Pioneer is one of the well known manufacturers of audio products and one of the products they offer is car audio systems. In this age where the car audio system have moved on from being analogue to digital, the next frontier has always been the integration of smartphone functions in these systems.
This is what Pioneer is aiming to do with their new products for the year 2017. Starting with the Pioneer AVH-X8850BT, this has support for both Apple’s Car Play and Google’s Android Auto. The AVH-X8850BT has a 7 inch WVGA (800×480) touch display that you will use when you’re navigating using Car Play or Android Auto.
If you are not aware of Car Play, it is Apple’s way of letting you use your iOS device safely while commuting. It allows you to make phone calls, ask for directions, listen to music and also send and receive messages while on the go. The Pioneer X8850BT supports CarPlay and it will support iPhone 5 and later.
Google’s Android Auto is the company’s way of letting you use your phone while you are driving. Just like Carplay, you will be able to use Google Maps, listen to music, make phone calls, send texts or using voice commands to query Google for anything.
Pioneer also has the App Radio Live app. This is an app available on both the App Store and the Google Play Store which will allow you to listen to music, check the weather or find nearby events.
The next app revealed by Pioneer is the Pioneer Arc (Advanced Remote Control) which is also available on the App Store and Play Store. The app’s core function is to turn your Android smartphone or iPhone into a “touchscreen remote” so that you can do stuff like browse your favourite music, customize the illumination colours (more than 200,000 colours) or access third party apps (Spotify or Maps). You can also optimize the sound in the car within the app where you can draw an EQ curve to your taste. Pioneer ARC is compatible with all models of Pioneer car audio sets and all you need to do is download the app and connect either via Bluetooth or USB.
Other products by Pioneer include the DEH-X1952UB which they say is their first car audio system that features “dual illumination”, the EQ-6500V2 car equalizer and the GM-D9605 amplifier. There is also a compact tweeter (TS-S20C), which you’ll definitely see being used especially by matatus, taxis and the likes.
You can check out the various specifications of the above products by visiting the Pioneer website here.
