Installing a $100 Single Din Android Head Unit

owner

Oz '03 316CDI LWB ex-Ambo Patient Transport
Mine has arrived. It seems ok for the money, but they have lied about the specs. Mine is supposed to have 2GB of RAM and running Android 9.1
It of course it says that it has those on their crappy "system info" setting screen.

But using an actual program like CPU-Z from the Play Store tells the real story. Its actually got 1GB of RAM and is running Android 8.1

Other than that it should do everything I want, so I have asked for a partial refund to cover the difference between what I paid and what I could have bought with those lower grade specs. See what happens next
 

owner

Oz '03 316CDI LWB ex-Ambo Patient Transport
So I got a partial refund so it cost me USD70 shipped which is about right.

Now I need to decide how to mount it. I might mount it on top of the dash above the 1DIN slot with the bottom edge overhanging in front of the dash edge. Then I can use the 1DIN for storage.
 

glasseye

Well-known member
Pretty good for $70.
I gotta say, though, I'm having second thoughts. Much as I love that big screen, I find that making changes is frequently distracting for much too long.

The touch screen has got to be flawless in this application and mine isn't.
 

owner

Oz '03 316CDI LWB ex-Ambo Patient Transport
Im going to run universal steering wheel or dash or stalk mounted buttons on mine. I already know i cant be dealing with touch screen/buttons. I just need to decide which hardware button solution to try.

Something like this...
 
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PhilipE

Active member
What was the trick to removing the panel from the console?
Remove the ash tray. Reach up under the console and remove the cubby or cig holder, what every its called. It is just a snap in unit. Squeeze the long sides and it will pop up. Under the cubby is a Philips screw. Remove it.

Take a small screw driver and pop the trim piece from around the shifter. Then use the same screw driver to pry the console center up. The Philips screw you remove earlier is the only device holding it. The rest are just clips.
 

marklg

Well-known member
You guys have not made me want to go get one of these. Touchscreen failed quickly, paying for fake Amazon reviews, faking how much memory and what version of Android! They seem like the sleaziest of sources. Required special mounting to be visible. What other issues would there be if you start from there?

Regards,

Mark
 

ECU

2006 T1n 118 Sprinter
A big problem with a display that does it all is that it only does one thing at a time.
I pulled one out of my van due to frustration.
On a phone call, hit reverse; now the guy at the other end thinks I hung up.
Using the map for directions; phone rings at a critical point and the map is gone.
 

glasseye

Well-known member
A big problem with a display that does it all is that it only does one thing at a time.
I pulled one out of my van due to frustration.
On a phone call, hit reverse; now the guy at the other end thinks I hung up.
Using the map for directions; phone rings at a critical point and the map is gone.
Yeh. After a few weeks use, it's got downsides. Mine plays music (or radio) while displaying maps, the problem is changing sound loudness, or changing stations or playlist. Multiple precision screen touches. Bad.

SATNAV is great, but screen operations conflict with other duties. Like driving. :bash:

Absent steering wheel controls, speech input would be best.

Anyone using Google Auto? If my phone can control the unit by voice, then the problems might go away.
 

ECU

2006 T1n 118 Sprinter
I currently use G Auto. Simply to get the podcasts to autoplay.
The default screen shows current podcast and below that, the last phone call.
Due to the phone being in my shirt pocket, it fails to 'detect pocket' quite a bit.
Thus, my nipple presses redial. Connecting me to the spam caller that rang in a couple hours back.
Thus I hate it. whenever possible, I kill it asap.
Having a more simple radio, it has forward and backward settings. Another issue of GA is that I have to kill it to get to the podcast playlist.
 

Andrew Claycomb

New member
A big problem with a display that does it all is that it only does one thing at a time.
I pulled one out of my van due to frustration.
On a phone call, hit reverse; now the guy at the other end thinks I hung up.
Using the map for directions; phone rings at a critical point and the map is gone.
The reverse camera/audio cutting out problem can be fixed in the factory settings, but the poor Chinese to English translations in that part of the menu take a lot of time to figure out. My reverse sensing wire no longer "senses" reverse, so I had to go into that menu to place an on screen camera button, and it's definitely clunky.
 

Andrew Claycomb

New member
Here's an interesting development with Binize's customer service. They are refunding all of my money in exchange for the deletion of my 2 star review on Amazon. They sent $200, minus PayPal's ~$10 international fee, and I don't have to send back the broken unit. The assumption was that I would order another unit, rather than wait 30 days for a replacement to ship from China. This was after I again told them that I wasn't going to write a fake 5 star review.

So now that it's all said and done, I paid $10 for a somewhat functioning, but still defective stereo. A USB mouse will control everything except for the volume, which is still lame, but at least usable. ...A 7" Pioneer flip out is probably in my future.
 
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owner

Oz '03 316CDI LWB ex-Ambo Patient Transport
Yep. These no-name android headunits have always been dodgey. I wouldn't recommend unless you are well versed at hacking android (or knowing where to look) to get it to do what you want. So far the best info on hacking these for better functionality is coming out of Russia lol.

It wouldn't be so bad if mainstream headunit manufacturers made android units that weren't locked down so intensely they would give Steve Jobs' corpse an erection. The android phone market matured reasonably quickly to allow users a bit of freedom, but the mainstream headunit game has resisted it for over 10 years now and counting

And I'm simply not going to be paying a grand for a headunit, ever. So this $70 falsely advertised POS will have to do. At least now they are very cheap even for what they are, have reasonable specs (even the real specs) and a responsive capacitive touch big screen with mounting suitable for T1N.

I think I can make it do everything I want it to do without too much effort. I'm still bench testing it atm. I don't really want much,
In order of usefulness to me:
  1. BT handsfree calling for my phone - seems to be fine for this.
  2. Remote buttons - still deciding what to try first but at least there are many options available.
  3. Offline music player with a good interface for a vast collection on a USB stick - I've installed poweramp and its is running fine.
  4. Radio - I hardly use it but its a must have especially in bushfire season.
  5. Offline GPS satnav as a backup if my phone is otherwise unusable - I should be able to install Sygic or similar on this.
  6. OBD2 data and alarms using Torque app - using my homemade OBD2 adapter this should be fine I'm hoping to get it working on USB.
  7. TPMS - still waiting for my budget TPMS to arrive.
  8. Reverse camera - I already have a separate LCD mounted in place of the rearview mirror, but this could be nice as a "backup".
 

Andrew Claycomb

New member
In order of usefulness to me:
  1. BT handsfree calling for my phone - seems to be fine for this.
  2. Remote buttons - still deciding what to try first but at least there are many options available.
  3. Offline music player with a good interface for a vast collection on a USB stick - I've installed poweramp and its is running fine.
  4. Radio - I hardly use it but its a must have especially in bushfire season.
  5. Offline GPS satnav as a backup if my phone is otherwise unusable - I should be able to install Sygic or similar on this.
  6. OBD2 data and alarms using Torque app - using my homemade OBD2 adapter this should be fine I'm hoping to get it working on USB.
  7. TPMS - still waiting for my budget TPMS to arrive.
  8. Reverse camera - I already have a separate LCD mounted in place of the rearview mirror, but this could be nice as a "backup".
I’m curious to see how your hands free calling experience goes. Every time I tried it, the person on the other end would say that they could barely understand me. My walled off cargo T1N is just too noisy for the microphone. It’s fine while parked or at a stop light.

I also found the radio tuner to not have the sensitivity of the factory radio. It’s FM only, which is fine for me, but I lose stations a lot quicker when I’m driving out of the city. Fortunately the bluetooth audio capabilities make up for that.

GPS works really well for both navigation and mileage tracking apps. So well, that I’ve grown dependent on them for my work, and that’s the part that makes it tough to trash it and start over.
 

owner

Oz '03 316CDI LWB ex-Ambo Patient Transport
I’m curious to see how your hands free calling experience goes. Every time I tried it, the person on the other end would say that they could barely understand me. My walled off cargo T1N is just too noisy for the microphone. It’s fine while parked or at a stop light.
I haven't tried it in the van yet but my van is really well sound insulated. Our Russians friends (use google translate) have modded these because the microphone is apparently crap. They soldered in a pin-compatible microphone from a mobile phone in place of the stock one and its much better.

Also further down that post, putting a simple RF shield (aka piece of foil) over the radio IC and components made radio reception way better.
 
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glasseye

Well-known member
FWIW, my unit suffers poor FM reception, too. If some kind of steering wheel-like controls can be implemented, then it’s a keeper.

Otherwise... :idunno:
 

kite

Active member
I installed a similar (Joying) Android head unit last year. I splurged for one with better specs and a cell connection so I can stream media and get live maps/traffic without tethering to my phone. Despite having to work some kinks out, it sounds like the extra bit of money I spent saved me from many of the headaches you all have experienced. A year in I'm glad I did it.

Steering wheel controls are critical. Mine doesn't have any permanent buttons, the entire screen is a touch screen. It was annoying to do things like change the volume with a sensitive touch screen slider bar, so I added a cheap set of aftermarket steering wheel controls that allow me to do the basics (volume, track, home, back, maps, etc). 10 buttons, you can program them to do anything you want (Within reason). The only annoying thing is I have to reprogram the functions occasionally. The buttons need to be pretty close to the receiver. I have the receiver mounted behind the empty slots to the right of the gear shift. One set of the controls is on the steering wheel and I put a second set on the passenger door arm rest (two sets working fine with one receiver).

This is similar to what I bought (different brand name but they look exactly the same).

PolarLander Universal Wireless Car Steering Wheel Controller 4 Key Music DVD GPS Navigation Steering Wheel Radio Remote Control Buttons Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q5XLL4C/ref=cm_sw_r_em_apa_fab_v-YFFbHETMZSV
 

owner

Oz '03 316CDI LWB ex-Ambo Patient Transport
Installed it today. Now the real testing begins.
IMG_20201102_124335.jpg

The main problem so far is the fader doesn't work. So the front speakers max out pretty easily with no way to restrict output to them. I might put an amp in the now empty 1DIN slot to drive the rears.
 
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owner

Oz '03 316CDI LWB ex-Ambo Patient Transport
Aaaaannnnd its gone.

It worked Ok for the most part but...

Turns out the Bluetooth on these is really restricted. I couldn't pair it with anything I wanted to - TPMS and my OBD2 adapter. It just wont pair to anything other than a phone.

Also USB didnt work with my OBD2 adapter because the Android version is a lie. I did get wifi working with my OBD2 adapter, but its not really a critical feature as I already have a small Torque dashboard dispaly.

So the only real advantage over my old Sony 1DIN setup was the ability to run poweramp and navigate through my music collection from USB.

Everything else I can do on my phone. I can even run poweramp on my phone and output that and control it from my Sony. So that advantage was marginal at best.

Also the sound quality is way better on my Sony and the fader actually works. Fader is important on T1N because the front speakers are so small.
 

glasseye

Well-known member
Aaaaannnnd its gone.

It worked Ok for the most part but...

Turns out the Bluetooth on these is really restricted. I couldn't pair it with anything I wanted to - TPMS and my OBD2 adapter. It just wont pair to anything other than a phone.

Also USB didnt work with my OBD2 adapter because the Android version is a lie. I did get wifi working with my OBD2 adapter, but its not really a critical feature as I already have a small Torque dashboard dispaly.

So the only real advantage over my old Sony 1DIN setup was the ability to run poweramp and navigate through my music collection from USB.

Everything else I can do on my phone. I can even run poweramp on my phone and output that and control it from my Sony. So that advantage was marginal at best.

Also the sound quality is way better on my Sony and the fader actually works. Fader is important on T1N because the front speakers are so small.
I’m leaning the same way. Touchscreen function is crucial in an automotive application and the touchscreen on my unit is suboptimal. “Distracted driving“ is something I don’t need, despite the pretty map imagery.
 

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