I was considering buying a Z120BT to replace my factory head unit; however, after reading the kenwood forum (link below) I started having a second thought. Any comments or rebuttal about all the cons listed?

http://kenwoodforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=897

Everything I wrote there is the truth. there are even a couple of other issues I have remembered sense then but just haven't posted an update.

Well, vblue is the mod here, so I'm sure you'll get some discussion.

My $.02 after having this unit for a week:

I'm lucky in that my BT audio is fine with my iPhone4, and with my wife's 3GS. It's as good as the factory BT that I had before the Z (2011 Toyota Sienna). I agree with a lot of the Navi complaints. Tmorning I used the navi just for the hell of it, to a local spot, and it had it on the wrong side of the street. It also has my home on the wrong side of the street. I don't really care about little things like that, though someday I'll probably wind up somewhere and knock on the wrong door....

I have the positioning problem as well, it'll have me a few yards/car lengths off. I don't know if this is the Navi, or maybe signal reflection? Who knows. Also, not a big deal, but I could imagine it being off enough to miss a turn by a block. But on the plus side, route recalculation is really snappy, quicker than on my Garmin Nuvi 650 (which was stolen). I don't care much about POI, waypoints, etc, so I have no comments on those issues. I just put in final destination and go.

I only did a brief comparison at the shop that did my install (wife wouldn't let me tear up the dash of a new car myself, and install was cheap). The dealer I went to is a licensed Pioneer, Kenwood, Alpine, etc., installer. Owner has a Z120BT in his car, which ultimately swayed me. He swears by it, though I never know what the dealer's incentives may be. It might just make him more money...

Ideally, get it somewhere that you can return it if you really want to/have to. Or spend a lot of time trying both of them side-by-side if you can. I know you won't be able to really assess the BT quality, or even the Navigation, but you'll learn the interface a bit, enter addresses, etc.

Everything I wrote there is the truth. there are even a couple of other issues I have remembered sense then but just haven't posted an update.

Thanks for taking time to list the things to consider before buying the Z120BT. I'm actually leaning more towards the 9960 now and I might buy as soon as I get back in states. I'm currently deployed and I should be back in 6 weeks. INSHALLAH!!!

Well, do you know if Kenwood will be coming out with a new model soon? How often do they update their product? If it's around January timeframe, I wouldn't mind waiting to see what they have to offer...

A new unit is announced once a year so yeah, they will announce something around January and it will finally arrive around April or May.

I too had it narrowed down to Pioneer vs Kenwood. Since the Pioneer was far less expensive, I tried it first. IF I had the money, I would likely have gone Kenwood, mainly because of how the unit handles FM radio of all things. That being said, the Pioneer has been far less of a hassle, and far more fun than I thought it would be. True, navigation is not the best I have ever seen, but that's my only real complaint. Do find somewhere to play with them both, and you'll see that they are a lot closer than one would think, and they each have their own ups and downs.

For the money, the Pioneer is a great deal. If you have unlimited funds, well, they sell Lambo's with Kenwoods.

they sell Lambo's with Kenwoods.

The Audi nav without any touch screen is actually a kenwood????