Those are nice units and I've been looking at them, but still need to do something about mounting the tablet in the dash, address the satellite radio antenna, a ground radio antenna, having a radio tuner, maybe a GPS antenna, the charge cord, dealing with BT network to utilize OBDII, etc...

 

That would be great!

If I could take my Samsung tablet out of the house and pop it into the truck and go, that would be great.

As you mentioned though, there are several obstacles that need to be over come, the ones you mentioned is just the start of it. What about a cell signal or a way to get navigation going to a new destination or route? I don't have 4G/3G on my tablet, so I would be screwed there unless I had an independent app that stored map data like my current POS Jensen head unit does now.

The Android Auto feature like The Brad has that will display Google Maps over the head unit from the phone in his pocket is pretty slick and about as close as we have gotten to seamless transition of smart devices from home to auto.

 

meh, you, we just think you need all that stuff and a screen in the dash because we are old and set in our ways.
Kids nowdays rely on their phone for all the items mentioned and 1000s more and think nothing of not having a redundant screen in the dash or even at home ( such as a TV set )

but if you do want a redundant screen such as a tablet just use a Mob Armor and mount it where ever you please.

Mob Armor

 

That Mob armor might have saved my one-week-old tablet during the rollover.

I"m different than city folk in my vehicle use, so I'm working out some solutions to the list I made.

For one, much of my driving has no radio reception - so I can live without the ground-based radio.
My portable satellite receiver can plug straight into the amp, and it has a docking port in both my boat and the truck (each with their own power and antenna). That could take care of my streaming music.
GPS in the phone works good enough for Waze and the like, so I can likely use the GPS receiver in a tablet - but I would have to use offline mapping with no 3G, 4G, or 5G. I could just use my phone for Waze and the like, leaving the tablet free to monitor the gauges.
The backup cam could be WiFi, but that sucks. Still... it's better than no backup cam. This could be a blessing in disguise, though - I have plans to put a backup cam on the back of the boat while towing. If I go IP all around, my tablet can pick and choose - or watch both at the same time.
I've been researching Bluetooth network devices, and that can get around the problem of doing audio and OBDII through the tablet at the same time.

 

One attempt..

Another one on a F150

 

we use them in off road race cars to mount and secure Ipads that we use for navagation, they are replacing the traditional Garmin GPS because they are just so much more technically capable. we use nav software that will do a virtual fly over of terrain as well as voice intergration and host client tracking and communication… anyhow, yes the MoB mounts are robust and yet simple. I have one in every vehicle for my phone and Ipad.

 

 

What are you all using for back up cameras?

 

I used this mounted on top of the bumper just below the tailgate and above the license plate. Not ideal, but did work well when we had a travel trailer. The depth perception was not as good at that angle as ones like The Brad has, but I dealt with it and it was good. I wired it to be on all the time since I have a ZF6 and didn't want to be chilling in reverse when using the camera. This also allows me to select the rear camera view going down the road or back and forth while parking as well. Several years later and thousands of miles it still works like a champ.

 

I Liked my Boyo license plate frame camera. It was invisible back there, it was metal, it was adjustable, and it gave the ideal angle for backing up to hook up to a trailer.

 

I don't tow ever so I use this.

 

I've been wanting to do this too. Looking at Kenwood 6.95IN 2DIN NAV/HD RCVR (DNX874S) and Pioneer. Which metro kit works ? I loose radio reception on all my vehicles(work but static) when I get close to home, so either cd or Sirius. Sirius will work everywhere, easy choice small monthly bill. Already did Rockford Fosgate speakers. 19 year old factory stereo has to go.

 

This unit, how does it work? Do you need to load your music to it, works off your phones' hotspot, pay subscription to have its own weefee...?

 

So it works great as a regular radio. It pretty much is just an Android tablet built as a head unit. When I want to listen to Spotify, Youtube, etc I just turn my mobile hotspot on and my headunit picks it up (wireless) and I can stream anything. I also use my navigation this way too. You can add a GPS unit to the device at extra cost, but why if you have unlimited hotspot data? I have Verizon so it is a no brainer to use it. Also they have an additional add on option for HD radio, but that is like $50. No need if you listen to Iheartradio, Spotify, etc. That is if you have unlimited hotspot data. Otherwise you will need to purchase a USB 4G device and plug it in and use that for your internet.

You can also load music to it from your USB. As mentioned before it is Android. So if you have a Google account just log into your Google account and everything links up. Now they have a newer version coming out in a couple weeks 9.0 with 4GB of ram. I would wait and get that, tbh.

 

As far as navigation, it does not have any map data on the device correct?

All of the map data is stored online and accessed via Google Maps or whatever app just like a smartphone?

Does it cache the map and route in the event 4G signal is lost?

Do you have TP or Forscan Lite installed on the device, if so how is the reconnecting each time? Is it pretty flawless or do you have to mess with it at times to sync them?

What about back up camera A/V inputs and if so, do you use that feature?

Anything you don't like about it?