No Standard IPOD Interface ?

Interesting.

I'm wondering what the difference between that product and the interface coming in September will be. Perhaps only the ability to have both iPod & SAT, and also a USB connection.

Prius Team, can you shed any light on this?

 

I am finalizing my 2010 V order and my dealer knows nothing about the USB-Ipod issue. I'm not sure I understand what the cuttover date would be for ordering to insure that my Prius comes with the USB feature (order in September or order for a September build-not sure how long the lead time is)... any ideas?

 

This is a common misconception I suspect caused by the horrid FM transmitter solutions that preceded this technology. Keep in mind that Bluetooth was designed as a wireless replacement for USB connections and was done so with connection quality, range, and security in mind. The sound quality using A2DP is nothing short of fantastic, definitely don't knock it until you have tried it out.

By comparison, FM transmitters would convert your source audio to analog and then transmit it over the already crowded FM airwaves using a very low powered transmitter. Bluetooth A2DP is designed to transfer a uni-directional 2-channel stereo audio stream to the stereo with support for the common native digital formats such as MP3, M4A, AAC, etc. This allows for the stereo to manage the decoding of the file and play at its native encoded quality. The resulting quality is fantastic and you don't have a noticeable degradation in quality like you had with FM transmitters. In addition most A2DP devices have a range of 10 meters (30 feet), which greatly exceeds what would be required for a good signal inside a vehicle.

Say for example you were to download an album from iTunes (current iTunes Plus quality is AAC 256K). If you were to burn it to a CD and play it via the stereo versus uploading it to your iPhone/iPod Touch and streaming it over A2DP you really wouldn't be able to tell the difference in quality, especially so on a car stereo.

Obviously not everyone has an iPhone, iPod Touch, or A2DP supported phone, but if you do its a great option worth considering. I personally think it will fill the gap nicely until a USB connect option is available come September.

 

I can second the above post. I re-bonded my iPhone 3G after updating to 3.0 and can confirm that the audio quality is basically equivalent to using the aux plug. BT will buffer the signal to smooth over any potential glitches, so you'll notice a second or 2 delay when starting or stopping a song via the iPhone controls.

Just picture the Prius as a big set of headphones with a little next track/volume/pause button. It's no more or less than that. Calls work perfectly over the BT connection, the music just pauses, then comes back after you hang up.

It's nice to automatically have the phone, music and car bond without ever removing the phone from your pocket. Only downside is no charging and having to use the iPhone controls to see song titles or change playlists.

 

Agreed. I hope that manufacturers continue this trend and build in support for AVRCP (Audio/Video Remote Control Profile). This would allow for full remote control from the stereo such as navigation and selection of content. *Hint hint Toyota*

 

I second his request to shed some light on this. I am a prospective buyer and I am wondering whether I should wait till September to buy my Prius? I really want, and I would dare say NEED the I POD interface, but I also want to subscribe to the XM because of the traffic updates. Please Prius team, do comment on this.

 

Does it auto-pause the current song/playlist when you power off the car? I have a long commute and like to listen to audiobooks. I currently use an aux jack in my Highlander but if I forget to pause, I end up wanting to tear my hair out.

So for me, auto-pause would be worth every penny. I've been considering getting the IPod connector for my Prius but I want to make sure before I spend the money.

 

I'm seeing some places saying it and XM are mutually exclusive.
Since I don't listen to XM, I'm not worried about losing it.

It would be nice to know for certain if it works.

 

Since the XM tuner is now standard with the JBL I can't imagine it interferring with any of the other options. If you don't want XM just don't subscribe. (If these tuners really do cost $300+ like last year then it looks to me like a lot of money is wasted by installing them in cars where noone wants it. Looks like designing with a plug in tuner for free for those that want XM would have been cheaper)

 

He lists the same part number in his post above:

Prius Team--can you shed any light on this one?

 

I just checked - when I turn off the car the iPod is paused, then a little while after it shuts itself off. When I turn on the car the music starts where I left off.

 

Can anybody from the Prius team answer please? Will the new I POD interface, the one coming out in September that also has a USB, be able to work in conjunction with XM? I dont care about XM radio either, but I do want the XMnav, which apparetly updates the traffic and such in real time. Also, wouldnt hurt to know what kinda things you can plug into that USB...external hard drive? maybe Im hoping too much.

 

OK, there should be two images attached to this post.

One shows the screen which displays the currently playing song.

The other image is the main control screen. Buttons 1-5 (or the Type buttons at the bottom) select the type of thing you want to scan (playlists, artists, etc), then you use the Tune/File knob (or < > on the steering wheel) to step from one item of the selected type to the next. Once you've found the playlist, artist, etc that you want you press Select (#6) and it starts playing from that selection. You can then use the tune/file knob or steering wheel controls to step forward/back between songs within the selected playlist, artist, etc.

The Text button at the bottom switches between the two screens.

We should all be grateful that the iPod didn't come with a user interface like this.

Hope that helps.

 

No takers for these questions?

 

AVRCP is supported on the 2010 Prius w/ BT Audio Streaming, unfortunately iPhone OS 3.0 doesn't. HTMLSpinner has confirmed AVRCP compatibility with his BlackBerry in another thread.

 

Good news! I took delivery this evening of my new 2010 Prius IV with the solar sun roof option. It also came with the IPod connector option which was offered by the Southeast Toyota Distributors. The IPod is connected to a male IPod cord that is installed in the lower glove compartment. The XM radio works just fine, as does the IPod. The way the IPod works is as follows: One needs to turn on the audio system first, then connect the IPod. The system detects the IPod and the IPod functions appear on the display screen (audio mode) under a tab labeled "DVD." Pushing the "CD" button repeatedly on the dash toggles the CD and DVD (IPod) functions, or one can push the "CD" and "DVD" tabs on the display screen to go back and forth between the CD and IPod functions. The "SAT" tab on the display screen and the SAT button on the dash will take one directly to the XM functions. I'm so happy that I didn't sacrifice the XM radio in order to have my IPod connector.

 

DVD tab? Are you able to watch video from the iPod?

 

Could you take some pix so we can get a better sense for how this works? For example, what you described above, plus selecting from artist -> album -> track.

Regarding having to turn on the audio system before connecting the iPod--is this just for the first time, or every time you want to use it?

Sounds like this must be an after market (non-Toyota) item, correct?