Pioneer Car Entertainment 2009 Preview

Following is a rundown of new audio head units unveiled by Pioneer Electronics in terms of connectivity.

They’re trying hard to convince consumers they really care about the connectivity issue this year, but they’ve lied so far; everything is still IP-based. Seems like they ain’t gonna bury the dead technology unless it rots.

The Interactive Pioneer Bus is very old, and limits head units’ flexibility a great deal. Everything including head units should operate digitally, and the needs for an interactive digital port is undeniable. What Pioneer engineers should keep in mind is their heads are less supportive than a today’s midrange “European” mobile phone in terms of connectivity!

The “carputer” or “car PC” concept declares heads should operate flexibly like a laptop, or at least a mobile phone; they need to be able to interact with everything possible, including optical media, removable storage (flash memory and portable hard disk drives), Bluetooth devices, Wi-Fi, USB, GPS, A/V, and also (high-end) external amplifiers in the sense of information (amp current/voltage/temperature) and configuration. Why should toggling an amp from normal to hi-current mode drag everyone (even the richest audiophile) to the trunk with a mini screwdriver in hand? Does it require rocket science to toggle that right from the head unit using a checkbox (only if future amps support remote configuration)? What about a streamlined steering remote standard? -That’s definitely rocket science!

Some might say that head would cost a fortune, but does the term “add-on” ring a bell? One should be able to buy an add-on to support removable storage, but the vague IP-based CD-UB100 is not the answer: That’s not a proper removable storage support, when it’s too expensive (because it’s got its own decoder, while head’s got one), audio transfer is not digital, text (file/folder name) support is lame, capacity, file system and partitioning support is a disaster. Same story’s with Bluetooth (CD-BT200), iPod (CD-IB100II), AUX (CD-RB20), sat-nav, A/V…

But then that’d cost them (head unit tech moguls like Pioneer, Alpine, Clarion, Kenwood, Sony, Eclipse) a fortune, because that head doesn’t need replacement every year or every once in a while when something new comes along! Someone remember changing their PC just to support MP3 back in the 90s?! They don’t like enduring stuff; lasting standards cuts their benefits. They evilly carve plastic molds everywhere in concealed parts just to save a few cents, how come connectible heads are expected?!

The revealed 2009 head units so far, ranging from mid to bottom, include:

• DEH-P4150UB with USB direct connection and built-in front aux-in connection
• DEH-4150SD with USB direct connection, built-in SD memory card slot, and built-in front aux-in connection
• DEH-3100UB with USB direct connection and built-in front aux-in connection
• DEH-3150UB with USB direct connection and built-in front aux-in connection
• DEH-2100IB with direct connection for iPod and built-in front aux-in connection
• DEH-2150UB/DEH-2150UBG with USB direct connection and built-in front aux-in connection
• DEH-2100 with USB direct connection and built-in front aux-in connection
• DEH-1150MP/DEH-1150MPG* with built-in front aux-in connection

Note: MPG is not to be confused for something with MPEG support, that G stands for “green”, then it’s not to be mistaken with a green product, a tree-hugger, but implicating their green backlight!

2009 high-end and top models aren’t introduced yet. The DEH-P4150UB is the only one with an IP-Bus input (which makes it able of supporting another auxiliary, BT, or a CD-changer), and all models’ CD-A signal-to-noise ratio are rated at 94 dB (1 kHz, IEC-A Network) with regards to quality.

DEH-P4150UB/DEH-4150SD/DEH-3100UB: iPod and Software Versions Operable with Headunit

• iPod fifth generation 1.3.0
• iPod nano first generation 1.3.1
• iPod nano second generation 1.1.3
• iPod nano third generation 1.1.2
• iPod classic 1.1.2
• iPod touch 2.0
• iPhone 2.0
• iPhone 3G 2.0

DEH-2100IB: iPod and Software Versions Operable with Headunit

• iPod fourth generation 3.1.1
• iPod photo 1.2.1
• iPod fifth generation 1.3.0
• iPod mini 1.4.1
• iPod nano first generation 1.3.1
• iPod nano second generation 1.1.3
• iPod nano third generation 1.1.2
• iPod classic 1.1.2
• iPod touch 1.1.4

DEH-4150SD: SD Memory Card Formats and Features for Playback

• Applicable logomarks: SD, SDHC, miniSD, miniSDHC, microSD and microSDHC
• Maximum memory capacity: 16 GB
• File system: FAT16/FAT32
• Decoding format: MP3 MPEG-1/-2 Audio Layer-3, WMA 7/7.1/8/9/10/11 2-channel audio, AAC iTunes MPEG-4 version 7.7 and earlier versions, WAV Linear PCM, MS ADPCM (non-compressed)
• Text data: 64 characters of file/folder name
• Functions: FF/REV, scan (file/folder), pause, repeat (file/folder), random play (file/folder)

Nokia N97: An N-Series Communicator

This article is a review of Nokia N97, specifically in comparison with Nokia E90 Communicator.

Overview

Expected to release in the second quarter of 2009, the N97 touchphone still offers the good-old-days Carl Zeiss 5 megapixel camera, which is not a shame for a Communicator. But despite its Communicator form factor and styling, because it’s got an N badge and its model number starts with the top number 9, it’s expected to be a cure to the N96 disaster. Well, it isn’t.

It’s packed with goodies like proximity sensor, but the lack of an 8-megapixel camera and the absence of a xenon flash is not acceptable for a flagship cellphone in 2009. I mean look at the N95 the day it was announced, it was truly a flagship model, packed with all the technologies a consumer’s money could buy, it was really “what computers have become”, but both the N96 and N97 are designed to be illegitimate children. Nokia’s roadmap is diverted to hell, right after the lunch of the successful N95. These are truly mass-market products, something just to come and go, while they should focus on making something to be remembered, just like the N95. That’s exactly what Apple has done with their lame iPhone.

Look at the N96, the renewed N81 8GB, have you ever asked an owner and heard anything other than “the TV is cool!” (referring to the DVB-H feature)? What they say should read “paying $700 (€550) for a handheld TV is cool”!

The Nokia N97 will be available in two colors; white with a flashy chrome bezel, targeted for iTards planning to replace their Apple iPhone (wrong, no iTard would ever buy anything non-Apple), and brown, targeted for those planning to replace their Nokia E90 Communicator. This leaves people owning Nokia N95 8GB (and even Nokia N95) with no “Nokia” replacement choices so far.

Conclusion

As a freshened E90 Communicator then, it’s a lame step forward; the camera’s better (sadly not 8-meg with xenon), the stereo speakers are optimally placed in the front left and right, the screen dimension ratio is properly 16:9 (sadly not multi-touch), the battery performance is spectacular (although both are rated 1500 mAh nominal), it’s got proximity (auto-turn-off) and accelerometer (auto-rotate) sensors, it’s got faster CPU and bigger memory, it’s packed with TV out and RDS FM tuner, it uses a more optimal form factor and doesn’t look like a brick, it’s way lighter, and it’s cheaper.