So this is not for the purists that couldn't fathom a Chinese based radio in the German-made car...but recently I bought from Walmart an Android Auto head unit which is Chinese made and sourced from a CA intermediary by Walmart. And I put it in a Ferrari 360 which blends in with the OEM looks and works fantastic.

This got me thinking -- I use Aliexpress quite a bit for various items and I see they have Porsche compatible stereos which are also Android Auto and for a faction of a price ($150 - 350) what it would cost in the USA. Have any of you used them? Here's a picture for reference...




Thank you!

 

Here's the $140 Walmart unit in a 360 - best look and feel and night and day compared to the brand name aftermarket options.


Before - Becker radio, blends in nice with the interior

After install, $140 Power Acoustik Walmart unit

Driving with Android Auto connected

 

May I suggest the guideline, 'you get what you pay for', holds true?
In this case, quality Chinese made (such as Atoto and similar) have a market edge over the lesser-known, lower quality products.



There are numerous other 987-compatible, quality, Android navi available accordingly...

 

If you check on Planet9 there is an excellent multi page thread and guide written up on the full planning and install of one of these units.
I myself was very tempted to get one but then got a great deal on a F7 Atoto similar to the above with wireless android auto so got that instead. They are great units and I haven't had an issue with mine.

 

I recently installed the AliExpress head unit in my 987.1 (2007 Boxster S) with Bose. I ordered an 8GB RAM + 128 GB ROM unit with the MOST adapter for Bose; cost with tax was about $400. I ordered it from Sadocom Official Store on AliExperss, and the wiring harness came with the MOST adapter and the Canbus adapter already pre-wired in the wiring harness and it was completely "plug and play" into my existing vehicle wiring and I did not have to spice any wires for the basic head unit installation (I did have to splice wires for my back-up camera install). The silver color AliExpress head unit for my 987.1 was about a 95% color match (it is not a perfect color match). I have enough RAM/ROM that the unit turns on very quickly, and I've now got wireless Apple CarPlay, radio, USB-A (I use one of the USB-A connections for my Rennline magnetic phone mount that charges my iPhone), back-up camera, and the unit sounds great.

Since it sounds like your familiar with Android-based head units already, this AliExpress unit may be something worth trying out.

 

Thanks, I was not aware of this brand and it's helpful to see the alternative. However, am I reading right that the Atoto units are under $100 currently? I was looking at the F7 briefly...

 

Yes, the F7 is cheaper than the S8 Ultra - or similarly named top end double-DIN unit I purchased (\50,000 or so if I recall)...

 

I have recently installed this one from aliexpress works fine, easy installation just a little bit slow. So I would buy the most powerful version next time with biggest memory capacity. Also cameras that are included are complete garbage, low res like 128x128 pixels.

 

But it's got real *****, a plus

 

Yes!
I looked long and hard for physical *****, and could not find anything so configured.

The Atoto S8 Ultra (and another Chinese manufacturer I think) was generally considered to be one of the fastest and capable devices.
It's been up and operating in my Cayman for one year, and in that time I've had to reboot it twice - once as the GPS antenna wasn't being read (though this might have just been my navi app), and because I could not get the NHK TV app working without a reboot.

No rotary *****, but Volume Up and Down buttons (Skip and Home too) kinda meet the need.
Laggy and slow though it isn't, and the native audio apps are just great.
Twin Bluetooth channels, rear camera with god-view, OBD interface for proper tunnel tracking, TPMS integration, and a few other high-end attributes allow it to easy exceed the capabilities of the aged OEM navi.

It also comes with an Amazon return guarantee too...

 

I had been following this thread in the 997 3 forum and found it interesting

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-gt2-...t-install.html

 

i have it and for it's price it is ok. installation is not that hard (i am noob on wires) but did find many help online.
One thing that i haven't been able to figure out (i have bose amp) is that the volume is not as loud as i wish it could be. when driving top down, i have to set the volume at max (and still wish it could go up another 20% or so). Also my rear speakers no longer works. all sound comes from the front speakers.

The head unit is slow on start up (takes around 2 mins?) and i wish it could be quicker.

 

Woodman 207, this info may help you. Is your car a 987.1 or 987.2? My car is a 2007 987.1 Boxster S with Bose and without navigation.

For volume on these AliExpress units, before we remove our Porsche PCM head units, we have to turn the volume way up before removing the Porsche head unit. Based on multiple other posts I read before I installed my AliExpress head unit, apparently, the Porsche amplifier “remembers” the volume from the Porsche PCM, and the max volume in the amplifier is limited to the volume we had set on our PCM at the time the PCM was removed.

If the volume on your PCM was not turned up very high before you removed it, then recommend removing your AliExpress head unit and then plug in your original Porsche PCM and turn it on and put the volume at about 95% (i.e. very loud). Then turn off the ignition and remove the Porsche PCM and reinstall the AliExpress head unit. No guarantees this will work, but the above could be the trick to fix your volume issue. If you already did the above before removing your PCM, then I don’t have another solution to recommend.

I set the volume on my PCM to almost full volume before I removed it, and my AliExpress unit gets very loud and clear, and I can hear it fine with the top down. I can hear music on the freeway, but obviously, freeway noise limits the clarity of the sound.

With regards to the AliExpress head unit start up speed, in case this helps as a comparison, I purchased an 8 core 8GB RAM/128 GB ROM unit ($400 with the Bose MOST adapter). If I haven't turned on the unit in a few days, it seems to reset and it takes 19 to 20-seconds to boot up. Once it has been turned on once, it completely skips the boot-up process and starts instantly and plays right away when I turn on the ignition.

Like you, my AliExpress unit did not power my rear left and right speakers. I believe the Bose amp still processes the incoming front speaker signal and sends bass to the rear subwoofer center speaker…but not 100% positive. For my 987.1, I was able to figure out how to pull the left and right rear speaker signal from the AliExpress unit and connect the left and right rear speakers from the AliExpress head unit to the Bose rear speakers by tapping into the Bose amplifier input wires in the “frunk” (front trunk). If you have a 987.1, I’d be happy to provide info on how to connect the rear speakers.

 

WOW just WOW... Brother thank you so much for your detail information... i wasn't expecting someone would spend all this time and effort typing up all the detail information. i truely appreciate your help.

I had some research and did find turning the volume all the way up before removing the PCM works better. For Radio my volume is ok even with the top down, but when it comes to android auto, it almost seems the volume dropped another 25% comparing to the radio. I find myself always having to turn all the way up when i am on highway with the top down doing andriod auto listening to songs (i am the ALWAYS top down kinda guy... maybe my ears are bad from all the wind noise).

i am a newbie when it comes to wiring but i would like to know how to tap the wire to have the sub and rear speakers working. I think with the extra speakers and the sub it should sound even nicer?

Again... thank you very much for your detail reply. Wish you a wonderful week whereever you are!

 

Also want to add that i am also driving 987.1. Thank you!