Kenwood AV Receiver DDX919WS

Not all what it’s cracked up to be – Bought this unit 7 months ago and it’s like travelling with a kid with Tourette’s in the back you never know what’s going to happen next.. Let me explain I bought it for the use of Apple car play and when it works it’s great but it can kick you off without a moments notice shut down and reboot and throw you on a different route when navigating and then reboots itself while your in the thick of it and send you back on the correct path only to realise you have to do some clever back street shuffling.. I was told that the hardware was designed for Toyota’s as I wanted to update the one in my 100 series that being said I spose the install is easy and it fits nice in the dash.. but Apple car play is ‍Frustrating to say the least. The sales guy said that it’s to do with Apple software but I don’t think so his response was it’s the firmware. It’s better with newer phones blade blah blah.. This week I’ll be going back to push the boundaries on exchange the unit or get something else.. but far from happy...

I wish I read reviews of similar models before purchase – The unit looks great in the car but the screen is high gloss and difficult to see until you move your head to find a shadow on the screen. You can tilt the screen but have to do this by pressing buttons. It is advertised as 'mirroring' your phone. To me that means an exact copy of what you see in the mirror. But no. It limits what apps you can see. I thought I could use my downloaded navigation app on the phone if it was mirrored but this is not permitted. I've downloaded Waze mapping and am learning this is quite good although I was hoping to render my older Hema navigation unit obsolete but to do this it comes at a cost. The DDX does allow for rgb interface with a basic and premium Hema nav integration but this starts at around an additional $650 (without install). I also wanted to have sms messages read out and dictate hands free in reply but this isnt easy. I've since found this works better through Waze Although other apps have to be used in order to do this. When I also downloaded the contacts, it wouldnt download my favourite contacts with the normal phone connection. It only works better thru the android auto app. It wont always connect straight away. The phone often has to be unplugged then plugged in for it to recognise the phone. Once I leave the car, it can still be on 'do not disturb' hours later.