Hey guys,

I'm buying myself a new GPS for X-mas and have two pretty good deals in place for a new system but want some opinions.

First system, Avic Z1 almost new at $800 bucks w/ the Sirius module. Unit does not have manual but is in perfect condition.

Second system, Kenwood DNX7100 new at $900 w/ the Ipod adapter. Unit is still in the box.

If you were in my position, what would you do? Buy either/neither and why?

Thanks for all of your input.

I'd buy a brand new Panasonic Strada for $800

Hey Misfit, do you really like the Strada? I read some reviews that mostly said the thing sucked.

from what i've seen briefly, i do. i didnt like my z1 at all, and i've heard a lot of poor feedback on the kenwood. thats just my opinion

I thought I might of made a mistake getting my D3 after reading that Garmin had the Nav in the Kenwood, and some problems others had with the Nav in the D3. But, I'm happy with the D3 as every unit can't have everything perfect at least not yet anyway.

Check out the reviewers comments on the Strada on Amazon though.

we sell all three units (i know your question was about two) the strada sucks, the 7100 nav looks like a toy or game......ok i have a Z1, but i'd do it all over again if i had to.

with the strada you need all kinds of "adaptors" for bluetooth, xm, or sirius and that's on top of the modules! plus no music library even though it has a hard drive.

the kenwood is cool only because of the ipod adapter, only if you get the video one (adapter) they have two for some reason???? it's a lot faster than the Z1 and displays album art. if you add XM traffic to the kenwood the antenna is HUGE!!!

Z1 just rocks!!!

all of this is in "my" opinion, so do your own research

Thanks for the feedback. I'm hesitant because I own a TomTom now and it works well. This set up is nice and would look great in my car.

Anyone else? I need to pull the trigger soon if I'm going to get either at these prices.

Thanks again.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm hesitant because I own a TomTom now and it works well. This set up is nice and would look great in my car.

 

Anyone else? I need to pull the trigger soon if I'm going to get either at these prices.

 

Thanks again.

i say go with the Z1 never been a fan of kenwood or panasonic decks PIONEER has a great name and great products. Z1 all the way

the reason i liked the strada was that it looks like the same software as the eclipse units. of all the navs i've tried, i liked the eclipse the best. only for its nav. its interfaces all sucked. my z1, the interfaces were great, but i was not thrilled with the nav. my only concerns are the nav and ipod (which the strada has an awesome ipod interface) . i dont need any other add ons and i dont need the hard drive for music. so that is what i'm basing my opinion on. i never actually used the kenwood, but i just didnt care for the looks of it from the display pictures i've seen

the reason i liked the strada was that it looks like the same software as the eclipse units. of all the navs i've tried, i liked the eclipse the best. only for its nav. its interfaces all sucked. my z1, the interfaces were great, but i was not thrilled with the nav. my only concerns are the nav and ipod (which the strada has an awesome ipod interface) . i dont need any other add ons and i dont need the hard drive for music. so that is what i'm basing my opinion on. i never actually used the kenwood, but i just didnt care for the looks of it from the display pictures i've seen

dunno didnt here good reviews on kenwood and panasonic but again upto you manto each his own

yeah, i was actually just readig all the bad reviews on it, and i really havent heard any complaints about the nav itself. in fact all the things that people are complaining about are things that dont matter to me anyway. like i said, i just want the nav to work well. i already know the ipod blows away any of the others. so i guess i'm still leaning towards it

The strata has a korean restaurant on my friends cul-de-sac. Funny chit

Well, I pulled the trigger last night on the Avic Z1 w/ the sirius module for $775 shipped. Even though each has their flaws, seems like the Z1 has the right features for my needs. I'm sure it will soon be updated soon to the Z2 features as well..

Thanks again.

Wow. Thats a damn good deal

You got an excellent deal on the Z1. I bought mine used for $900. I know I could have found a better price if I looked hard enough. You can download the manuals if you really need to. The deck is intuitive enough that you can figure most of it out on your own. That is, assuming you've had experience with after market head units.

I was in the same situation as you were in. I was debating between the Strada and the DNX7100. Car Audio and Electronics selected the 7100 as one of their products of the year. There was a comparison a few months ago and they gave the 7100 an A- while the Strada got a B+. If you look on CNET, the Strada scored higher than the 7100 by the editors. I almost got the Strada, but I was turned off because there is a 30GB HDD that does nothing but keep map info. Plus, there was no option to add a remote (I prefer to have one). The 7100 has an excellent Nav, but the GUI and menu system has a steep learning curve. Plus, the 2GB memory (I believe it's and SD card) didn't seem as adequate as the 30GB Z1 and Strada.

I lucked out and found a Z1 on craigslist, so I picked it up with a quickness. So far, no regrets. The maps are outdated, but I plan on doing the Z2 upgrade sometime soon. I think this forum has done a lot to add value to my purchase.

Thanks.

Wow. Thats a damn good deal

Thanks, I thought so too. Only a month ago, I was consider a D3 for a similar price. I need to buy a few things including the GPS antenna, Bluetooth, etc.

Now, I need to find an installer in the S. Jersey/Philly area.

DIY it if you have the experience and skills to do so. I paid $330 for an installer to do some shoddy work. I wanted to have an installer be able to vouch for me in case the deck malfunctioned. Since I was buying it used, it would be hard for the seller to refute a professional installer. I basically wasted the $330 because I know I could have done a better job myself. The installer did a terrible job. Also, the shop tried to scam me out of $100. They charged me for a harness with a special module that allows my car to keep the audible turn signal and warning chimes, yet they installed a regular wire harness.

What kind of car do you have? You can probably find a Metra Harness that'll give you the navigation wiring. Buy a $6 crimping tool and some disconnects and you're good to go.

Good luck with the install if you decide to DIY.

DIY it if you have the experience and skills to do so.

I have installed a few Ipod adaptors in my/friends radios over the years but not a complete radio like this. I want to connect a few aftermarket more items as well: PAC kit for the steering wheel controls, Bluetooth, sirius module,etc. Would the combining of all of these things make this difficult?

What kind of car do you have?

Yeah, it looks like Metra doesn't make a harness that will supply the nav wires. Take it to the installer and let them deal with it. If they charge you for a nav install, make sure they connect the nav wiring. The dumbasses I took it to charged me for a nav install, but didn't hook up the speed sense and reverse wires. They aren't vital to the Z1, but still, for that price they should have done it.

My harness was pretty straight forward. I installed it and it works great. I accomplished in a few minutes what it took the installers several hours to try and figure out.

Good luck with the install.