Ive been looking at double din navigation units for a couple days now and this one seems to be pretty good. I know it doesnt have a dvd player but i have a ipod video so videos arent a problem. my main concern with this unit is am i able to listen to music as i use the gps or does the gps completely cut out everything so you can hear the directions? any other input on this unit is greatly accepted as well. Feel free to consider another dd nav unit as well, just keep in mind i dont have all that much money.

 

this unit (and series) is a piece of crap, stay far away. just search google and you will find a plethora of bad reviews, just poor poor design/interface, man I could go on and on. And if anyone says the updates fixed all the issues, they're full of it!! it didnt really fix anything.

 

I bought one of these well aware of the past issues and changes after the fix.. For the price (under 400) it has alot of features and is decent, but yes there are still a few issues you have to deal with. I mainly just use mine to listen to FM Radio and MP3s off a 16GB SDHC Mem Card and it performs those basic functions well. The controls / navigating the screens can be a pain once in awhile. I dont like when u flip back out of a folder on SD Card it goes to the top of the listing and you have to scroll back down. I dont like how if you turn the car off while listening to SDCard, it takes longer to boot up and also it will not resume your place on the song it just restarts the song all over again.. Every now and then I use the Nav and for the most part no major issues but every now and then it has lead me the wrong way or told me to turn where there is no freakin street to turn onto..I've also driven on roads that dont show up on the Nav..
**To answer your question: While using Nav, it will mute out the music while it speaks directions to you..
If you want a good unit w/ the same features that works better you will have to pay double the price...so pick your poison.. It is an OK budget/starter system if you can deal w/ the minor issues.. and Finally, there are past threads about this product as well, so be sure to use the search function..

 

well thanks for the heads ups. any ideas for another unit?

 

I had one for about 2 months.Overall,very below average and I personally wouldnt recommend it to anyone.I switched to an Eclipse unit and its night and day.If youre on a budget look at the Eclipse AVN 52d/5510.Very nice for the price.

 

I considered the Pioneer unit (F90BT), but decided against it because of the reasons listed above. I searched many different forums about the Pioneer and was extremely close to purchasing it.

I ended up getting the Kenwood DNX-6140. I installed it 3 days ago. Searched like mad for issues, and nothing signifcant yet. Im just having trouble with the bluetooth pairing to my phone, but other phones worked perfect. It basically has all the same features as the Pioneer. Ipod hook up controlled through the headunit, Parrot Bluetooth, and Garmin Navigation all built in. Basically everything you could want.

Also the Eclipse headunit seems to be pretty good as well from what I have read so far.

 

Also Pioneer just updated the entire F-series line over the weekend. 3 totally new and updated models. Hopefully they were able to fix all the problems the current models have.

 

For what it's worth, Pioneer also came out with an update for the firmware and new maps recently, too. 3.0, I think. Don't know what the fixes are if any, but it lists for $130.

 

i went from a Z2, to the F90BT (pre-update), Kenwood DNX8120, and now back to an updated F90BT temporarily. I couldn't stand my F90BT before the update, now that it is updated, I like it alot. Coming form someone who has owned both previous and updated ones, this unit is superior to the Z2 and the Kenwood, which was the worse of all of them.

 

I have the AVIC-F700BT and I couldn't be more happy with it. As long as it has the 2.0 update you won't have many problems. I got mine for $375 off Amazon, and for the price it really can't be beat. I've had no major hiccups, everything works how it's supposed to on my unit.

 

3.0 update in July for the current F-series owners. I have one (F900)and haven't had a problem, not anymore than any other system.

 

I am about to ditch pioneer navigation all together... The routing on this always gets me lost and i end up using my phone navigtaion which is a hundred times better. As far as in car entertainment it is great but if you really need a true GPS system Pioneer is Garbage.... Can anyone recomend a better gps system?

 

does anybody know where can i download 3.0 firmware software for avic f

 

um, its not free, you have to buy it from the pioneer site. I think it's currently at $70. It definitely improved my f90.

also, when you own a pioneer navi, avic411.com is a great friend to have...

 

the firmware update is free off of pioneers website. you can load it on a sd card and update your unit. the map update you have to buy or go to a pioneer dealer and they should load it for you. ihavent had any problems from my f900bt works great. the menus are slow sometimes but i think thats from reading my tunes i hook upo to it.

 

the older updaes were free but the 3.0 update is not, I believe it is currently ~$60 on crutchfield

 

so is that a map update?

 

map/os update, very well worth $60