SDB_FTW

Great questions!

In my case, I haven't yet decided if my tablet will be removable or not. If I decide to make it removable, I pretty much know how I'll do it, but it's kind of a pain in the ars. Right now I'm leaning towards a permanent install.

My tablet is wifi-only, no 3G/4G. I did this because I have a GalaxySIII with mobile hotspot, so I'm just going to use the tasker app to automatically turn on mobile hotspot when my phone is in the car.

ranger 66

Ok that makes sense. If it auto connects you wont have to worry about forgetting to turn it on. I think it is a awesome idea. Can you shoot a youtube video that highlights the sound quality, features etc?

SDB_FTW

I fully plan to shoot a video once the install is complete. I have all the supplies in, so as long as something else doesn’t come up this weekend, I’ll be installing.

Nd4spd2

Cool, will be nice to follow along and see how this works out.

_Nomad_

You don't need a data plan to use Nav in the car.

SDB_FTW

Yes, and no, unless I'm misunderstanding you. The tablet will need internet in order to access maps for navigation, unless you have downloaded them in advance (an awesome new feature in google maps).

_Nomad_

That's what I'm talking about, just have your Google maps updated and you're good to go. Data streaming isn't necessary.

SDB_FTW

Great point. One thing of note, Google Maps only lets you download square map chunks of finite size, for now. This is fine, but it sure would be cool if you could plot out a trip and tell Google Maps to download maps based on the trip. Maybe we'll get that in a future update.

I also haven't tested out these voice commands (Google Now), especially when asking for directions, when no internet connection is present. I'll give that a test tonight.

thirtythird

What is this devotion to these idols?

thirtythird

Actually, it would be cool if GM would let us connect up our own devices and have them interface with any hard controls and use these devices instead of having to pay 1500 for the factory supplied one.

thirtythird

But will the tablet stand up to the temperature extremes? Let us know.

SDB_FTW

My comment was supposed to be thick with sarcasm . At the end of the day, I'm a fan of technology in general. I much prefer Android to iOS, and I hate iTunes, but I'm still a fan of Apple's computers, and have a MacBook Pro, so I'm by no means a blind follower.

SDB_FTW

This is my biggest fear. I have thought up a few alternatives, but as I live in a very hot climate, it's probably something I'll have to deal with. At least the hottest part of the year is over, so maybe I can bypass the potential issue until next May...

If I remember, I'll put the tablet in my car tomorrow before I come to work, leave it turned on, and see if it overheats throughout the day. I'm hoping that a combination of sunshade, windows cracked, and the tablet being in airplane mode (all comms radios and chips turned off), will keep it from overheating.

SDB_FTW

UPDATE: I found out last night that "Google Now" requires an internet connection to perform any voice commands. You can download maps in advance and use them without an internet connection, but if you want directions and/or turn-by-turn navigation, the tablet must be connected to the internet. Not a big deal for me since I'll be tethering to my phone, but it's something worth noting to others considering a project like this.

MIGHTYM0USE

i may have missed in the reading, but there is no antenna input for regular fm tuning or 'an app for that' right?

SDB_FTW

Not that I know of, but I didn't really do much research on it because I personally have no interest in FM radio. You can use things like iHeartRadio to pull in most local FM stations, but I don't know of an easy way to integrate FM reception into an android stereo.

Dans 85

Found this from the C4 section, thanks!

How much storage can you get with the tablets and can they support a external h/d?

Regards,

SDB_FTW

I'm using the GalaxyTab2 and it has a microSD slot. The specs tell you that it can only handle 32GB but I have a 64GB card in it right now and it works like a charm. My music library is about 48GB so I have a fair bit of room left for expansion.

If you need more storage, you have a couple options. Option 1 is to set up a network hard drive in your vette. You can achieve this by using a DLNA wireless router that has a USB port. The most optimal product I have found is THIS ONE. Your tablet could then connect to it as network storage with ease. I plan to go with this solution if/when I need more storage.

Option 2 is to use a "USB on the go" cable to hook up a USB hard drive to the tablet directly. The main problem with this is, there is currently no way to connect a hard drive to the tablet and charge the tablet at the same time. I'm hoping some 3rd party company will come out with a cable to do this, but until they do, this option isn't really feasible. Also, not all tablets support USBOTG, so if you look into this option, be mindful of the tablet you choose.

Dans 85

That's a pretty cool idea using a wireless router! Thanks for the tip.

I will need 100g+ just for music, and if I add video who knows? Either that or hope a 128gb micro SD card is on the horizon at a reasonable price. Would someday also like to have my entire music library on my phone too.

Any plans to integrate the Galaxy tablet with the C6 steering wheel controls?


IMO the typical AM/FM/Cass or CD radio is slowly going the way of the Dodo bird. I can barely tolerate FM anymore due to all of the garbage inbetween the music they play and changing CD's is getting old. I'd think in years to come, tablets like these are going to be standard equipment in GM vehicles...but of course they will have their own version of it at 3x the price.

Godspeed on getting this done.......will be suhhwweeeeeeet!

SDB_FTW

128GB MicroSDXC isn't too far off from what I've read. Who knows if current-gen tablets and phones will support it, but I don't see why not.

I have no plans to integrate steering wheel controls, because I have none! I am looking for a simple bluetooth controller that I can mount somewhere, but I haven't found one that I like yet.

I agree with you on the FM radio comments. I haven't listened to traditional radio for quite some time. I hate local radio commercials, and I hate the rate of song repetition. I won't miss it at all, nor will I miss not having a traditional CD player. You can use the tablet and certain android apps that will play lossless audio codecs such as ogg and flac, so even those worried about sound quality need not worry. Of course, for now, I'm using the headphone jack, meaning the tablet is the DAC, which sucks. I'd be more concerned about audio quality in a different vehicle, but with the drone and road noise of my vette, I challenge anyone to tell the difference between an mp3 and a lossless flac file at interstate speeds .

For those that DO care about audio quality, you can look into tablets that have apt-X technology (high quality audio via bluetooth), and buy a apt-X DAC such as THIS ONE. You can get up to 24bit/96kHz quality using apt-X.