 Truly the current pinnacle of Mobile Navi-tainment! |
| Review Date: March 17, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Christopher Stiphout, US Naval Aviator |
I purchased this item a few days ago and installed it myself. Let me start with a whole-hearted I LOVE IT!
Ok, details.
The Installation
I am not new to car stereo installs, and I thought this install was pretty easy, if longer than most. But then, there's about 5 times as much to set up, so no surprise there. I am assuming you know how to snake wires/cables all throughout your vehicle, from the battery under the hood to under your seats to the white reverse lights on the back of your car. If you've got that down, the hardest part is really just figuring out which wire on your ECU is the vehicle speed-pulse line. Other than that, it's all just busy work; a splice here, a t-tap there, and you're done!
It is a *lot* of wires, though. (Hey, what did you expect?) :)
The Video
Amazingly enough, it's visible in daylight, only becoming unwatchable in direct sunlight! The screen's display is adjustable enough such that it can be viewed in nearly any angle, and the "Wide" button even allows you to select a "zoom" level such that any movie you own will use as much (or little) of the screen as you want.
The Audio
While not as customizable or pro-audio as my last deck, the Pioneer DEH-960MP, I actually like the sound out of this one better. I still have a little tuning to do on my amps for the mids and lows, but the highs are much crisper than I could ever get out of my last deck.
The Navigation
I have no basis for comparison, but after playing with this thing for an hour or so, I had it all down pat; it's pretty easy and intuitive. As far as usefulness, well, it's gotten me around areas I already know very well with plenty of skill, so I'm confident that when I try to navigate someplace I don't know that I will be just fine.
Gripes
The intelligence of the unit in figuring out if you're moving or not is too good. I've heard about and think I like the AVIC-N1's relatively dumb parking-brake sensor better. I know it's illegal (and really just plain dumb) to watch a DVD while driving. But what about my passengers? I have the self-control to just not look at the screen, but now I don't even have that choice; the AVIC-N2 watches the speed (and, I'm thinking, its accellerometers, too) to know when I'm moving, and it blacks out the A/V, no matter how much little Billy was enjoying "The Incredibles."
(Here's a hint, though; plug the rear-display video output that's meant for an extra LCD mounted in the back seat into the rear camera video input. Then whenever you want to see a video up front while the vehicle is in motion, just view the rear-camera. Granted, it's squished to plain-old TV 4:3 because the nav map snippet still shows on the left, but it's better than nothing!)
Also, the IP-Bus is pretty much useless for some older components. Verify that any IP-Bus components you want to buy work with the AVIC-N2 before buying them! I had a Delphi XM tuner installed in my car and hooked up to my Pioner DEH-960MP and it worked wonderfully. On the AVIC-N2, I could get the audio over the IP-Bus via the "Aux" source, but I have no controls... I don't know about you, but having my XM Radio stuck on Channel 53 for the rest of eternity isn't acceptable. The newer XM tuners from Pioneer do work, though; I also bought their XM NavTraffic tuner. It hasn't arrived yet, but I'm willing to bet that it works and will be very, very cool.
Overall
This thing has got a coolness factor of, well... let me put it this way: After getting all this installed (I have an iPod and a PS2 hooked up to it, too... ) I have decided that I'm just plain the coolest person I know.
Party in my car, you're invited... :D |
Nearly perfect... all in one solution...
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| Review Date: September 13, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Ray R. Salazar, USA |
Well, after reading all the reviews I could find, I decided to take the leap and pay the extra $ for this leading edge unit. Nothing is perfect, but this unit comes very very close to fulfilling all of its promise.
After having saved a good amount of $ on my new SUV, I decided to have the best all-in-one entertainment and navigation solution I could find.
I purchased the Pioneer AVIC-N2 based on quite a review of existing products. My needs: Satelite Radio, reliable navigation, integration with backup camera, DVD entertainment, and support for IPod.
I think several of the other reviews are so negative simply because people had not done their homework, and had expectations which were unatainable.
In any case, this unit delivers everything I needed, though I could wish for better IPod integration (not same experience as Apple's interface). DVD entertainment can be enjoyed by everyone behind the driver (and copilot). Given that it's illegal in most states to have a DVD visible to the driver, it's simply foolish to expect first row viewing. I can listen to XM, or IPod, and utilize a very well integrated traffic / navigation solution. I believe one of the other viewers complained about incessant messages being displayed on the Navigation screen. That's because they didn't have the unit setup correctly, with the traffic option. Assuming that you are going to use the navigation to its best capabilty, you have to make use of the traffic subscription ($4 addition to the standard XM subscription). This is well worth the money, let me tell you. The backup camera displays when in reverse, or in a slightly smaller screen in 'full-time' mode.
Overall, I'm very happy, and am not disappointed one bit with my choice. If you need an all-in-one solution, then consider the Pioneer AVIC-N2 as a top contender. This unit delivers everything Pioneer says it can. |
Very good unit
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| Review Date: March 23, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Damien D. Grandberry, |
| I love this unit. Its awesome in every way possible. the navigation is super the quality of the dvd player is good and is sounds good for cd play. I still have to figure out the sounds curves but it a real good unit. i need to find a second unit for my Tahoe |
Practically Perfect!
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| Review Date: December 14, 2005 |
| Reviewer: JC, Illinois |
I recently moved to the northeast and decided that I would pay a little more for this system with the hope that it would do at least half of the things that it said it would.
And I was very pleased, as it does everything it is supposed to.
I didn't install my system, but it didn't take long for it to get done, and now it is perched next to me as my ticket anywhere.
So far, I have had flawless directions to places in Providence, RI (a city filled with confusing, one way streets), Boston, New York, and all points in between.
I no longer am afraid to take the plunge and find a new restaurant, or whatever, because I just get the address and my little friend tells me where to go.
I have never had a problem with the screen or working the unit or anything. I don't think that I could ever get lost again.
Yes, this is much more than many GPS systems, BUT I truly believe that you will be happy with your decision if you decide to fork over the extra dough.
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97% of the way there!
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| Review Date: February 8, 2006 |
| Reviewer: DJK, Double Oak, TX United States |
This is my first built in GPS unit. I have used Delorme and Microsoft Streets & Trips 2006 on a laptop for years. I took the plunge and purchased the AVIC-N2 for my new 2006 Pathfinder.
First let me say that having a built in GPS is so much better than getting the laptop out. However there are a few things that I was REALLY surprised that the AVIC-N2 does not do.
First off, I was surprised that I had to keep the MAP DVD in the unit to get detailed updates. While the unit does have the ability to read your route into memory, if you change the route or want to search, you have to re-insert the MAP DVD. With the cost of hard drives, I'm not sure why the DVD is not read into the unit and stored.
Next the selection of the route or the addition of waypoints by touching the screen is not as easy as it looks, and there are errors in the data that I would love to see Pioneer open a way to allow users to update the maps and post that information back to the website for future releases (ie roads that you can actually turn on and yet require you to go in the opposite direction for a half a mile only to make a U turn).
Outside of the GPS I was REALLY disappointed that the Radio function does not scroll the station name, artist and song title that most new radio's do. I see that in the XM function that you can repeatedly press the PGM button to get this information on XM but would love to see it scroll automatically and that same function available in FM. I also don't understand why in the N2 that XM radio stations are not LISTED and that when you save one to your preferences that the button does not change to the channel number and remains P1, P2 P3... where as the AM/FM radio buttons change to display the station name.
Last as far as playing a DVD in the unit while driving. While I do not like NOT having this ability, I do understand it's distraction and yet would like to see in the future that all FUNCTIONS be enabled as you can have a passenger perform these functions while driving.
Is it worth the cost, well not when you consider that a laptop program only costs 100.00 but at the same time it sure is nice having this built into the vehicle.
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