Head unit swap

[joejitsumd]

Is a dash kit needed to swap out the porsche head unit for an aftermarket single din radio? I'm going to be doing my first radio install and want to make sure I have everything I need. I already bought an aftermarket radio harness as well as an antenna adaptor. I'm looking into different head units and just am not sure if I will be able to use the preexisting trim to fit with the aftermarket unit?

[BMAN_986]

No if you have a single DIN unit. Make sure you connect the brown wire to the back of the unit (or ground it) otherwise you alarm will sound when you activate it (indicating something is open).

There is a posting on pelican about it.

[Ckrikos]

I recommend a double din setup, it makes such a difference.

[ChrisZang]

What year is your Boxster?
If it's MY 2003 or higher it's much harder than you think

[joejitsumd]

its a 2001 so I think i'm okay

[markskyline]

I just did my 2000 box with a single din Alpine. Pretty straight forward. I grounded the brown wire on the left side of the oem deck for the alarm.

[joejitsumd]

Looks good!

[Johnny Danger]

Originally Posted by markskyline

I just did my 2000 box with a single din Alpine. Pretty straight forward. I grounded the brown wire on the left side of the oem deck for the alarm.

Is that an Alpine 147 ?

[BruceH]

Go with a single Din and an iPad mini!

[markskyline]

Originally Posted by Johnny Danger

Is that an Alpine 147 ?

It's the 149 actually.

Alpine Electronics of America, Inc.

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by BruceH

Go with a single Din and an iPad mini!

The Google Nexus 7 HD would be better. It comes with GPS for $240, that's $100 less than the original mini iPad and now $160 less than the new mini iPad. And the steal of a deal Nexus 7 HD has near identical pixel count as the new $400 mini. "Retina" is just marketing hype.

GPS is kind of handy in this application Apple!!

In order to get GPS on any WIFI only Apple tablet they cleverly force you have to spring $150 more for the 4G version.
Then its not really cost effective ($400 + $130 4G = $530 for only 16 GB?? No wonder Apple have more bullion than For Knox).

I use my Nexus 7 HD with a piece of velcro stuck between the cover and the cubby hole. Then I share my
smartphone's 4G signal via FoxFi. No need to pay $30 a month just to have GPS capability in the car.


To the OP, you should consider one of these FiiO (DAC) portable headphone amps. I use it with my Galaxy Note phone. Huge improvement in sound. Now I'm thinking about upgrading the dash speakers for a pair of Focals.

[BruceH]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Nexus 7 HD would be better. It comes with GPS for $240, that's $100 less than the mini iPad.

GPS is kind of handy in this application Apple!!

In order to get GPS on any WIFI only Apple tablet you have to spring $150 more for the 4G version.
Then its not really cost effective unless you can easily take it out of the car.

I use my Nexus 7 HD with a piece of velcro stuck between the cover and the cubby hole. Then I share my
smartphone's 4G signal via FoxFi. No need to pay $30 a month just to have GPS capability in the car.

That's why I bought a used, mint 64gb mini with the 4g/GPS. Price difference between WIFI only and 4g is negligible when buying used.

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by BruceH

That's why I bought a used, mint 64gb mini with the 4g/GPS. Price difference between WIFI only and 4g is negligible when buying used.

Do you hotspot/tether from your phone or do you have to carry a monthly fee?

Buying used is smart but the market for Apple products is so tight that its hard to get much of discount buying second hand.
I debated buying a used Ipad 4S for my mother but the cost didn't justify skipping the new iPad.
iPad "Air" smart cover.... $80! WTF....
I picked up a Poetic smart cover on Amazon/Ebay for $5 performs identically...

[BruceH]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Do you hotspot/tether from your phone or do you have to carry a monthly fee?

Buying used is smart but the market for Apple products is so tight that its hard to get much of discount buying second hand.
I debated buying a used Ipad 4S for my mother but the cost didn't justify skipping the new iPad.
iPad "Air" smart cover.... $80! WTF....
I picked up a Poetic smart cover on Amazon/Ebay for $5 performs identically...

I was using my jailbroken iphone as a hotspot but decided to spring for the 4g, Sprint has a 2gb deal for $14.99/month, no contract, which is enough for me. The price for used can be high, but I also see that as a benefit because I can sell my used "i" stuff for a nice price when I want to upgrade. I sold my 3 year old original iPad last year for $305 when I bought the then new iPad. I figure I can sell this Mini in a year or two and buy another used, newer mini for not much more. The key is buying smart. I bought this 64gb mini for what 32gb mini's were going for.

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by BruceH

Sprint has a 2gb deal for $14.99/month, no contract, which is enough for me.

Does it cut you off after 2gb or are you vulnearable to an overage charge?
I'd be curious to hear how they bill GPS data.

2GB for $15 is now considered a deal!? Geez.. I need to buy some Sprint stock.
I'm ripping through 8-11 GB per month on Verizon LTE and I don't think I've ever once watched a movie start to finish, certainly not a data-rich HD movie. My XM Sirius listening is pretty much limited to hour a day. The rest is simple browsing and I'm still plowing through four times the standard data contract. They are fleecing us blind.

[BruceH]

Not sure if it cuts off or not. I won't reach the 2gb most likely but I will keep an eye on it. $14.99 is pretty good compared to all of the other tablet plans. Take a look at AT&T, and Verizon which are even more. I agree it is a rip off for what you get.

[joejitsumd]

So I successfully swapped out the head unit. I was having a problem for a while in which the radio was not receiving any constant power, so all my memory settings would get erased each time the car was turned off. Turns out the aftermarket harness had the yellow and red power wires reversed so once I swapped those connections all worked fine. In doing a search I found someone else had that problem so if anyone does a head unit swap check to make sure the harness you buy is not incorrectly done.

[Shehadehd]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Does it cut you off after 2gb or are you vulnearable to an overage charge?
I'd be curious to hear how they bill GPS data.

2GB for $15 is now considered a deal!? Geez.. I need to buy some Sprint stock.
I'm ripping through 8-11 GB per month on Verizon LTE and I don't think I've ever once watched a movie start to finish, certainly not a data-rich HD movie. My XM Sirius listening is pretty much limited to hour a day. The rest is simple browsing and I'm still plowing through four times the standard data contract. They are fleecing us blind.

I have no idea how you can be running nearly 10gb of data? :O

I listen to pandora nearly 3hrs per day, five days a week. On top of that, I use the gps every new and then, FaceTime, and surf the web. I still come in under 3Gigs at the end of the month. I suppose I never watch YouTube videos or tether...

[Johnny Danger]

Originally Posted by markskyline

It's the 149 actually.

Alpine Electronics of America, Inc.

I bought an Alpine 147 from Crutchfield a couple of months ago, and it had a defective Bluetooth module from the beginning. So, I had to return it. I got a Kenwood as a replacement.