Ok, so now that I had the avic-d1, but switched to the f90bt, im really upset with the f90bt and want the D-series again, but before I commit, i had a few questions.

1.) Does the D3 basically have everything the D1 has, plus the bluetooth capability and the ipod full use capability?

2.) Does the D3 have a "fly-mode" gps setting where if the car gets off the map (like on a parking lot) the car symbol won't just spin really stupid like it does on the f90bt but instead will be flying over the gray/non-road area?? This is important to me because the f90bt constantly wants to put me on a road instead the parking lot/shopping center im in, and if not, it just spins in circles real stupid.

3.) Other than the bluetooth and full ipod use capabilities (if there), what are the MAIN difference between the D1 to D3? and the D3 to F90BT (other than the voice control)

4.) Does the D3 have a gyro sensor? and how does the D3 work, do you put the DVD-map in, to load the route and then remove it?? or how exactly does it work?

Please, if anyone could answer all or some questions I would really appreciate it because I am very frustrated with my F90BT. thank you!

Can't answer the differences between the D1 and D3 as I've never owned the D1, but:

2.) Yes, the arrow will keep pointing in the direction that you are headed, even when you not on a street and in a parking lot/structure.

4.) Even tho the D3 is dvd based navigation, there is a small amount of memory in the unit. Once you start the D3 for the first time, it will locate you and start cacheing the area you are in. You can take the Nav Disk out, and still have the D3 track your location, but depending on how much the D3 cached it will start zooming out the map with less street details.

Any type of navigation search will require you to put the Nav Disc back into the D3, once the route is saved (which does take a few minutes) the Nav disc can be ejected, but stray too far from the route, or if you want to add a waypoint, and the Nav disc will need to be re-inserted.

Also, the D3 requires a seperate module for Bluetooth and cable for iPod.

aha, wow thanks for your help, it was very helpful since I never owned a D3.

but regarding your answer to question 4. so if i keep the dvd inside the D3, all that would be avoided, right? I mean im gonna use my ipod most of the time and rarely ever use the cd.

Yup,

But I like to eject my disc when I'm not using the navigation. The D3 works faster with the Nav disc ejected and for some reason, my D3 reboots sometimes with the disc inserted and I lose my wallpaper. It's rare, but it never happens when the disc isn't in there.

thank you knight....i really appreciate you feedback a lot.

if you don't mind, could you just state a few points about the D3 that you really like and a few points you really hate or bother you about the D3.

i just gotta be certain to get rid of the f90bt and go with the d3, and i don't wanna get it, and then regret it and realize i made an even bigger mistake.

thank you so much!

Dude the D3 is wayy better than the F90BT. I just got rid of my F900BT and went back to my D3 because the D3 was soooo much nicer than the F900BT. Sad but true

the only thing that keeps me from switching from the f90bt to the D3 is that i don't know the D3 at all and the problems it has. if someone could tell me what the major/known problems are, that would be great.

also, does the D3 have FULL ipod compatibility like the f90bt does? meaning can i fully control it on the actual unit?

Yup,

 

But I like to eject my disc when I'm not using the navigation. The D3 works faster with the Nav disc ejected and for some reason, my D3 reboots sometimes with the disc inserted and I lose my wallpaper. It's rare, but it never happens when the disc isn't in there.

Curious, are you using the original DVD? I had the same issue of rebooting, but only when I had a

"copy" of the DVD in there. I like to keep the originals safe at home.

I used a HP brand disc first, and it would reboot if it was hot in the car and I hit a decent bump.

This happened every day, but stopped when I switched to a Verbatim brand disc. The HP disc

worked fine otherwise, but the hot temperature of the car must have altered the disc some how

(warpage, or dye). It never rebooted on the way to work, but on the way home it did. Texas heat in the summer!

how is the bluetooth thing on the D3? the one on the f90bt sucks badly! especially the microphone!

the only thing that keeps me from switching from the f90bt to the D3 is that i don't know the D3 at all and the problems it has. if someone could tell me what the major/known problems are, that would be great.

 

also, does the D3 have FULL ipod compatibility like the f90bt does? meaning can i fully control it on the actual unit?

You have full control of the iPod's music functions. You have to select videos on the iPod itself.

I would say the only major problem of the D3 is that when you do a POI search, the results are not sorted by distance to your current location. So for example, if I searched for "McDonalds," it will bring up results that are thousands of miles away instead of ones that are nearby.

oh i see....but yeah i had the same problem with the D1, the POI never sorted them by distance, but simply put them as a list. i didn't like that n in a way its stupid.

however, how is the bluetooth? are there any problems? is the quality bad/good? does it mess up or freeze the actual D3??

I've had no issues with the BT on my D3, keep in mind that there is an external module BTB-200 that handles this through the IP-Bus cable. Voice quality and functionality has been excellent for me.

i see...what is the exact module that i will need for the ipod?

i see...what is the exact module that i will need for the ipod?

CD-i200 I think, it is just a cable.

would you trade for a d3?

would you trade for a d3?

Depends....how old is your D3? and also, what you have with it. i would probably want the unit, all the wires/harnesses, the ipod cable, and the bluetooth module. then i would consider a trade

i see...what is the exact module that i will need for the ipod?

CD-i200 I think, it is just a cable.

since it is just a cable, and i looked it up, how does it view the videos??? doesn't it need the audio/video component cables just like they are on the f90bt??

No, it does it through the one cable. You just cant control the video with it.

No, it does it through the one cable. You just cant control the video with it.

huh...thats really weird because the f90bt requires you to connect those audio/video cables as well.

when i bought the f90bt, i thought it wud be what every D-series had, plus the best of the best in F-series. yet this is one of the WORST navis ever made by pioneer. only 40% of the functions work properly 100% of the time. the rest chooses when it should work

Yup,

 

But I like to eject my disc when I'm not using the navigation. The D3 works faster with the Nav disc ejected and for some reason, my D3 reboots sometimes with the disc inserted and I lose my wallpaper. It's rare, but it never happens when the disc isn't in there.

 

 

Curious, are you using the original DVD? I had the same issue of rebooting, but only when I had a

"copy" of the DVD in there. I like to keep the originals safe at home.

I used a HP brand disc first, and it would reboot if it was hot in the car and I hit a decent bump.

This happened every day, but stopped when I switched to a Verbatim brand disc. The HP disc

worked fine otherwise, but the hot temperature of the car must have altered the disc some how

(warpage, or dye). It never rebooted on the way to work, but on the way home it did. Texas heat in the summer!

Yup, I had a copy in there too. I used a Memorex DL Disc and I think that it is the heat as well that affects the disc in some way. I guess I'll look for a some Verbatim DL discs. Thanks for the advice.

No, it does it through the one cable. You just cant control the video with it.

 

huh...thats really weird because the f90bt requires you to connect those audio/video cables as well.

I'm not 100% sure, but I believe Pioneer had to find a way to make newer generation iPods work on the F-series as Apple put in new restrictions on their iPods that would not allow function if it wasn't an Apple certified product. Their solution was all those extra cables I guess.

With the D3, if you have a 5.5 gen iPod or older, the D3 will work great with it. There are workarounds with the newer iPods, but I can't say for sure if they work well.

regarding the D3 and how you have to load the map, i had a very important question about it.

so if i don't have the disc inside, and cruise around town, will my gps/map go blank? or what?

and vice versa, if i do have the disc in, can i just cruise around without loadin times? i mean, without any route, just driving around

I think I answered that in my first post. When you start the D3 for the first time and have a good satellite signal. The D3 will locate you and start cacheing your surroundings on the onboard memory. Once that is done, you can eject the disc and the D3 will track you and will use the information in memory to display details i.e. street names and side streets.

If you drive out of the stored memory, the D3 will just zoom out the map, displaying less details. The D3 will always track you as long as there is a satellite signal.

oh i see....but yeah i had the same problem with the D1, the POI never sorted them by distance, but simply put them as a list. i didn't like that n in a way its stupid.

 

however, how is the bluetooth? are there any problems? is the quality bad/good? does it mess up or freeze the actual D3??

My Bluetooth on my D3 is the best, most consistant BT I have ever seen in any vehicle. It is way better than my wife factory Acura and many others I have seen. Very reliable and NEVER glichy.

hey thomaskohl,

regarding the d3 and bt, do you think that is cuz the d3 has an actual external unit for it? i have a blackberry curve, and mine on the f90bt sucks. keeps freezing up and not playing the music after the call, and i can't make one call after another, i gotta wait like 20-40 seconds in between