It's been a while since I logged into site so I may be showing some lack of knowledge on what is latest and greatest with Z1 . I've had the Z1 since June 2006 and have been real happy with it . I've picked up an engine buzz in the left channel and have isolated it to the unit. It's intermittent and I've had no luck to get it diagnosed at repair shops .... Now the real reason I'm writing this.

 

I went and got the Kenwood DNX7160 to replace this unit . I've been told that Pioneer is lagging and Kenwood is the way to go. I've got an option to turn it back in if I am not satisfied so here is what I see with these units

 

Bluetooth - Great sound and pairing with Kenwood .... Echo's with Z1, don't use it much because of echo

 

Navigation - Maps / Multiple Routing / and details very good w/Z1(upgraded to latest maps) .... Garmin Nav in Kenwood "Cartoonish" and lacks details, plus I lost all mapping and had to get a second DNX7160.. Kenwood could not determine what problem was.

Voice routing clear with Z1 ........ Garbled/Choppy with Kenwood

 

Startup - Z1 and 7160 boot , Kenwood a little quicker but not that big a deal

 

iPOD - Z1 lacking on screen commands (did not do upgrade) ... Kenwood has very good touch screen response.

 

XM - No problems w/Z1 .... Kenwood gets corrupted data vs station vs songs playing a real mess .. need to push unit reset which drops all my presets

 

Touch controls - Very sensitive with Kenwood , you gotta be careful and that can take your eyes off the road.... Z1 has buttons along bottom which I like

 

 

There's more compares , but that's the basics . Looks to me that the Kenwood still has many bugs to work out with firmware / software . I really like my Z1 and if I could find a service shop to "find my buzz" I'd put the Z1 back in. Plus , I cannot understand why "they" say that the Garmin Nav is better, my Z1 showed much more onscreen . Maybe they are comparing to newer Pioneer units .

 

Any words of wisdom is mucho appreciated