Android Unit Installed

[KLR X5M]

My 4g/LTE works prefect no issues

[SupersixM]

Who here bought their SD625 unit from Avinusa?

[kasb58]

Hello, I am considering the purchase of a MMI or Android head unit but as I research this more, it is not clear if I will be able to use Android Auto(MMI route) or a Android head unit and still use Sirius XM radio at the same time. If this unit requires setting the source to AUX front, I don't see how they would work together. Can you confirm? Thank you.

cheers

[ekological]

I believe you are correct in that's how the android audio is piped into the factory system, so you wouldn't be able to hear Waze nav on carplay while also listening to Sirius. For someone like my friend who managed to get a lifetime subscription to sirium back in the day, this was a deal breaker. Sure, you can probably install the sirius app on the android and use that, but then you're using your data plan and cell service might be spotty in some areas where you don't get that with satellite.

Originally Posted by kasb58

Hello, I am considering the purchase of a MMI or Android head unit but as I research this more, it is not clear if I will be able to use Android Auto(MMI route) or a Android head unit and still use Sirius XM radio at the same time. If this unit requires setting the source to AUX front, I don't see how they would work together. Can you confirm? Thank you.

cheers

[icebluu1980]

I'm sorry to say this guys, but this unit is far from Plug'n'Play if you want to keep the best of your stock functionality while gaining maximum value from the Android Head unit.

Let me shed some light on what I mean:

1. Microphone - the one in the Android Head unit is really bad and you'll want to use BMW original mic. For this, you need to open up the head unit and desolder the mic. Worse case just cut the cables.
2. Bluetooth - make sure NOT to use the Bluetooth in your Android (can be done via settings)
3. Completely disconnect AUX from the harness and cover the connectors with electrical tape
4. Do not use the speaker that came with the unit if you have one from factory (for voice commands)
5. Do NOT connect the GPS that came with the head unit. Buy a Fakra extension cable and use BMW GPS
6. For advanced users - these units can be rooted so make sure to do that to unlock all the cool features. Make sure you know what you're doing
7. Do NOT install Magisk root or Viper4Android - you'll brick your head unit.

Happy to share details on how to achieve the above. This way you don't need to sacrifise any of the good stuff you have when adding Android to your car.

[SupersixM]

And any help and all info can be found in the f30Bimmerpost section:
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/fo...play.php?f=426

And in the DISCORD channel :
AUTOMOTIVE ANDROID HEADUNITS


Feel free to introduce yourself to the community and ask any question you need help with concerning 10.25 Android headunits. They have all the latest firmware and MCUs updates from multiple vendors.

[KLR X5M]

Thanks for sharing that post! I've updated the MCU, OS software, added a fiio k3 USB DAC, and the mmi keyboard from red Eric, and learned a bunch of great tips. Very happy with the updated config

[Blewx5m]

Is anyone having issues with Google Chrome on their headunit? What is the best app for screen mirroring?

[KLR X5M]

Originally Posted by Blewx5m

Is anyone having issues with Google Chrome on their headunit? What is the best app for screen mirroring?

I use "headunit reloaded" app for seamless android auto experience. I do not see why you need screen mirroring when native apps work on the unit directly.

[Blewx5m]

Originally Posted by KLR X5M

I use "headunit reloaded" app for seamless android auto experience. I do not see why you need screen mirroring when native apps work on the unit directly.

I understand what you are saying... I don't use it either but when my daughter wants to watch something on DisneyPlus the only idea I have is to screen mirror it and the app I was using was screen mirror app which makes you go to their website which provides a qr code and you use your phone to connect to it..it worked well until I couldn't update Chrome on my headunit... Are there better ways doing this?

[KLR X5M]

Can you not install the disney plus apk on the unit itself? I am running netflix an prime apps on the unit directly and have a 4g sim in it for direct data.

[Blewx5m]

Originally Posted by KLR X5M

Can you not install the disney plus apk on the unit itself? I am running netflix an prime apps on the unit directly and have a 4g sim in it for direct data.

I'm not really knowledgeable in the computer world and I'm trying to read up on Apk installer... I never tried it

[Blewx5m]

Originally Posted by KLR X5M

Can you not install the disney plus apk on the unit itself? I am running netflix an prime apps on the unit directly and have a 4g sim in it for direct data.

Hey KLR thanks for the tip! Disney plus runs perfectly! I cannot find the right Netflix file which one are you using?

[KLR X5M]

This one works for me
https://www.apkmirror.com/apk/netfli...-apk-download/

[Blue By You]

I get the gist of all this. But you techies might as well be talking Greek to me. I wish that someone would come here and wave a magic wand so POOF I would have screen mirroring of my phone and all of that technojargon you're all talking about!

[Blewx5m]

Originally Posted by KLR X5M

This one works for me
https://www.apkmirror.com/apk/netfli...-apk-download/

Thanks KLR.. It worked!

[Blewx5m]

Did anyone successfully install Hulu on their headunit? I tried a bunch of versions on Apk mirror n apk pure and no luck

[Pseudo Nim]

Oops, posted a question then found this thread, smart me

How is the sound quality if you have the fiber optic sound system? Do you use the usual optical splitter box with RCA cables to the Android unit so basically converting to 2-channel? How’s the sound?

[edit] also, the unit from the seller in this thread seems to be almost 2X the price of “comparable” units on Aliexpress. Any particular reason? Are they better built / have more functions included / etc?

[ThatKasper]

Originally Posted by SupersixM

Every so often you learn something new about these units. So apparently for those that came in the game early, or depending on where you got yours from, theres certain glitches that are fixed with later MCU builds and firmware updates. Or if you figure out IFTTTs then you're good. Like in my case (and others) , when I use waze or google maps, I gets NO sounds alert etc. But volume of music drops as if an alert was made but I just couldn't hear it. You have to start the music app that came with the unit first, turn on Waze etc turn off music app ,then do whatever like spotify YouTube etc....unbelievable. Nothing that tasker cant do but , unbelievable.


Shout out to the F30 section. They have over 150 pages on this unit. Too much to learn

Just got my Avin Android system installed in my F85. It's the 10.25" Multimedia Navigation System for BMW X5 X6 Series F15 F16 F85 (SKU: BAVF15A-1025-AUXSPLTR) for those looking for the exact unit. I opted for the upgraded Snapdragon so I could have the 1920 x 720P, so worth it! It was a self-install, nothing overly complicated other than making sure you pull the optic cables & move them to the Avin harness. It's only been in for a few days but so far I'm loving the touchscreen option, the screen resolution & zero issues with sound quality. As far as not being able to hear Nav audio, the Avin harness comes with a small speaker dedicated solely to Nav that you can mount wherever you like & adjust that volume. Now my stereo doesn't constantly kill the music when it rambles a long street name or succession of turn instructions. I have the speaker mounted just on the underside of dash near my feet.

Only thing that's still unclear though is how the AUX cable is used. If I never plan on using the AUX port from my phone does it matter that I don't run a long AUX cable all the way from my unit to the center console under the arm rest? Seems like a lot of work and a waste of space by sticking a cable into the AUX port in the console if there's no use for it. Which leads me to:

Why does my radio/OEM USB/internal hard drive cut out when I move from the iDrive menu over to Android & start browsing Apps? Seems you can't play the OEM installed Sirius radio or the tunes you already have loaded on the OEM drive while also using android apps on the other side. I suspect it has something to do with the AUX because sometimes when I start my vehicle the input menu pops up & I see that it has switched itself to AUX even though I have it turned to manual in Android System settings.

And yeah, the F30 section probably has just about everything you need to know about these units but there's no organization to it at all...good luck finding that needle in a haystack when you're searching for something specific like mine. There's either nothing from a search or there's a 100 replies about things that aren't relevant to my issue. I feel if I tack on my specific question I'm just becoming another part of just throwing something onto a random pile of info. But they do have a Discord server that I'd suggest joining, even if you don't have a unit yet.

[ThatKasper]

Originally Posted by SupersixM

Thats pretty much my experience. My advice would be going forward to buy it Avin. There based in California so they ship from California. While they don't have 720p and only 480p, if you never had 720p you won't miss it as its still an upgrade over OEM. And it's cheaper.

OK, trying not to knock Avin too much here but make no mistake: they don't "ship from California"! I ordered mine from Avin in March 2022 & it came DHL from HK, China & took almost 2 weeks to arrive. Also they claim 24/7 "live" support based in Cali but 99% of the time you use their Live Chat feature it's just submitting a ticket & could take up to several days to get a response. A couple of times it was the very next day but still, when your dash is blown wide open & you have an install issue that real-time support sure would come in handy!

That said, you DO get support & warranty with Avin. There's no way I would've gone with an Aliexpress special just to save $100 or so. No regrets on the Avin system so far. I'm still working on tweaking things that don't seem to work but I'm 99.9% sure it's system settings & generally relearning how my display works now. Remember, you still have iDrive & the unit throws in a 2nd OS so they work side-by-side & in some cases integrated with each other so there are some gremlins to work out via configurations.

[ThatKasper]

Originally Posted by SupersixM

Who here bought their SD625 unit from Avinusa?

Late reply but I did.

[Bobby_Drake]

Considering the Avin unit. Does your B&O sound quality gets compromised?