Greetings,

After a bit of research and reading the positives and the negatives about the U310BT, I finally decided this was the stereo I wanted for my Subaru Forester 2012. The elegant form factor, the benefit of the removable faceplate (as an anti-theft deterrent) and the good reviews with regards to SQ ultimately won me over.

Before I take it to a shop to get installed, I have have a few questions:

1) Updates. What version should I update to? I see posts from people trying to downgrade their existing updates, apparently due to Bluetooth problems.

2) Customization on a Mac. Is it possible to customize the splash screen etc on a Mac running Os X? If so how?

3) Maps / POI. I've read a lot of positive and negatives about the built-in GPS. I'm not trying to land a Tomcat on an aircraft carrier here, so I'm ok with the GPS being what it is, but I would like to get the latest update as far as maps and POIs go. The Pioneer site lists the CNSD-130FM for 2010, and CNSD-239FM for 2011. Is the 239FM the one I want to get?

4) CD-IU50V cable. My understanding is that the U310BT does NOT take in video from its auxiliary 3.5mm input, is this correct? I wouldn't need this cable then?

5) Is there any additional advice / tips you could give me about this unit?

Folks, thank you very very much in advance for any information.

Cheers

1. there is a 1.003 update (along with bluetooth update) available on pioneers website

also, you can look over in the hacks/mods forum if you are brave enough to update it to 2.x. (also relevant to #3)

2. customization can be done via mac, but really should be done by using Avic Feeds PC app to setup the SD card with the splash screen customizations (and any other customizations).

3. problem with POI/Maps is that stock is 2009 maps and "crippled" (outdated and missing categories) POIs.

You want CNSD-239FM which updates firmware, application, and maps/pois. (You could do CNSD-130FM, but it's just a tad older).

4. with this unit, ipod/iphone audio AND controls are done over the usb (as opposed to other units which require usb + a/v cables). You can use a stock ipod usb/dock cable - it works just fine.

Thank you very much for the advice! I just picked up a 239FM card, it should be here in a couple of days. Will I need an additional SD card, or is this plug-and-play? (I understand that the POIs are on a DVD, does this need to be in the unit at all times?)

4. with this unit, ipod/iphone audio AND controls are done over the usb (as opposed to other units which require usb + a/v cables). You can use a stock ipod usb/dock cable - it works just fine.

Ok! My question was more about video out than controls. My understanding from other posts was that the Pioneer "A/V" cable (a 3.5mm jack) was specifically to feed video out from an iPhone/iPod into the AUX in of Pioneer units that DO take video, and so I was wondering if the U310BT might have a video in from that input that isn't mentioned.

Cheers!

good job.

i believe it comes with an sd card and a dvd... i think the dvd will copy pois to a 4gb sd card, but not really sure.. i would love it if you can tell me how it works...

i dont think there is any video ipod/iphone playback on u310bt at all... just audio

Welcome SteadyRide

How did you get on with the CNSD-239FM update?

Did this improve or change the appearance your Head Unit? Can you watch videos that are on ipod and SD Card etc?

Thanks

Thanks!

The store I ordered the update from is apparently out of stock, so I haven't received it yet. I will let folks know what changes when I get it!

Did you recieve the card yet?

I'm very curious if it will make the device look better?

Thanks