M072 (S160) Android Head Unit Install/Info

[sheppy1]

Hi all,

So this thread will be used for me to gather info and then add it to this original post...rather than having info all over various threads etc.

I want to start off by linking to the module I'm personally installing:

http://www.iceboxauto.com/vauxhall-opel-...id-44-m072

There are two other main models I'm aware of which are the C072 and A1884 (think that's the model number) which have varying differences (both available on iceboxauto to take a look at).

Anyway I will focus on this specific model atm so we can try and figure out what does what, what's needed, what can be adapted to work from factory, what won't work etc. 

Hoping to take some of the confusion out of buying aftermarket units too!

Thanks to @marcus we now have pics of the actual item that you'll get from iceboxauto! I've added two of them to this actual thread and below is an album containing the rest of the photos that he took...these are ALL his photos so credit to @marcus for them.. thanks mate! 

http://imgur.com/a/bPVLy  

The interfaces 
I want to try and list what they are all for and whether some may or may not be needed for most purposes



1. Obvious...just connects straight up to factory wiring
2.  External optional antenna for DTV
3.  External optional antenna for ATV
4. Same as 2
5. For the bluetooth MIC...they give you a MIC which connects to this and then fits into the head unit fascia I believe?
6. 
7. 
8. This plugs into the FACTORY USB connector that you already have (or can even buy) you don't need to do any modifications at all to get this working 
9. Plug that provides the power, earth and video feeds for the reverse camera
10. Standard power supply support provided by the original factory wiring
11. As stated
12. ?? 
13. Should be to provide a TV feed to other monitors in the car
14. As above but allows for show recording
15. 
16. 
17. 
18.

Below are three of the main accessories which are listed as working with this unit (other however probably will work):

The Wires

I will update this with pics of the real wires when I get my unit but for now I found this pic on an eBay listing for a model that looks almost the same...the M model found on the icebox site may not be the same but it should come with all/most of the same wires as below:


ACCESSORIES 

REAR CAMERA 
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mini-Dual-Use-...3cc43e1bdb
DVB-T 
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TOUCH-SCREEN-H...3a98a5beb3
DVR CAMERA
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Car-Dash-DVR-R...4180eeb8de

I'm personally buying the following wireless reverse camera which @rusty2009 suggested I buy so will report back on how well that works!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VAUXHALL-Wirel...Sw3ydViDVu

Firmware Update

I found the below information on the official forum which states how to update the FW on this unit (it's an S160 series, each unit generation has a series number like this). I will be doing this should mine need updating when it arrives.

http://www.roadnav.com/forum/firmware-aa...structions

Official URL for Product Info
http://www.roadnav.com.cn/show_content.php?id=653

Product Videos
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xYBr-uyt6o

3G Mobile Dongle

On the official site it states that this dongle is tried and tested and supported on this unit:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Huawei-E173-HS...1855214345?

You can connect the above USB dongle into any USB port that's connected to the head unit and the data will work like it does on a mobile.

You can also use the following style Mobile Wi-Fi dongle and connect to it via Wi-Fi on the head unit and get data that way (this is the method I use)



Tutorial Videos from the Manufacturer

These explain how to do things like change the boot up logo and various other things:

http://www.witson.com/en/introduce001.ht...roid%204.4

I am going to add a lot more especially with regards to the extra modules etc. that you can buy...I will also post loads of pics when the unit comes and make a full tut out of all this...as i say there is no real info anywhere for this and what there is out there is mainly in chinese or german lol.

Other Useful Info

You may find that your unit shows that the doors are on the wrong side on the little diagram when it notifies you of an open door. To fix this you'll need to go into the phone app and dial ##0323 and hit call. This will bring you to a hidden menu and if you scroll to the bottom there will be an option for LHD and RHD so just pick the correct option and job done

Latest RoadNav Firmware (As of now this is 12th June 2016)

RoadNav don't provide changelogs with their firmware updates but this one at the very least adds a larger user app install partition (now 2gb for your personal apps). I believe it also provides faster boot up too.

Link to latest firmware: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/smm7ai4cnt58g...H-p1a?dl=0

Feel free to tell me what any of the above do or if anything needs adding.

Cheers

Below is a review from forum user @xtech on the unit:

So i've just installed the S160 M072 yesterday that i got from iceboxauto.

I had previously the CD400 (which i loved, but it hadn't a big color screen and GPS, two "must" features on my cars). The installation took me long time (about 4 hours) because it was the first time i've worked on an Astra J and i had no natural light. I did it in my garage which hasn't enough natural light as it is on the basement of my house...

Installation

I had to figure out how to remove certain things like the lighter trim (as i needed to reconnect things up) but generally speaking that wasn't the most difficult part. The most difficult part is to get all the wires behind the DVD reader unit... it is a headache which i could only figure after one hour, after trying several times! The most difficult part was where to hide the BIG CHINESE speaker of the unit and the large connector. Thank God i've manage to hide them. I've also drilled (and polished it to get a nice finish on the hole) the center speaker panel to pass the GPS antenna wire.

* * * * * * * * * * Feedback * * * * * * * * * * *

Overall

It's still to early to say, but the unit is good. I've had other chinese unit in my previous astra h, and this M072 is way way better in every aspect. Overall it seems to have nice quality, good software integration, very responsive. The unique odd thing i've noticed was that "sudden volume peak" when changing the volume on the panel volume wheel. But it may be some hidden setting as i feel the volume of sometimes changes in certain situations. Sound quality seems about the same as the CD400 - maybe it has slightly less definition, nothing noticeable really - but it's too early for me to say that. Overal functionalities are good and this is definitely a step up considering the CD400 unit.

Screen
The screen shines (figuratively - which is good, and literally... which isn't - it has too much glare!). So i guess i'll try to buy some kind of anti glare film. The screen has very good quality, on par with an average tablet - which is very good for a chinese unit. My previous chines unit had a resistive screen (which i hated) and besides that i couldn't see it under direct sunlight. This one, i can - thumbs up for these chinese guys. The screen reacts very well to the touch. The problem is... this Astra was not made to have a touch screen - it's too far from comfortable reach. Although you can reach it while driving, it gets unconfortable as you need to stretch a bit to reach it - and when you do it you loose pointing precision.

Functionalities

I think this is the best point. It has everything you will ever need. The fact of having built-in wifi is great: i used my Microsoft Lumia smartphone as a mobile hotspot and it worked great - get your emails and calendar there, watch youtube videos, etc. The interface seems good enough, and it has an "Android mode" which is like a typical Android 4 enviroment. If you are confortable with it - i am, as my previous mobile ran on Android 4 - you will love the M072.

The integration with the car functionalities is excellent. Everything works as it should, and any oddity can be solved with the "key mapper" app it has. The car diagnostics work well (they lack some calibration, i guess, as i pressed toe down the brake pedal and it only show me i was pressing it 44%) but the window, door, consumption, parking sensor information is good. The parking information is even more detailed that the one you see on the tachometer screen. The radio works fine - but not as good as the CD400 interface wise - a typicall chinese thing. It won't show you the music name going on the radio, and i am having a hard time to save stations on the presets...

The navigation works good, the GPS has enough sensitivity, but as it is a "connected" unit it can use A-GPS which decreases cold start time and improves precision. I've not tried any other GPS software besides the one that comes with the unit - seems good enough and it has traffic info for my city - Porto, so i see no reason to replace it in the near future. The maps seem quite up to date too.

Regarding the bluetooth, it seems working good. I've tried and it worked instantly. I've made a call, and (answering to the people that asked  about it) the internal mic works fine . The other person could hear me perfectly, as i suspected (my previous experience on the astra h chinese unit with the internal mic was good, so i was expecting it now to be too). As i said in a previous post, i didn't install the ugly external mic as i was confident the internal mic would suffice. Thankfully, it did! So, there's no need to install the external mic.

Final Remarks

I would like to thank you all for your posts and your help - they were fundamental for the installation of the unit. Thank you guys!

Here is one photo of my unit in the car: