Las Vegas – Pioneer’s car
electronics division is expanding its selection of aftermarket AppRadio in-dash
head units, which use the iPhone as their main source of in-car content.
The company is also extending AppRadio
compatibility to the growing number of Android
smartphones equipped with a Mobile High Definition Link (MHL) port or micro
HDMI port.
The company’s first AppRadio head unit, introduced last
year at $399, is a double-DIN AM/FM RDS head unit that lacks CD player but
features 6.1-inch WVGA capacitive touchscreen and iPod/iPhone-compatible USB
port to control and display an iPhone’s stored music, video, photos, contacts,
and calendar items, deliver hands-free Bluetooth calling, and control multiple
Internet-connected AppRadio-compatible apps running on the Apple device.
In other smartphone-connectivity advances, Pioneer is adopting
Advanced App Mode in select car-A/V head units and in-dash A/V-navigation
systems, enabling them to stream and control audio and video from AppRadio-compatible
apps running on the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S smartphones when the vehicle is in
park and the hand brake is engaged.
Pioneer will continue to offer multiple head units with
App Mode, which lets the head units access streaming multimedia content on
iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S from Safari, YouTube and other select apps but doesn’t
deliver head-unit control of the apps.
In other aftermarket car
electronics launched, the company is expanding built-in HD Radio to eight head
units (three A/V head units, four CD
receivers, and one navigation system).
It is also expanding the
selection of Internet-based services apps that can be controlled from a head
unit. The company offered control of Pandora Internet radio and Aha in last
year’s lineup. The expanded capability appears in new navigation systems, all A/V
receivers, and four of seven new single-CD receivers.
Pioneer is introducing a sound-quality-focused high-end single-CD player and a
matching full range class-D amplifier.
Also in the
2012 lineup, the company
will offer Bluetooth in 70 percent of its in-dash head units, including four A/V
head units, three CD receivers and two navigation systems. Supported Bluetooth profiles include
hands-free calling, stereo streaming, Audio Video Remote Control Profile
(AVRCP) for head-unit control of basic smartphone entertainment functions, and
Secure Simple Pairing (SSP) to simplify the pairing process without using PIN
codes.
