Hi all,
I am looking for a head unit for Suzuki Swift as below:
Touch screen
Android 5.0
Bluetooth
USB
AUX
Integrate with current wheel control ( volume, tuner, mobile phone functions)
Price : <400
I am going to install it myself , hope it won't be too difficult (Any advice and instructions will be helpful :D)
Thanks
No I haven't installed it by myself before . Watched some tutorial videos on YouTube.
Your advice is really helpful. Thanks for the link .
Much appreciated!
While not an android unit I did buy one recently for a Nissan Pathfinder and the steering wheel controls worked without additional modules etc, but it was a specific model for the car - basically a generic model with the correct wiring harness.
Recently installed a double din one in my 2012 Toyota. It was a Joying brand, ex ebay but Australian stock. Only a few days for delivery.
Very impressed and much beter bang for the buck than i expected. Dash fit is perfect.
Screen is bright & clear, process operation is immediate and the amplification is as good as my original unit.
Came with plug & play setup to suit my vehicle and would imagine the same with your Suzuki.
Steering controls no problem and you can choose what functions to allocate to each button as well.
Had a little problem with radio reception antenna hookup… my car has a booster built into the antenna system and dual diveresity so it takes a little sorting. With the regular antenna plug in the radio reception is fine but does not have the reception distiance of the original unit.. yet.
Contacted the Joying rep via email about this and they have been very helpful and fast to reply.
Chack out their offers on ebay… http://stores.ebay.com.au/carjoying2015/
They also sell direct from their own site.
You can ask them to confirm the fittment for your exact car before purchase too.. look for the link on their own website.
Installation.. Not easy but not overly hard either. Do some research there is usually some guides on youtube and vehicle owners forums either here or in the USA. Take extra care not to damage your dash, don't rush.
I came across Joying branded head unit before when I was browsing . Will def look at the site .
Thank you very much !
And an AliExpress store which has a wider range. Ownice are supposed to be good too.
I have a mate with a Joying head unit and it works pretty well. The only issue he has is the bluetooth call quality isn't as good as stock.
I didn't install the external mic with mine. The built in one works better than the toyota original.
I had seen where others found this to be better… if your mate is using the external get him to try the built in if there is one in his unit.
OK, not easy to get under $400 with the current exchange rate, so I cheated a bit.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Android-5-1-Car-DVD-GPS-play…
There are many other similar options there, some with free shipping (but thus higher prices). As per usual with buying from chinese sites, be VERY careful and be very certain of what they will be selling you. In particular look carefully at the steering wheel situation and check (it's usually canbus). About as trustworthy as a bunch of politicians.
This is in one of my list. Was trying to look up the review and installation guides for this. But no luck.
Appreciate your input!
Most likely to find reviews on Youtube if anywhere - at heart these are all the same guts, so you can read across.
Please don't buy a random Chinese no name headunit. What may seem an attractive proposition based on specs vs price, in the long run it won't be worth it. Sub-standard menu navigation, lousy touchscreens, bad audio quality etc. You won't know until it's all installed.
My advice, wait till a car audio sale at JBs and buy the deck then. Something with Carplay or Android Auto should do the trick.
Don't forget you'll need the fascia surround if you have the non-navi model Swift. That will further add to the budget. Adding steering wheel control modules will further cost.
Almost may as well buy a reverse camera add on at the same time. Fairly easy to install once it's all apart, and will come in handy (nit a necessity for a Swift of course but a future buyer of your car might like it over something else)
I was waiting for you to come in here. How else can I play Pokémon Go while driving? ;)
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/131948687857
Bingo
GPS unit out of the Navi model Swifts.
Should practically be plug n play for you
Garmin GPS, Bluetooth, Bluetooth streaming, usb, even a CD player!
Most of all it'll be a bloody easy install and function with everything including the usb port already on your car.
Oh and it's only a bit over budget! $400 + Shipping!
No Android? or wifi, not that the op mentioned that.
No carplay or Android auto no, but Garmin GPS. Plus it's plug n play, looks factory etc
With a good android unit you can install several of the free available nav apps so you are not just restricted to one. I have 3 in mine… you can allocate one in the joying radio settings to be the default one for the dedicated nav button. The supplied gps receiver can be mounted anywhere on a metal surface. I sat mine under the dash where it will be out of the sun and out of the way. Works great.
No external mic needed either, the built in one works better than the factory unit.
Wiring harness for my Toyota was all plug & play.. seems they are good at matching car makers wiring these days. No splicing required.
I looked at all the offerings especially the big name ones. They are not free of their own problems and with the same features cost 5 times more.
I would be careful with some after market units though.. there are some lemons regardless of what price is paid and where they come from.
The deck I recommended is OEM, which to me is a big plus in the scheme of things. Especially if a random brand one from AliExpress is around the same price.
I could understand if an AliExpress unit was considerably cheaper, but I wouldn't drop $400+ on one.
Each to their own of course, for the budget I just thought that offered the most convenient and featured option.
@Spackbace:
You get crap from china and australia or anywhere but china also can and do make top line products. Remember a few years back when people were crying because their tv was made in china? Now people dont worry because they have proven they can deliver market standard products.
The radio I removed from my fairly new Toyota was made in Thailand.
The OEM unit you linked to is used, may not come with the complete harness and would only have a used part warranty. I looked at getting a similar used nav unit for mine and decided against it for those reasons. Add to that the limited function of most non android units and the cost of updating oem nav maps it was a no no for me.
I dont deny the one you linked is a good deal for an oem unit.. the price from the dealer would be many times that for sure, plus i t would also maintain the factory original look as well.
If the aftermarket unit for the Suzuki fits and looks as good as mine does he will be very happy. Just stay away from the $100 junk units.
It is up to the OP which way he chooses in the end.
BTW… The unit I purchased did not come from aliexpress. I agree with you there… I wont spend any more than $10 for anything from there. I bought mine on ebay and it was delivered from Joing Australian stock. The couple of queries I have had with them have been answered faster and better than any aust company i have dealt with.
You also can purchase direct from them via their own website. They have been around a while and do make an effort to deliver a good product. I did a lot of reading before I purchased. There is a lot of feedback on US sites where they know that these are good units.
Have you installed a head unit before? The more you do it the easier it gets really. If it's your first time I would be looking to see if there is a wiring harness available to suit your car/head unit. This will reduce the amount of cutting/soldering/crimping needed. It will be pretty much plug and play. If not you will need to go through the process of finding power, earth, front and rear speakers and matching them to outlets on the head unit. This process can be made easier with a wiring diagram.
As for integrating steering wheel controls - last time I tried we had to buy a seperate module to make this work. This was some time ago so maybe easier now. If you can find a wiring harness this may solve the problem.