PioneerAppRadio
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Livio Internet-Radio App available for Pioneer's App Radio, woo
In "bolting the stable door two days after the CES horse has bolted news," in-car radio company Livio just officially announced that you'll be able to get the app on Pioneer's AppRadio 2 car stereo (announced Monday). Since one of our gripes with the initial AppRadio was its lack of additional apps, we'll happily take everything more we can get on the $500 in-car-entertainment system of choice. The shortest PR we've seen this week is available after the break, too.
Pioneer AppRadio review
dockBoss+ adapter brings iOS speaker dock compatibility to Android, BlackBerry and WP7 handsets* Pioneer announces Aha Radio partnership, plans for app domination Hyundai announces Blue Link telematics system, makes texting your Sonata a sweet possibility If you drive, and if you read Engadget (which...you do), there's a good chance you've spent some time using an iOS device in the car. You've probably also spent some of that time wishing there were a better way to integrate your phone or pod with the car itself. There have been devices to help you bring Pod and vehicle together in an unholy union of distraction since that first physical scroll wheel hit the scene, from maddening tape adapters and FM tuners to more integral solutions like Ford's Sync system. The whole time, we were kind of just wishing they'd figure out a way to let us mount the thing directly in the dash, and have our way with it as we do in all other situations. Pioneer's AppRadio approaches that -- it looks unapologetically like a bigger iPod in landscape mode, complete with minimalistic physical controls and a laid-back, no-nonsense look about it. Does it, in fact, make the iPhone more useful while you're in the car? Turns out, it's a yes and no kind of thing. %Gallery-136181%
Pioneer AppRadio hands-on (updated with video!)
We got a chance to experience Pioneer's iOS-connected in-dash AppRadio in action this afternoon, and even got to see the thing running in a real-deal automobile. So did it meet our expectations? Well, to be perfectly honest, we didn't know what to expect, but for what it promises, which is bringing the convenience and connectivity of iOS apps to your car, we suppose it does a fine job -- even if it only supports a handful apps at the moment. More after the break. %Gallery-124475%
Pioneer AppRadio brings apps, iPhone connectivity to your dash
If Pioneer's AppRadio (SPH-DA01) ever sees the light of day, it'll join a long list of integrated and aftermarket products trying to play off of the iPhone's success. According to CrunchGear (and its anonymous tipster), the FCC-leaked device boasts a 6.1-inch touchscreen and built-in apps, along with a USB port for accessing content (and presumably, the data connection) on your iOS 4.1 devices. We imagine the hardware to be similar to the 6.1-inch AVIC-X930BT that Pioneer announced at CES, including Bluetooth connectivity, a microSD card slot, and GPS functionality, in addition to an AM/FM radio and single-disc CD player. iPhone connectivity really sets this receiver apart, along with the inclusion of additional apps, such as Pandora and iHeartRadio, with the possibility of adding more apps in the future as well. We're incredibly skeptical about the device's GUI having any basis on the mockup image above, but if graphics are anything like those on the models we saw at CES, we don't expect to be disappointed either.
