Another Rosen Navigation System Install...

To answer some of the questions above -

1 - In the back of the unit, there is a blue wire labeled "brake" - From my experience, it's the infamous wire that allows you to use (or not use) functions while the car is in motion... It is not recommended to do this, but usually when you "ground" these wires, you're allowed access to all settings even while driving. Rosen's instructions are to hook it up to the brake wire of course... but who am I to follow such instructions...

2 - To get the cable through the center console, you have to... "remove"... the armrest out of the way... a very easy (I emphasize on easy) step to take to get a clean look... I followed the instructions on pages 17 of this PDF: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...sg=AFQjCNGlpvUt1EP3UGns_RFBmjH4FEo_Fg&cad=rja

3 - The GPS antenna is literally on TOP of the radio unit... the antenna is really small, I'd day a 4"x4" rounded square about 1.5" tall... You can see an example of one here: Antenna GPS 3V Magnetic Mount SMA (SMA-J) - eBay (item 280531786565 end time Nov-05-10 08:30:40 PDT)

4 - Unfortunately, I don't have an Iphone 4 (yet) - but my 3G and my wife's 3GS work... Once the Nano is plugged in, you can control everything via the Touchscreen, the Knob OR the Steering Wheel controls to browse your music etc. Everything happens instantly without any delays... However, I don't believe it displays album art unless I need to mess around with the settings which I haven't really been doing... but you certainly DO NOT need to change things via the Ipod itself...

There is one thing I find quirky with it... and it's the fact that the NAV button on the front of the unit only turns the navigation ON or OFF... if you're in a navigation menu and you hit the NAV button, it won't return you to the "map", it'll just turn off the navigation function and open whatever source that is playing at the moment i.e. the IPOD or RADIO... Rosen could've made that "NAV" button the same as a "MAP" button. And the "MENU" button only works when you're using the sources (RADIO/DVD/CD/MP3/IPOD/PHONE etc.) it doesn't operate when you're in the navigation mode...

Basically, you can tell that the OS running the unit is separate from the SD card that runs the navigation.. so they don't share anything in terms of functionality except the touchscreen LOL
My JVC KW NX7000 was like that, but the transitions were a LOT smoother than the Rosen.... these guys could use a few lessons still.. LOL

"MUTE" button works great! "SEEK" buttons work great! "RADIO" button works great! "DISC" and "EJECT" Buttons work like a charm! "NAV" button only turns navigation on and off and serves no other purpose and the "MENU" button only works when the Sources screens are displayed

 

LOL - it's a lot of fun!
That YouTube video helped me out a lot - It helped me visualize what I was going to do ahead of time. From that video, I already knew which parts to take out, where the connectors were, etc etc.

About running the IPod cable - You there is pretty nice gap behind the Climate Control and it opens up into the "shifter" area... You just need to snake the wire through and run it at the bottom of the armrest/center console - I then unplugged and popped out the "AUX" input and ran the wire through there...

I'm a bit of a freak when it comes to things looking as "factory/stock" as possible, so I try to make the unit look like it came as it is from the dealership... lol Also, the USB cable is not the longest, so I ran it into the glovebox (I hardly use it) - and I can tell you that you will NOT need to drill a hole into the glovebox to run it, there are plenty of gaps to take care of that for you!

Ha ha ha - Thanks Tarmac for the picture! That is EXACTLY how I have my antenna mounted... (great minds think alike I guess) LOL

I am more curious about the unit in terms of "functionality" though... I feel that Rosen has really limited it from customization... I wanna be able to access the program files and do some poking around... I already pulled out the GPS SD card and opened up a few files and found out how to change the "Rosen Naviextras" boot splash screen... I don't plan on stopping there...
Does anyone know if it boots up from a Hard Drive to run the main unit? Or does it use an internal SD card to boot up from...? I want access to the system files but can't find that information ANYWHERE!!!

Why? I'm a former member of http://www.mp3car.com - Way before I started getting involved with in-dash navigation systems, I used to run a CarPC in my previous cars - and I used to be able to change/modify the Front End and make them my own... I'm seeing such potential with the Rosen unit.... so I'm itching...

 

I would strongly advise anyone who's interested to get it from them:
Frank Motors on Ebay - It's a Toyota Dealership - They are great with communication and ship/respond pretty fast to inquiries. Here's a link:
Toyota Prius 2010 Rosen In-Dash Multi-Media Navigation: eBay Motors (item 310258571633 end time Dec-04-10 12:43:48 PST)
You can "Make An Offer" and lower it even more - I made him and offer and got it for $950.00 - Not sure if everyone will have the same luck or even more luck than me... but I personally think that the $1200 is WAY too much for this unit...

I can guarantee that a beginner can install this unit for sure - Just take the time and try not to rush through it - Take the time to tape up around the dash so that things don't get cratched up by accident... I used regular painter's Masking Tape that wouldn't leave any adhesive residues behind.

 

I'll definitely share that with everyone - I'm digging - =)

 

Cloud - You don't really have to solder anything really - Once you pull your old radio out, find any screw that's bolted onto a metal part of the dash and that's your ground -