[spmd11]

Guys.. I purchased the Dynavin for my 2011 e90 several months ago, and thankfully was able to return it. I have never been so dissatisfied with a purchase.

Recently, I installed the brand new to market, Kenwood DNX6990HD. This is a a truly awesome product. I have tested every aspect of this unit for about six weeks now.. before posting my evaluation.. so this is not a first glance. The depth of the features of this system has exceeded all of my expectations and there are many neat surprises of ergonomics and engineering details. These Kenwood guys are serious about what they build. I had no idea... I wouldn't be surprised if Kenwood is a supplier of media/nav units for auto manufacturers.

A better comparison, actually, is this system vs. the BMW iDrive Nav/Media. My 3 other BMWs have iDrive. The media interface and the Navigation features and routing abilities of the Kenwood are superior to the BMW system.. the iDrive is only slightly better execution and ergonomics vs the touchscreen. This touchscreen design, execution and sensitivity is so good, that you can argue that it is at least as good as the iDrive concept.. but you can't say that the iDrive concept is significantly better.. some auto manufacturers have gone touchscreen. As a pilot, I do prefer the iDrive in most situations because I can keep my eyes on the road.. but the Kenwood touchscreen is a quicker input for many menus and selections.. and in some cases far quicker.

I would say the only downside in this comparison is that the Kenwood sits lower than I would like so one has to look down somewhat compared to the iDrive screen which is closer to the windshield. But as an aftermarket unit, this thing is simply stellar.

Kenwood vs Dyanvin comparison is ridiculous.. especially when you compare price, because they retail for about the same. The Dynavin is an amateur attempt at best, and a total ripoff at worst, depending upon how you want to look at it.


I HAVE INCLUDED 2 PDF MANUALS AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST for your reference

1. Actual product support from a legit and well established company... like for instance, a 84 page full color PDF operator's manual, one of the best manuals I've seen for any product. Also, real and professional support for the installers.

1a. Touchscreen has perfect sensitivity and works flawlessly with your finger.. no stencil required, LOL! (Dynavin)

2. I don't know what kind of processor runs this thing, but it is seriously fast... every page and every selection, from nav to audio to settings, you name it, is instantaneous fast... superior to iDrive in this respect

2a. LCD screen resolution is excellent and blows away the Dynavin

3. Ease of use is vastly superior to Dynavin and very well engineered. The integration of Garmin into the rest of the media is well thought out and professionally developed. No doubt the Garmin engineers sat down with the Kenwood engineers... seamless integration of media and navigation and both cross over in different menus and pages

3a. DVD movie play while in motion.. incredibly crisp screen resolution for movies.

3b. Screen can be split, like in BMW iDrive, so you can have a movie playing on one half and navigation on the other, etc...

4. Everything works!! Flawlessly, from Satellite radio, to Pandora, HD radio to bluetooth, steering wheel controls.

5. GPS signal is full strength and immediately ready the moment the car is started.

6. Garmin Nav system is fabulous, and is superior to the factory BMW system in many ways

7. Bluetooth works at least as good as BMW bluetooth and I think perhaps better

8. Bottom hard key is a screen brightness key, and brightness and contrast can be modified on any page. Screen brightness far exceeds the garbage that the Dynavin puts out. Note two of the pictures in this post, the sun is shining through the sunroof onto the Kenwood screen.. you can see some slight glare on the right side of the screen

9. Bottom line, this is a fine piece of work, no question... I would put it up with other quality companies like BMW, in design and execution.. in direct comparison, the Dynavin is a complete joke as to be laughable, which is a complete amateur product and probably made in a chinese garage in Shenzhen.

10. I also got an Alpine backup camera, which the DNX supports... cool option

11. I feel really bad for anyone with a Dynavin. I highly recommend the 6990HD or 9990HD, and in many ways the total product exceeds the BMW iDrive/Navigation integration. The most exciting thing, is that everything works!!!!! And works really well! Sort of like switching form windows pc to Apple, although that is a ridiculous analogy given how bad the Dynavin really is....

[1QuikWS6]

Nice setup

Where did you get the faceplate to accept the new HU size?

[Route 16]

For $1000??? *gasp*

[spmd11]

Dynavin is $850-$950 on Amazon

Kenwood DNX6990HD is $819.95 on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Kenwood-DNX699...5442238&sr=1-1

If you want to be frustrated and completely disappointed, buy the Dynavin for more $$. If you have a Dynavin, rip it out and replace it with the Kenwood, that 's what I did, anyway...

[6spdcoupe]

Originally Posted by spmd11

Dynavin is $850-$950 on Amazon

Kenwood DNX6990HD is $819.95 on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Kenwood-DNX699...5442238&sr=1-1

If you want to be frustrated and completely disappointed, buy the Dynavin for more $$. If you have a Dynavin, rip it out and replace it with the Kenwood, that 's what I did, anyway...

But you bought it online and killed a perfectly good 2 year warranty ..

[spmd11]

Originally Posted by 6spdcoupe

But you bought it online and killed a perfectly good 2 year warranty ..

Don't understand this reply...

[Peertwelve]

Any chance this works with a Logic 7 equipped car without having to retain the stock Head unit?

[6spdcoupe]

Originally Posted by spmd11

Don't understand this post

Originally Posted by spmd11

Don't understand this reply...

Not sure where I lost ya. Excelon products give a two year warranty - When bought from an authorized dealer, not Amazon. Hence the lack of a perfectly good 2 year warranty comment.

[spmd11]

Ahh... got it.. makes sense.. protects their installers/vendors. My vendor gave me a discounted price that matched Amazon though.. so moot point for me

[1QuikWS6]

Originally Posted by Peertwelve

Any chance this works with a Logic 7 equipped car without having to retain the stock Head unit?

Well, you don't HAVE to retain the OEM HU with any aftermarket radio, but you will lose some functionality and the ability to have the dealer update your software

So taking that in account - the answer would be 'No'

[abhi193]

How much does this installation cost generally??
i contacted one installation shop and they quoted
950$ (for kenwood unit) + 375$ (for dashboard customization) + 130$(for unit installation) + 40$ (for some other parts required for installation)
== 1495$

Is this normal???? or they are trying to rip me off??

Originally Posted by spmd11

Guys.. I purchased the Dynavin for my 2011 e90 several months ago, and thankfully was able to return it. I have never been so dissatisfied with a purchase.

Recently, I installed the brand new to market, Kenwood DNX6990HD. This is a a truly awesome product. I have tested every aspect of this unit for about six weeks now.. before posting my evaluation.. so this is not a first glance. The depth of the features of this system has exceeded all of my expectations and there are many neat surprises of ergonomics and engineering details. These Kenwood guys are serious about what they build. I had no idea... I wouldn't be surprised if Kenwood is a supplier of media/nav units for auto manufacturers.

A better comparison, actually, is this system vs. the BMW iDrive Nav/Media. My 3 other BMWs have iDrive. The media interface and the Navigation features and routing abilities of the Kenwood are superior to the BMW system.. the iDrive is only slightly better execution and ergonomics vs the touchscreen. This touchscreen design, execution and sensitivity is so good, that you can argue that it is at least as good as the iDrive concept.. but you can't say that the iDrive concept is significantly better.. some auto manufacturers have gone touchscreen. As a pilot, I do prefer the iDrive in most situations because I can keep my eyes on the road.. but the Kenwood touchscreen is a quicker input for many menus and selections.. and in some cases far quicker.

I would say the only downside in this comparison is that the Kenwood sits lower than I would like so one has to look down somewhat compared to the iDrive screen which is closer to the windshield. But as an aftermarket unit, this thing is simply stellar.

Kenwood vs Dyanvin comparison is ridiculous.. especially when you compare price, because they retail for about the same. The Dynavin is an amateur attempt at best, and a total ripoff at worst, depending upon how you want to look at it.


I HAVE INCLUDED 2 PDF MANUALS AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST for your reference

1. Actual product support from a legit and well established company... like for instance, a 84 page full color PDF operator's manual, one of the best manuals I've seen for any product. Also, real and professional support for the installers.

1a. Touchscreen has perfect sensitivity and works flawlessly with your finger.. no stencil required, LOL! (Dynavin)

2. I don't know what kind of processor runs this thing, but it is seriously fast... every page and every selection, from nav to audio to settings, you name it, is instantaneous fast... superior to iDrive in this respect

2a. LCD screen resolution is excellent and blows away the Dynavin

3. Ease of use is vastly superior to Dynavin and very well engineered. The integration of Garmin into the rest of the media is well thought out and professionally developed. No doubt the Garmin engineers sat down with the Kenwood engineers... seamless integration of media and navigation and both cross over in different menus and pages

3a. DVD movie play while in motion.. incredibly crisp screen resolution for movies.

3b. Screen can be split, like in BMW iDrive, so you can have a movie playing on one half and navigation on the other, etc...

4. Everything works!! Flawlessly, from Satellite radio, to Pandora, HD radio to bluetooth, steering wheel controls.

5. GPS signal is full strength and immediately ready the moment the car is started.

6. Garmin Nav system is fabulous, and is superior to the factory BMW system in many ways

7. Bluetooth works at least as good as BMW bluetooth and I think perhaps better

8. Bottom hard key is a screen brightness key, and brightness and contrast can be modified on any page. Screen brightness far exceeds the garbage that the Dynavin puts out. Note two of the pictures in this post, the sun is shining through the sunroof onto the Kenwood screen.. you can see some slight glare on the right side of the screen

9. Bottom line, this is a fine piece of work, no question... I would put it up with other quality companies like BMW, in design and execution.. in direct comparison, the Dynavin is a complete joke as to be laughable, which is a complete amateur product and probably made in a chinese garage in Shenzhen.

10. I also got an Alpine backup camera, which the DNX supports... cool option

11. I feel really bad for anyone with a Dynavin. I highly recommend the 6990HD or 9990HD, and in many ways the total product exceeds the BMW iDrive/Navigation integration. The most exciting thing, is that everything works!!!!! And works really well! Sort of like switching form windows pc to Apple, although that is a ridiculous analogy given how bad the Dynavin really is....

[spmd11]

Originally Posted by abhi193

How much does this installation cost generally??
i contacted one installation shop and they quoted
950$ (for kenwood unit) + 375$ (for dashboard customization) + 130$(for unit installation) + 40$ (for some other parts required for installation)
== 1495$

Is this normal???? or they are trying to rip me off??

That's very reasonable. I paid more than that. I paid a fortune in labor removing Dynavin and replacing with Kenwood, but had to do it, given what a piece of junk the Dynavin was. Biggest purchase mistake I have ever made. Amazes me people buy the Dynavin and seem to like it.

My install included putting factory head unit in trunk.

[dimoman]

Hello guys - really want to replace my factory unit, and found this post, but have few more questions, since i want to do it by myself.

1. I have heated seats buttons under the AC/Heat controls, I see that in your unit they are removed - did you install them somewhere else?

2. What other parts you got to fit the unit in the dashboard and to connect it to existing controls and connectors? You mentioned that they are all working with the new unit...

3. You also mentioned that you got your old unit installed in the tunk. I also read that there are some programming done from it... Is it absolutely necessary to do that?

Great post - thank you!

[velvetaudio]

Hey, if you don't mind me asking where did you get it done at, Roberts?

How does the bluetooth function, with the factory mic or one built into the Kenwood.

[spmd11]

Yes, Roberts.. PM me for more detail. Bluetooth is built into Kenwood. It's a Parrot system and works fantastic.. better than BMW stock system

[6spdcoupe]

Originally Posted by dimoman

Hello guys - really want to replace my factory unit, and found this post, but have few more questions, since i want to do it by myself.

1. I have heated seats buttons under the AC/Heat controls, I see that in your unit they are removed - did you install them somewhere else?

2. What other parts you got to fit the unit in the dashboard and to connect it to existing controls and connectors? You mentioned that they are all working with the new unit...

3. You also mentioned that you got your old unit installed in the tunk. I also read that there are some programming done from it... Is it absolutely necessary to do that?

Great post - thank you!

He has a 2011. The heated seats are in the climate control.

You need a dash kit, wire harness, antenna adapter. Seat heater relocate panel for those that need it. All are available from Metra.

No.

[torifile]

Did you have a Logic 7 system? I would love to replace my HU but I've got Logic 7 and it seems like such a PITA to do.

[Relentless335i]

This radio is awesome I had it installed on my 05 GTO. I had no idea this would work with bmw.

[spmd11]

Originally Posted by torifile

Did you have a Logic 7 system? I would love to replace my HU but I've got Logic 7 and it seems like such a PITA to do.

I have base audio, but does it make a difference? I think not...

[spmd11]

Originally Posted by 1QuikWS6

Nice setup

Where did you get the faceplate to accept the new HU size?

Metra

[torifile]

Originally Posted by spmd11

I have base audio, but does it make a difference? I think not...

It actually makes quite a bit of difference. L7 is, from what I read, really hard to upgrade. Part of the problem is that I don't know of any reputable installers around me.

[taibanl]

Originally Posted by torifile

It actually makes quite a bit of difference. L7 is, from what I read, really hard to upgrade. Part of the problem is that I don't know of any reputable installers around me.

All you need to do is recode or buy an ms-8 or both. Or you could buy the $700 mobridge converter