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Generic Android 5.1.1 MTCD Navigation Radio Install for BMW e46

Last month, I found this this Android 5.1.1 Headunit on Aliexpress for $227 shipped. I decided that the price was low enough to take the risk and purchased. The vendor's store is TONGTAI HONGKONG INDUSTRIAL CO.,LTD I am not endorsing the vendor, I didn't need them for any support yet, but I assume people will ask due to price.
Today was the first nice day since I got it, so I did the install this morning. I'm not going to recreate the install here, as there are already many for the Eonon, Dynavin, Avin, and others. This is just like those. I will note where I came across anything I wasn't expecting below.
A couple of points, I did not install a backup camera. My E46 is a Cabrio, and visibility is fine, I just don't think the benefits are there for me. Additionally, DVD is not important so I didn't check that out. I do want a working Radio, Bluetooth Calling and streaming and Navigation. This unit is doing all of that.
Opened Box
Retail box - I've seen other units that have the identical packaging
As Packed
Parts laid out
Parts laid out 2 - Note- connectors for the early and late radio's and early and late antennas. My car is one of the 2006 330's, and one of the last off the line.
Closer pic of unit - These look exactly like every other unit on the market.
Navigation SD card included - I read a lot of different solutions on where to put the GPS antenna. I was going to put it in the spot behind the instrument cluster, but BMW already had a factory installed antenna there. I guess by 2006, it was cheaper to put the antennas in all cars (like the factory Bluetooth). I used the metal cross bar above the radio. The antenna has a magnet on the base and i just sat it on top, it won't move. Reception, for me, is fine.
Back of unit. Cleaner than many - Note On many of these units the can-bus plugs into the back. I have been told that that makes fit difficult because of the amount of wires back there. The can-bus came off a pigtail on the mail unit and was easily tucked out of the way.
Another pic of the back of the unit - Note the white input plug under the antenna in. Those were for the RCA connectors for pre-amps. It wasn't needed it this install, the factory harness took care of everything, left those pigtails out.
Top with wiring diagram - All I did was remove the screws and plug it in, I didn't have to refer to any wiring. I will say I had trouble getting the adapter to line up with the factory plug. I almost broke the harness side. Not sure why it was so hard to align, but eventually it did.
Climate controls moved to the lower spot -Here are the climate controls moved into the lower section. I got a used navigation bracket off eBay for $20. The lighter clips were broken on one side, but not off. I had to use a cable tie to "lock" it in. If I had caught that before install, I would have swapped the lighter for a USB
Unit Installed
Radio Screen
Bluetooth Phone Screen
System Screen - Originally this was on a July MCU release, when I went into the about screen, it offered an update. An old ROM was on the Nav Card, and I overwrote the newer ROM with the older version. I sent the vendor a message to see if they can send me the link to the newer one. That said, I am not having an issue with this one.
Here is a walkthrough of it live. The video stops when I use bluetooth, not because of the headunit, but my phone stopped recording when making a call.
https://youtu.be/Vtv2tJte5oQ
All said and done I am very happy with this unit based after installation. I have been reading many people who have issues, so maybe I got a "good" one, or maybe issues are yet to come. If you have any questions, fire away.

Well it was great for 2 hours. Screen is unresponsive now. Any suggestions...
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Sorry I cannot help with the unresponsive screen, but I have a question
For the few hours you enjoyed it, how was the display in direct sunlight?

-=Jeff=- said:
Sorry I cannot help with the unresponsive screen, but I have a question
For the few hours you enjoyed it, how was the display in direct sunlight?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was ok, this morning driving to work their was a good bit of glare, but still very readable. I will try it with the top down and see what it can take would assume that would wash it out.
Pretty sure a matte screen protector would solve any issues with glare. Something like this should do for my screen
http://www.staples.com/Iessentials-...ctor-For-7-inch-8-inch-Tablets/product_210060

I have a car with a targa roof.. I tried a matte protector with my newsmy NU3001 and it did not help. I really like the idea of the Touch screen UI but I think I am out of luck for seeing it on the screen. I have a MTCD unit too but have not tried it yet.

Video of operation w/o working screen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lGyAQ0rZlg

Pattond said:
Video of operation w/o working screen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lGyAQ0rZlg
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried to reflash the unit? Factory ROM for you unit should be available somewhere on the forum. It looks like it lost touch calibration.

f1x said:
Have you tried to reflash the unit? Factory ROM for you unit should be available somewhere on the forum. It looks like it lost touch calibration.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought that was exactly what happened. I reflashed both ROM and DMCU, but didn't help. The vendor sent my video over to his engineer and they are going to get back with me today. I am thinking its a physically problem with the screen like something worked its way loose or the heat of the day effected it.

System Re-Flash from recovery mode.
I just went into recovery mode and did a full reflash again hoping it gives some information about what is happening. I videoed it, and it will (in about an hour) be available here. https://youtu.be/9Q70WxcMzzg Warning beginning to end its 8:21. May be of use to someone trying to understand how to get into recovery mode and reflash
I went ahead and typed the messages on the screen after selecting "Update system/mcu image from sdcard and clear all" all the text that followed is below. I see an error came up in parsing the backup, not sure if that effects the loading or not, it seems to be running the same
__ Update rkimage...
Installation rkimage start.
Finding update package.
===UPDATE RKIMAGE===
Find and check firmware...
!!! Please KEEP your USB cable or DC-in connected !!!
Check parameter...
Update recovery.img...
Check recovery.img...
Update boot.img...
Check boot.img...
Update misc.img...
Check misc.img...
Update kernel.img...
Check kernel.img...
Update system...
Check system...
Update oem.img...
Check oem.img...
Update backup...
Check backup...
E:1 parse errors
Handle script error! ignore...
Copy Bootloader...
Installation complete.
Update rkimage complete.
Installation rkimage success.
Formatting /data...
Formatting /cache...
Formatting /mnt/internal_sd...
Installation mcuimg start
Installation mcuimg aborted
Installation mcuimg start
-----MCU Version :V1.66a
-----MCU customer : KD
Installation mcuimg success.
System will now power off/
Rebooting...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

The vendor got with his engineer and is pretty sure it is the touch screen itself that is the issue, not the software (I was thinking the same thing). Their guess is the cable has somehow worked loose and want me to open the unit and check the cable connections. He sent me a photo of what to look for (below). Any recommendations/warnings before taking this thing apart tonight?
Thanks, this thread may be too much me, but if someone else is having the same issues, I want to make sure there is somewhere they can look for troubleshooting and hopefully an eventual solution.
BTW, so far vendor communication has been really good.

Hi, have you been able to fix it? I'm thinking of getting the exact same head unit (as opposed to universal one with all the extras I would need, like fascia, cage, harness)

schriss said:
Hi, have you been able to fix it? I'm thinking of getting the exact same head unit (as opposed to universal one with all the extras I would need, like fascia, cage, harness)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mailed I back, they received today and are returning a new unit. Will update when it arrives
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I got an update from the vendor, and the issue was a touchscreen cable worked loose. Absolutely a problem with the assembly in China, and probably something I could have fixed if I was skilled in electronic repair. My new unit is on the way here.
Sent from my SM-G920I using Tapatalk

I should be getting mine delivered tomorrow, hopefully no loose cables

Are there any benefits buying a eonon unit compared to this one? Are they from the same factory you think? The new eonon has Bluetooth 4 compared to others? How can that be if they are all from the same manufacturer?

I suspect they all come from same factory, Eonon, Joying or no brand - the only difference seems to be the software.
I'm quite happy with my "generic" unit, so far so good. But didn't test bluetooth more than just paired with my phone, no calls yet or any obd2 readers used.
My main use is navigation and that seems fine, but my phone seems to be getting a bit more accurate gps lock according to gps test apps.

PattonD, have you tried a Bluetooth call? How was it? Did you use the internal mic or an external?
One of the most important features for me...
The unit you bought is very interesting.

I got the unit. I tried the unit at home. Internal mic seems fine.
However, how is the reverse camera installed? Is reverse signal coming from the canbus system or must i cut the brown cable (cable 8, back car cable) and connect it to the reverse lights?

it is the plug

I'm not really sure what you mean mate

Bluetooth issues

I pretty much love this phone. It would be my ideal device if it had double-tap-to-wake. As it is, I could almost learn to live with using the fingerprint scanner (which I avoid using on all of my other phones) to unlock, but I finally encountered a deal breaker.
I have had all kinds of bluetooth issues. I have a lot of connected devices and I've been encountering the following:
Gear S3 constantly disconnects (even when it's really close to the phone)
Fitbit will not sync
Car Stereo Bluetooth profile deleted itself
AirPods break up, have static, or completely cut out
Here's the thing. I went back to my V20 and I don't have any of these issues. The Fitbit always syncs, the AirPods work flawlessly, the Gear S3 NEVER disconnects, and my car stereo has never disconnected. I have to believe it's a bluetooth stack issue. Perhaps the proprietary processor is to blame. But with all of the bluetooth devices I use on a daily basis, I can't live with this.
I really want to keep the phone, but I think I'm going to have to return it. That sucks because there's nothing else really like it on the market for me. But after all of the testing I've done, I can't draw any other conclusion. Maybe a software update might fix it in the future, but I can't take that chance.
I'm sure some of you will chime in and say "I'm not having any of these issues". That's great. I'm fairly certain you don't have the exact same devices/combination I've listed here. The fact is, my currently daily setup does not mesh with this phone. I still have my Mate 8, but I haven't tested this combination of devices with it yet.

I also have a big issue with this phone's Bluetooth. I can't pair it with a 2014 Pajero. Any other phone works perfect when paired with the car but this one cannot even pair. I always get "pairing failed".
I tried every oprtion and pairing application and still no success.
I know mate 9 has bluetooth 4.2 but it should be backward compatible.
Anyone has a solution or similar issue?

I wonder what firmware version your mate is on.
I'm running MHA-L29C432B138 and I have no problems with my Gear S3, nor with my Mazda bluetooth hookup.

Yeap, latest B138 version.
Gear S3 is fine. Only issue is the car connection

B138 here.
Won't connect to my 451 Bosch Highline car radio (they can't even see each other).
Connects fine to my laptops (Win & MacOS), BT speakers and Xiaomi Roidmi.
Sent from my MHA-L29 using XDA Labs

duraaraa said:
I wonder what firmware version your mate is on.
I'm running MHA-L29C432B138 and I have no problems with my Gear S3, nor with my Mazda bluetooth hookup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am on MHA-L29C567B138
I have the U.S. unlocked model. So, unless there's something specific about the firmware on that model, I don't know what to tell you. I have tested this repeatedly with all of my Bluetooth devices. Nothing works as it should, especially compared to my other phones. It would be interesting to see if I have the same issues on the Europe firmware, but I'm not flashing it to find out.

This bluetooth seems to be issue with this phone, does anyone know if this is something huewei is working on to fix or its an android issue ?

I hate to be the guy that says "mine works blah blah blah" but I've got multiple devices connected through Bluetooth and have yet to have an issue on any of them. 2 Ford vehicles running Android auto, 3 Bluetooth speakers and a set of Bluetooth headphones.
With that said, I wonder if your actual device is faulty. Has anyone with the issues done a factory reset? If so I'd be contacting Huawei support.
Sent from my MHA-L29 using Tapatalk

I have same issue as describe. My tought is mate 9 do not accept Bluetooth multipoint connection... 2 devices with same profil cannot be connected in same time
Envoyé de mon MHA-L29 en utilisant Tapatalk

I am wondering if the manufacturer is aware of the issue or not but to me it seems more of a Android nogut issue than anything else

I have the same issue. The Mate 9 takes about 3 minutes to pair with my car where my LGV10 automatically did it within seconds. It also does not seem capable of handling being paired with multiple Bluetooth devices at the same time. It has to be disconnected from one and wait to pair with the next one. For cars, I have tried it with both a Tesla and a Jeep GC and the I have the same problem.

greyhulk said:
I pretty much love this phone. It would be my ideal device if it had double-tap-to-wake. As it is, I could almost learn to live with using the fingerprint scanner (which I avoid using on all of my other phones) to unlock, but I finally encountered a deal breaker.
I have had all kinds of bluetooth issues. I have a lot of connected devices and I've been encountering the following:
Gear S3 constantly disconnects (even when it's really close to the phone)
Fitbit will not sync
Car Stereo Bluetooth profile deleted itself
AirPods break up, have static, or completely cut out
Here's the thing. I went back to my V20 and I don't have any of these issues. The Fitbit always syncs, the AirPods work flawlessly, the Gear S3 NEVER disconnects, and my car stereo has never disconnected. I have to believe it's a bluetooth stack issue. Perhaps the proprietary processor is to blame. But with all of the bluetooth devices I use on a daily basis, I can't live with this.
I really want to keep the phone, but I think I'm going to have to return it. That sucks because there's nothing else really like it on the market for me. But after all of the testing I've done, I can't draw any other conclusion. Maybe a software update might fix it in the future, but I can't take that chance.
I'm sure some of you will chime in and say "I'm not having any of these issues". That's great. I'm fairly certain you don't have the exact same devices/combination I've listed here. The fact is, my currently daily setup does not mesh with this phone. I still have my Mate 8, but I haven't tested this combination of devices with it yet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's interesting and frustrating how different people have different experiences.
As you'll see from my sig area, I am on US version, with 183 firmware. Interesting too, I had first tried a V20, and left it because of BT issues. As you are probably expecting to hear given my intro statement, I am not having BT issues. But, I am on different phone and firmware from most posts here.
I've only had my phone a couple weeks. When I received it it was on 138, and the GPS didn't work at all. Was about to box it back up and send back, but then checked, and had the update. After update, it's been great for me so far.
I'm not sure how different the 138 is from my US phone and yours...but a common thread for problems seems to be (based on this thread) is 138.

Bluetooth not working

Not sure if this is just my phone but bluetooth has not been working the last update of 7.1.2 and Android O the most recent version. When I toggle bluetooth it does not activate and i have tried clearing out the cache. Not sure if this is a software issue or possible related to hardware. I did have a good drop with my phone although nothing on the exterior appears damaged. Not sure if anyone else is experiencing the same thing.

Just RMAing the phone. It appears that it is only my phone doing it. Actually Google's customer service is really good. I'm glad I bought from them.
I had a Galaxy S4 from Samsung in 2013 and the battery ended up swelling and I called them for a replacement which they would not replace, but would thoughtfully sell me a new battery. Then they lost $5.3 billion from their Note 7 recall due to the battery and I was very happy and laughed.

Was this just the phone audio in your car by chance? I have a similar issue and have an open case with google about it.

marc.ientilucci said:
Was this just the phone audio in your car by chance? I have a similar issue and have an open case with google about it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No it's definitely the phone. I have my Nexus 5x right now on 8.0 and it's working fine. Nothing wrong with the software.
I use Android auto as well and it's working fine. There's something wrong with the hardware component in the phone most likely. I have a 2017 Honda Civic
Did an RMA and sending it out.

mikeprius said:
No it's definitely the phone. I have my Nexus 5x right now on 8.0 and it's working fine. Nothing wrong with the software.
I use Android auto as well and it's working fine. There's something wrong with the hardware component in the phone most likely. I have a 2017 Honda Civic
Did an RMA and sending it out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sorry - let me clarify my question. Was bluetooth media working and just not phone calls over bluetooth? I have a 2017 honda civic as well (LX version so a dumb head unit) and only having bluetooth phone call issues. I can play spotify and other stuff like youtube just fine.

marc.ientilucci said:
sorry - let me clarify my question. Was bluetooth media working and just not phone calls over bluetooth? I have a 2017 honda civic as well (LX version so a dumb head unit) and only having bluetooth phone call issues. I can play spotify and other stuff like youtube just fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. Bluetooth would not activate at all so nothing worked. When i toggled the switch it would not turn on and scan for bluetooth. It appears that my situation was much significant as nothing worked. My replacement should be here tommorow. For your stock rooted set up did you just boot into TWRP then flash the latest SU ? Lately I've been running stock, so I don't know what the most recent form to root is for 8.0
Last time I rooted was like April or May of this year, but I just booted the TWRP image, flash TWRP, then flash SU

I've been stock rooted for some time but for the 8.0 update I rooted with SuperSU SRS3 via TWRP. Google had me actually grab a bug report and shoot it over to them along with information about the bluetooth radio manufacture of the car. I am cool with continuing to help them out. anyway, thanks for your feedback and i hope the new one works!

Got my new pixel replacement. It was the phone, I'm on the latest 7.1.2 update and it's working fine. The refurb looks brand new, you can tell it's a refurb by the charging port, but the rest of the phone is virtually new. No scratches on the glass or scuffs on the metal body. Compared to the current pixel I have with multiple long scratches along the front glass screen, even though it's a refurb its still in much better condition than my current Pixel.
I noticed my night light is super orange the screen is compared to my current Pixel. I think this is an issue related to earlier batches of the Pixel. It's just very orange with the night light but given the condition my current pixel is in, I'll still take it over my current one.

New pumpkin Octo Core Android 8 Head Unit Review/Issues/Ramblings

Hey all,
I just bought a pumpkin android octo core, 4GB ram Android 8 head unit.
This isn't my first android HU. So some quick thoughts...
Very nice they gave a good WiFi antenna with the included kit.
This unit has something odd about it that I need some guidance on... it supports some super fast boot up where if I put the igntion on , the unit is ready to go in a second.
I wonder is this a battery built into the unit? Is it using some large capacitor (tested at least 1hr after shutdown, bootup took 1 second) I very much hope it's not draining the car battery (old android head unit never did).
Everything seems lightning fast on this unit. I can finally even use Google assistant. I sort of could with the last Joying one, but it was just too slow to be practical... as was waiting 5 minutes to be able to use the GPS.
This is literally day zero, as in I just got it a few hours ago so I'll be updating this and testing anything people want me to test later... but I have one other issue and that is that there seems to be a slight hissing sound coming from the unit .. .even with the levels turned way down in the factory settings app... not sure what's causing that but it's a bit of an issue while there's no music playing / not driving around.
Some pics of course :
I got it from Amazon. Cost me £250 on-sale.

The sleep mode you're talking about is the "Auto" setting in the sleep settings menu, I think it's under the "Extra Settings" menu entry. It basically keeps the unit on in a low power mode indefinitely until it gets a 12v+ signal on the red wire behind the radio. During this time though, it's still drawing from your vehicle's battery. Unless your car has a low capacity battery or other charging system issues, it shouldn't be a problem for you. I've left my truck sitting for over a week with the radio in sleep mode and it fired right up to whatever screen I left it on.
Since this is your first unit, don't get hung up on brand names. All of these units are basically either a PX3 or a PX5, and the roms and programs you'll find on these boards are broken down based on what processor is in it. Theres a dozen different brand names, but they're all basically the same three units.

Thanks Hazard15301 it's good to know. I travel a lot for work and often leave my car in airport car parks for weeks. It has a good AGM battery so I guess I should be ok.

from what i can tell, that box is actually the design Erisin uses on their boxes. and the headunit im pretty sure is a Klyde. what is the MCU version on it?

I left my car for well over a week with my unit in 'sleep' mode. Started up no problem

Hi, how did you download Google Assistant onto the pumpkin head unit? And can it work just like the phone - playing specific songs in Spotify etc? Thanks.

Google assistant is built-in to the android OS on it. Just enable it and say "OK Google". It can do anything you can do on your phone (although i'm now having trouble with it making phone calls because it thinks it's a phone.. on my old unit it would just bluetooth to the phone and make the call ... the new one won't make calls for some reason - haven't had time to figure out why yet) ... very happy with this unit. This is what Android head units should be like. Everything works, and it's fast.

Thank you very much for the quick reply!
Is the Google assistant an app on its own in the HU? Do I have to click the app first in order to say “ok Google”?
Or can I be on any screen and say “ok Google” and it’ll work?
thanks!

imogenheap said:
Thank you very much for the quick reply!
Is the Google assistant an app on its own in the HU? Do I have to click the app first in order to say “ok Google”?
Or can I be on any screen and say “ok Google” and it’ll work?
thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's already there, installed as part of the OS, but you have to enable it.
open the Google app (again, built in / pre-installed)
At the bottom right, tap More More and then Settings and then Voice.
Under "Okay Google," tap Voice match.
Turn on Access with voice match.
It's not a separate app, it's just in the "google" app (it's just literally called Google on mine)
Once you enable it ... you can just say "OK Google" from any screen ... you don't have to press anything / open any app first.
For some reason I have to set my language to English US (I'm British) otherwise it says English UK isn't supported.
Cheers

Follow up on unit
Hello, I know this is an old post, however i would like to know how your Pumpkin stereo has held up? Even if you no longer have the head unit or you sold your car, what was your thoughts during the time you had it?
I am considering putting one in my VW Jetta, as i noticed you also had it in a VW and would appreciate your input?
Thanks in advance
lordxenu said:
Hey all,
I just bought a pumpkin android octo core, 4GB ram Android 8 head unit.
This isn't my first android HU. So some quick thoughts...
Very nice they gave a good WiFi antenna with the included kit.
This unit has something odd about it that I need some guidance on... it supports some super fast boot up where if I put the igntion on , the unit is ready to go in a second.
I wonder is this a battery built into the unit? Is it using some large capacitor (tested at least 1hr after shutdown, bootup took 1 second) I very much hope it's not draining the car battery (old android head unit never did).
Everything seems lightning fast on this unit. I can finally even use Google assistant. I sort of could with the last Joying one, but it was just too slow to be practical... as was waiting 5 minutes to be able to use the GPS.
This is literally day zero, as in I just got it a few hours ago so I'll be updating this and testing anything people want me to test later... but I have one other issue and that is that there seems to be a slight hissing sound coming from the unit .. .even with the levels turned way down in the factory settings app... not sure what's causing that but it's a bit of an issue while there's no music playing / not driving around.
Some pics of course :
I got it from Amazon. Cost me £250 on-sale.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

zapper_master said:
Hello, I know this is an old post, however i would like to know how your Pumpkin stereo has held up? Even if you no longer have the head unit or you sold your car, what was your thoughts during the time you had it?
I am considering putting one in my VW Jetta, as i noticed you also had it in a VW and would appreciate your input?
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi
I still have the headunit, and I'm really happy with it. It has served me very well while i've had it. It has never failed, crashed, slowed down etc and I've never needed to mess around with custom ROMs or anything. I can still install apps from the play store etc. Waze works perfectly, as does google maps.
I did purchase poweramp for it and the controls on the steering wheel work just fine too. So I would still recommend it. This is my second android headunit and it's so much better than my first Joying one stuck on android 5 and had only 1GB of RAM and it was sooo slow that GPS was almost unusable. But this one is lightning fast, it goes into standby when you turn off the car so when you turn it back on it's up and running straight away.. no waiting to boot.
The radio is a bit crap though, if that bothers you (I never listen to it) .. it doesn't recieve signals very well and I did hook up the power to the antenna and I did set it to Europe region (where I live) but yeah it doesn't pick up that many channels for some reason but since I either stream music or listen to MP3s from the memory card, i'm not too bothered about that.
One other strange bug, on my old android head unit I could use google assistant / say OK Google and say "Call work" or whomever, and it would dial on my phone. This one seems to think it's a phone , and says that there is no service. But not a big problem, I can press the phone button and just dial .. but it would be nice if I could do it by speaking to it.
Overall, very happy.

Thank you so much for the quick response. Your information is VERY helpful. I do realize none are going to be perfect, but it sounds decent unit for the price. Do you mind sharing what model you got? unless you mentioned it earlier in the thread then i apologize for asking.
lordxenu said:
Hi
I still have the headunit, and I'm really happy with it. It has served me very well while i've had it. It has never failed, crashed, slowed down etc and I've never needed to mess around with custom ROMs or anything. I can still install apps from the play store etc. Waze works perfectly, as does google maps.
I did purchase poweramp for it and the controls on the steering wheel work just fine too. So I would still recommend it. This is my second android headunit and it's so much better than my first Joying one stuck on android 5 and had only 1GB of RAM and it was sooo slow that GPS was almost unusable. But this one is lightning fast, it goes into standby when you turn off the car so when you turn it back on it's up and running straight away.. no waiting to boot.
The radio is a bit crap though, if that bothers you (I never listen to it) .. it doesn't recieve signals very well and I did hook up the power to the antenna and I did set it to Europe region (where I live) but yeah it doesn't pick up that many channels for some reason but since I either stream music or listen to MP3s from the memory card, i'm not too bothered about that.
One other strange bug, on my old android head unit I could use google assistant / say OK Google and say "Call work" or whomever, and it would dial on my phone. This one seems to think it's a phone , and says that there is no service. But not a big problem, I can press the phone button and just dial .. but it would be nice if I could do it by speaking to it.
Overall, very happy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

zapper_master said:
Thank you so much for the quick response. Your information is VERY helpful. I do realize none are going to be perfect, but it sounds decent unit for the price. Do you mind sharing what model you got? unless you mentioned it earlier in the thread then i apologize for asking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No worries, feel free to ask me as many questions about it as you like and i'll try to answer.
With regards to which model,
The amazon listing said "Pumpkin Android 8.0 Car Stereo for VW Golf Passat Polo
4GB RAM Sat Nav Bluetooth Support CD DVD GPS DAB+ WIFI Android Auto"
if i check the about menu on the unit itself it says it's a "PX5"

Thank you I appreciate it. Looks like the internals are all about the same on most models with just small differences.
Enjoy your evening.
lordxenu said:
No worries, feel free to ask me as many questions about it as you like and i'll try to answer.
With regards to which model,
The amazon listing said "Pumpkin Android 8.0 Car Stereo for VW Golf Passat Polo
4GB RAM Sat Nav Bluetooth Support CD DVD GPS DAB+ WIFI Android Auto"
if i check the about menu on the unit itself it says it's a "PX5"
Click to expand...
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Android Auto Freezes: Happens with Pixel 3 but not Pixel 2?

I have a fairly new Android Auto headunit (Kenwood DDX9903s) running the latest firmware available that was released in August. I've been running this headunit with my Pixel 2 for almost a year and it works perfectly. Now I've moved over to a Pixel 3 and it refuses to work. My connection sequence is proper because it connects successfully every single time, launches AA, and makes it to the home screen. Sometimes it will even play 30 seconds of music too but then it will freeze and all playback or navigation stops entirely. It should be noted that I'm not having this issue on the stock headunit in my VW Golf R with Android Auto.
I want to be very clear, the headunit is still fine. If I hit the menu button it will take me to the root menu of the headunit where I can select other playback sources including radio. It is Android Auto that freezes and completely locks up. Only way to get out of that is to unplug it.
I've tried clearing cache/storage on the Android Auto app and also forgetting the device in the Bluetooth settings but nothing seems to help.

AA has been a mess for a few months. When I still had my Pixel 2 XL would crash or freeze every few minutes while driving and using Maps + Navigation. It got a little better after a few app updates more recently, but still crashed out on my occasionally. The P3XL is doing same/similar, but seems more related to the memory management issues.
I only have one head unit to test on (stock Chevy MyLink) so I can't see if it happens on other units or not..

fury683 said:
I only have one head unit to test on (stock Chevy MyLink) so I can't see if it happens on other units or not..
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That's what I find interesting. My stock unit in my VW Golf R seems to be fine with it. However, the aftermarket Kenwood is a bit pickier I suppose. And again, the Pixel2 operated flawlessly. Even on Android Pie. The only difference is the phone.

On my 2016 VW GTI Android auto seems to be a bit buggy with this device. It worked fairly well with my Samsung Galaxy S8. Usually the audio from the radio will duck (become quiet) when Google maps is giving directions to turn or something but now the audio for my radio seems to be ducked even when there are no voice prompts. Annoying.
Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

bigdave79 said:
On my 2016 VW GTI Android auto seems to be a bit buggy with this device. It worked fairly well with my Samsung Galaxy S8. Usually the audio from the radio will duck (become quiet) when Google maps is giving directions to turn or something but now the audio for my radio seems to be ducked even when there are no voice prompts. Annoying.
Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk
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Good call. I actually have that same problem on the Golf too. It's like the audio ducks and then sticks that way. Only way I've found to fix that is to unplug and then plug it back in.

italynstylion said:
Good call. I actually have that same problem on the Golf too. It's like the audio ducks and then sticks that way. Only way I've found to fix that is to unplug and then plug it back in.
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I've had various audio ducking issues in the past, but it's pretty rare. Mine is usually more like I trigger Assistant and audio doesn't duck, so they're both really loud.

I've just go a Pixel 3 and tried to connect to my Audi (A4 B9) but had the same issue. It connects for a bit then just stops working. It loses its connection to the car. My Pixel 2 works without problems.
Charles

Just a quick chime in, not one issue yet, AA on a 2017 Chevy Volt with my pixel 3 standard. Had lots of issues with my previous s7 edge.

I'm having a issue too. I'm thinking it's got to do with the amp output on the head unit. I have a pioneer and it's got a 5v 1.5amp output.
Here is what is happening to it

You might have a point. My phone didn't charge when plugged in to my Audi.
That's worrying. I hope it's not a Pixel 3 hardware issue.

howdey57 said:
You might have a point. My phone didn't charge when plugged in to my Audi.
That's worrying. I hope it's not a Pixel 3 hardware issue.
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I hope not too but I think I'm on to something. I noticed the power output on the Phone charger plug says 5v 3a
and 9v 2a so it's above my current head unit which is 1.5amp
My wife has a Renault and my phone works fine in her car so I'm thinking she has dual power output and all the people not having issues have either dual power output or there is at 2amp and above.
---------- Post added at 10:35 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:25 AM ----------
I am going to do some more searching into this error. Im concerned it is a hardware error but it's still to early too say as I want to look into other devices like the pixel 2 and Samsung s8/9 which I have friends with those devices. They all support fast charging and want to see what there charging specs are. I have read previous comments people didn't have the issue with there pixel 2 so when I get a chance I will test if one works with my car and I will check with a multimeter what my USB port is actually outputting.
If anyone has charging specs for those devices could you please post them.
Thanks

We are not alone.
https://support.google.com/androidauto/forum/AAAA6SY52nIPWBrDUXzR4o/?hl=en

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I have Kenwood DNX995S and my Pixel 3 connects fine and functions as it should. And actually that was one of the reasons I switched to Pixel 3 from S9+. Wireless Android Auto is awesome.

Updated to November security patch, it take a bit longer before AA close but it still close.
I've got the impression it is when I have maps and music running, just like if it can handle many apps at the same time