AVIC -F90BT good or not?

[Troy250]

i have been considering the F90bt but im not sure if its the best choice or not. what does everyone think? would the kenwood be a better choice? im pretty sure the garmin gps in them would be better than the pioneer. or what about an alpine?

[malex930]

I currently have the Kenwood DNX-5120, and am thinking of switching to the Pioneer. The Kenwood's navigation is superb, but the rest of the A/V interface and options is somewhat subpar. Determine what your needs are. If you are primarily interested in the GPS, go with the Kenwood. If you are interested in all of the extra features, go with the Pioneer.

[kenpachi]

I have an F90BT. The wife has a DNX-5120. We each prefer ours over the other.

 

The F90 takes a little longer to start playing SD or USB media.

The 5120 takes much longer to start playing MP3 on a DVD.

The F90 takes a little longer to connect via bluetooth.

The 5120 bluetooth (BT200, new 1.70 firmware) locks up every 5-7 days. We've replaced it three times, and are now being told it is probably a FW issue. Either way, it is incredibly annoying. The only way to reset it is to open the dash and disconnect it from the 5120 for ~10sec.

The 5120 shows album art on SD or USB media. Very nice.

The F90 supports bluetooth without an extra bluetooth module.

The 5120 shows RDS without an extra HD tuner.

The F90 nav looks MUCH better than the blocky Garmin nav in the 5120. It makes the 5120 look like an old Atari game console.

You can buy new maps for the 5120.

The F90 has voice control.

The 5120 doesn't have an audible cooling fan.

The F90 nav is hackable (for better or worse).

 

There is more, but you get the point. They're both good systems. Spend a little time playing with both in a big box store and see which flavor you prefer.

[Newman]

we sell both and I would recommend the pioneer for a couple reasons.

 

1, its cheaper. it is less expensive to begin with combined with the fact that bluetooth is included.

 

2, it just out does the Kenwood when it comes to features. true, the kenwood is more reliable and the pioneer has its bugs. but overall, i think the pioneer is a better value.

 

if you are okay with the pioneer not always acting how its supposed to (it probably acts up 10% of the time) then go with the pioneer. if you are okay that the kenwood cant do Voice recognition, doesnt have as mnay POIs and just doesnt look as nice, then go with kenwood. but its going to cost you more.

 

further, i dont recommend that anyone get the F900 or the F90. i dont think it is worth the extra $200 to get a DVD player that most people probably wont use and to get MSN Direct that is pretty much garbage. plus, i feel like the F700 just runs a bit quicker than the 9 series.