AVIC U310BT Install

[schizmo]

I just installed the AVIC U310BTs in my 2009 smart car after reading that this unit would be offered as the "official" GPS upgrade on the 2010 model smarts.

They retail for about $600 but I picked up a unit on eBay for $370. Another $30 for the iPod cable and 50 bucks for the Polk Audio DB651 from Amazon plus $60 for the double din face plate, antenna connector and wiring harness delivered from our friends at Smart Madness. I paid SAI in Dallas $200 to install the whole kit and kaboodle. So the entire upgrade cost me $710, relatively cheap for so much tech.

The AVIC U310BT is supposed to satisfy the holy trinity of car audio-- GPS, Bluetooth and iPod control. Well, two out of three ain't bad for the price.

The GPS is basic but adequate. The lady in the box giving directions has a very slight flutter to her voice but she gets me there just fine. The POIs that are included in the unit are very limited. There is a hundred dollar SD card that adds 12 million POIs, but I'm waiting a few months for the price to drop before buying one.

The AVIC Feeds software allows you to customize the boot screen, button colors (I choose a slightly lighter amber than standard to match the smart car's dash illumination) and set destinations on the removable faceplate from your PC via an included cable or by SD card using a slot on the top on the faceplate. It also has a drive reporting feature that calculates your MPG, cost per mile and how your drive i.e.; sudden accelerations, etc.

The radio/CD player work great and the units puts out a lot of sound. Paired with the Polks, you will not be disappointed.

With a 120 Gig iPod, my Holy Grail has been a way to navigate through the hundreds of artists and thousands of CDs to play the tune I wanted without killing myself while driving. The aux input link that's standard in smart cars just did not cut it for me. I've found that the AVIC U310BT succeeds in allowing me to search with a minimum of clicks and twists to the exact song I wanted-- while driving! However, the confusing menus make reading the the manual a necessity to enjoy the full features of this unit. Once you "get" the menu flow, it all makes sense in some weird way and it works well.

My biggest disappointment with the unit is the software glitch with the bluetooth. About every 4 starts of the car the bluetooth hangs and will not work with my phone. It requires a faceplate reset which takes about 30 seconds then you must re-pair your phone which takes another couple of minutes. This is really the only thing that I do not like about the unit. I take a star away for the bluetooth hassle.

Pioneer AVIC units in the past have been criticized for slow boot times. On the 310BT however, the unit comes on instantly because the battery in the removable faceplate keeps it in standby when the car is off. The instant on function seems to be the culprit that somehow causes the bluetooth to hang upon occasion.

The U310BT has only been on sale since June so I expect that as more owners report this bluetooth problem to Pioneer there will be a firmware update to correct, but until then I'm not as happy as I could be.

The unit looks good in the dash of the smart. The faceplate from Smart Madness matches well. For what I paid, I'm a happy camper.

[schizmo]

THe AVIC U310BT installed with Polk Speakers. Note after market armrest.

[Napoleon12]

i have never had that prob with that unit. done 5 or 6 so far. might have to look up that prob on the pioneer dealer support page. see if i can get u a solution. over all the unit is not that bad. would have liked to see backup cam support. the menus are to simple, but its there base indash nav unit. over all its a good unit for the price.

[dovienya]

I am happy to say I also do not have that problem with the Bluetooth. However, I have read about quite a few people that do have the issue. Overall I've been pretty darn happy with the unit. My main miss is the iPod control. It works, but scrolling through all my music is more of a stoplight thing than a while driving thing. I did go through the manual, but maybe I missed something. Is there a better way to scroll through artists/albums/songs than that clunky 3 lines at the top of the display?

[schizmo]

The "LIST" button is your friend. In the iPod control mode, hit list. That takes you to the Artist, Album, Song Menu. Select one. Hit the LIST button again and you get an ABC alpha scroll.

[dovienya]

Originally Posted by schizmo

The "LIST" button is your friend. In the iPod control mode, hit list. That takes you to the Artist, Album, Song Menu. Select one. Hit the LIST button again and you get an ABC alpha scroll.

Nice! I did not know about the second press of the list button. That helps. I still wouldnt call the ipod navigation awesome however. They really should use more than the top three lines for that. It should pull up a different window that makes use of the rest of the screen. Still, having to scroll through 12 letters to find "la roux" is a lot better than having to scroll through a hundred or so artists!

[ckman9]

Originally Posted by schizmo

I just installed the AVIC U310BTs in my 2009 smart car after reading that this unit would be offered as the "official" GPS upgrade on the 2010 model smarts.

Hi, does this unit have the parking brake off = no video function?

[dovienya]

This unit doesn't do any kind of video playback.

It does have a parking brake lockout that I assume locks the touchscreen. I did not feel compelled to actually enable that however, especially since it can't play video. I thought the main point of that law had to do with video.

[ckman9]

Originally Posted by dovienya

This unit doesn't do any kind of video playback.

It does have a parking brake lockout that I assume locks the touchscreen. I did not feel compelled to actually enable that however, especially since it can't play video. I thought the main point of that law had to do with video.

On headunits with video the video player is locked but my alpine unit wont display any video function or setting because of the lock even when im parked cause the system needs a signal from the car, european cars do not have the PARK position on the gear lever like the American cars.

My Alpine touch screen unit is just a glorified mp3 player without the video function.