Pioneer AVH-Z9250BT
Drivers in Singapore are keeping their cars for longer periods and some are even extending their COE (Certificate of Entitlement) beyond the original period of ten years. While it is possible to frequently service and replace your car’s mechanical components to keep it running like new, making sure your car’s infotainment is modern is a trickier proposition. Fortunately, Pioneer’s new flagship in-car multimedia receiver makes it all possible.
The in-car receiver in question is the new AVH-Z9250BT and it gives users all features that they’d expect in a modern in-car infotainment system. For a start, it has a large 7-inch capacitive touch display that is smooth and responsive to inputs. It also supports a fairly high resolution of 840 x 480 pixels. Admittedly, there are rivals with sharper higher resolution displays, but the Pioneer’s visuals are sufficiently crisp and vivid.
But perhaps most importantly for users, the AVH-Z9250BT supports both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, allowing users to use their smartphones and access their music and navigational apps with their cars. Best of all, the AVH-Z9250BT supports wireless connectivity of both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, meaning drivers need not plug cables into their phones to connect to the receiver. With my iPhone XS Max, I got connected in mere seconds.
Run your favorite navigation apps on your car’s dashboard with the Pioneer AVH-Z9250BT
The usage experience was excellent on a par with any modern car I have tested. On previous Pioneer flagships, there was noticeable lag partly because of the less responsive resistive screen and also partly because of the slower hardware. On the AVH-Z9250BT, scrolling through playlists and panning around maps was smooth and fluid.
Wireless mirroring is also supported but only on Android phones. This enables you to mirror your Android phone’s display and control it from the AVH-Z9250BT. The feature works well enough though I won’t suggest using it while you are driving since the interface isn’t optimized with large icons for easy control like Android Auto is. Additionally, for Android users, this is one way you can get YouTube to run on the AVH-Z9250BT.
The AVH-Z9250BT also supports digital media like music and videos via physical media like CDs, SD cards, and USB flash drives. It can play back Full-HD videos across a variety of popular file formats including H.264 MP4, WMV, DivX, MPEG, and more. As for music, it supports MP3, AAC, WMV, WAV, and FLAC.
And if you have an existing in-car entertainment setup, you will be happy to learn that the AVH-Z9250BT supports dual zone video and audio — so passengers in the rear seats can watch and listen to videos and music independent of the driver and front passenger. Finally, the AVH-Z9250BT also supports your existing reserve camera and even provides parking guidance. All in all, the AVH-Z9250BT is a great way to breathe new life into your car especially if it has an aging infotainment system.
CONCLUSION
If your car’s infotainment system lacks modern features, this is a worthy upgrade.
AT A GLANCE
DISPLAY 7-inch capacitive
OS SUPPORT Apple CarPlay, Android Auto
POWER OUTPUT 50W x 4
PRICE $1,199
PICTURES PIONEER,123RF DIGITAL IMAGING ASHRUDDIN SANI
