G
Guest
·I'm looking at replacing the factory head unit in my shiny new '06 FXT. 
At first, I was interested in a Blaupunkt Bremen MP74, but Blaupunkt blew the remaining stock of those units out through Crutchfield a few months ago. That particular model has basically disappeared from the retail channels.
So, I just returned from the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. I uncovered several useful (to me anyway) factoids at the show:
From Blaupunkt, the rightmost digit of a unit's model number indicates the year it was first introduced. So, the Bremen MP74 first shipped in 2004. OK, that explains why Blaupnkt is upgrading. The new replacement is, if I remember correctly, going to be called the Bremen MP66. It won't be available until April/May.
Pioneer has a totally NEW version of their AVIC product. The -Z1 "entertainment/nav" head unit is physically a Double DIN form factor, so it will fit in the 06 FXT dash where the factory HU is now.
Google for "AVIC-Z1" and you'll discover that it does "entertainment" as well as nav. Unlike earlier AVIC models, it's a hard drive-based Nav unit. No more clunky, SLOW dvd-only-based nav. The 30GB disk drive has 10GB reserved for user MP3 file storage. It also has appropriate line in-out jacks. It understands/controls iPODs. It does Bluetooth for cellphones. It's going to retail for approximately $2,200. Like the Bremen, this unit is 3-4 months away from being generally available.
At first, I was interested in a Blaupunkt Bremen MP74, but Blaupunkt blew the remaining stock of those units out through Crutchfield a few months ago. That particular model has basically disappeared from the retail channels.
So, I just returned from the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. I uncovered several useful (to me anyway) factoids at the show:
From Blaupunkt, the rightmost digit of a unit's model number indicates the year it was first introduced. So, the Bremen MP74 first shipped in 2004. OK, that explains why Blaupnkt is upgrading. The new replacement is, if I remember correctly, going to be called the Bremen MP66. It won't be available until April/May.
Pioneer has a totally NEW version of their AVIC product. The -Z1 "entertainment/nav" head unit is physically a Double DIN form factor, so it will fit in the 06 FXT dash where the factory HU is now.
Google for "AVIC-Z1" and you'll discover that it does "entertainment" as well as nav. Unlike earlier AVIC models, it's a hard drive-based Nav unit. No more clunky, SLOW dvd-only-based nav. The 30GB disk drive has 10GB reserved for user MP3 file storage. It also has appropriate line in-out jacks. It understands/controls iPODs. It does Bluetooth for cellphones. It's going to retail for approximately $2,200. Like the Bremen, this unit is 3-4 months away from being generally available.
