come with an external microphone?
The headunit it's self has a built in microphone, with great pickup.

Does the unit enable digital radio as well as TV?
The unit will give you digital radio as well.

Does the 12 month warranty cover parts as well as labour?
The unit comes with a 12 month warranty that covers parts and labour for fixing it.

Where does the SD card plug in to the unit for the Sat nav (i.e. is it accessible for updating the software)?
The SD slot is on the front so you can easily take it in and out the car to update.

What, if any, other cables or connectors will I need from you for my car and what do they cost?
We supply you with the aerial cables for the TV and GPS. For people wanting to plug in their iPod they can use their normal iPod lead. we would advise getting a spare at Asda of all places, we got some extra long ones for under £10.00

Out of interest, is it an option to use Garmin nav software instead?
As you can imagine anything is possible with some time and effort, at the moment we just want to get a perfectly working unit out, before the mod's begin, and yes there is talks about the possibility of TOMTOM. But lets not slow the launch down. These things can be looked into at a later date and we can all upgrade.

I am interested in your reversing camera (one that also works at night), so would appreciate a complete cost with cabling etc please?
We have reversing camera's from £99.99 night vision ones of a 'Decent quality' from £149.99. Real FLIR night vision for those who want to join the police interceptors on TV it's £2000.00

I assume that the reverse camera shows on screen automatically when reverse gear is engaged?
Yes. The headunit has the automatic reversing camera function

Do you currently have these units in stock and, if not, what is the lead time?
Now that we are happy with the Hardware, the units are being manufactured to our new specification. As we type the first batch should be getting sealed up and shipped to us. Any further upgrades are going to be software so we will upgrade the units with any improvements in house. Any future improvements upgrade firmware will be listed on our site.

[lezmtaylor]

Yes had my update yesterday as well, will make a nice Xmas present from the wife to me !!!!!!!!!!
IF ready by then.
Lez

[Sanj]

Wanted to ask what you guys think about the old resale side on this? The car that is...

We harp on about how a car without the SatNav has less perceived value and when you put this unit in you will need to take all the other bits out. Granted there is the advantage of an updated unit over the factory OEM - better satnav, no risk of BM54 radio control module failure, no risk of water damage, etc.

Just wondered how you guys felt about that? Is it better to keep the old stuff and fit it back in later, or just sell it and take your chances with the car at the time of sale????

[lezmtaylor]

Hi Mate,
A 2002 4.4 does not have a great resale value, but you have a relevent point.
With all the mods I have done it would take me a couple of weeks to revert to oem.
So I think I would see what it would fetch with mods in and with mods out.
Lez

[petert]

... and there are people who will retrofit the BMW system for you - findable on eBay. Not cheap but if you prefer the OEM look then it has that attribute.

Peter T