CarPlay CarPlay adapter to convert to wireless CarPlay?

[zerozoneice]

so, after owning both v2 and v3 i can confirm the following:
(both realtek chips, same channel 36)

- V2 uses WiFi 4 - 802.11N, 40Mhz width, PHY 300mbps
- V3 uses WiFi 5 - 802.11AC, 80Mhz width, PHY 433mbps
- V2 transmitting power mid-low 50s
- V3 transmitting power mid-high 50s, even 60-61dBm (seems less powerful signal)
- V3 has so-called "autokit" UI (red/black), V2 classic (green/grey)
- V3 seems to show the Carplay screen slightly faster after turning ignition on. By the time i buckle the seatbelt and select gear, it's on (max 8-10 seconds for me).
- same design, same cable
- V3 package box seems smaller / "thinner" (sealed package image) compared to "squared" v2 box from last year
- V3 has slightly more stuff engraved on the backside than V2

V3 box came with some June firmware, i updated 2-3 times and ended up on latest 2021.08.24

Now the interesting part: I can swear that prior to 24.08 FW (i fired up the android wifi analyzer while on 2021.07.05 i think, just before updating to latest 24.08) the PHY was 867mbps. Now on latest FW it's settled to 433mbps. Could this be the "power optimization for less heat" mentioned in the 24.08 FW?

The Carlinkit 3.0 Mini is another device altogether, white, rounded-square shape, passive cooling vents. Available only in China atm, no EU warehouses in stock. Early reports suggest heating & stability issues. Has new BT 5.0 chip.

Best bet atm is the 2.0 v3 device.

 

[simps100]

so, after owning both v2 and v3 i can confirm the following:
(both realtek chips, same channel 36)

- V2 uses WiFi 4 - 802.11N, 40Mhz width, PHY 300mbps
- V3 uses WiFi 5 - 802.11AC, 80Mhz width, PHY 433mbps
- V3 has so-called "autokit" UI (red/black), V2 classic (green/grey)
- V3 seems to show the Carplay screen slightly faster after turning ignition on. By the time i buckle the seatbelt and select gear, it's on (max 8-10 seconds for me).
- same design, same cable
- V3 package box seems smaller / "thinner" (sealed package image) compared to "squared" v2 box from last year
- V3 has slightly more stuff engraved on the backside than V2

V3 box came with some June firmware, i updated 2-3 times and ended up on latest 2021.08.24

Now the interesting part: I can swear that prior to 24.08 FW (i fired up the android wifi analyzer while on 2021.07.05 i think, just before updating to latest 24.08) the PHY was 867mbps. Now on latest FW it's settled to 433mbps. Could this be the "power optimization for less heat" mentioned in the 24.08 FW?

The Carlinkit 3.0 Mini is another device altogether, white, rounded-square shape, passive cooling vents. Available only in China atm, no EU warehouses in stock. Early reports suggest heating & stability issues. Has new BT 5.0 chip.

Best bet atm is the 2.0 v3 device.

How do you find lag on phone calls compares between the 2, any noticeable differences?

 

[zerozoneice]

How do you find lag on phone calls compares between the 2, any noticeable differences?

made just one call, it seemed fine. On V2 i noticed lag when answering an incoming call (press green, wait 1-2s then call timer appears. On V3 i dialled out myself so can't compare yet apples to apples Just got the V3 today, will test more. Dropped delay from default 1000ms to 500ms, no audio stutter/creakes/hiccups yet...but was already ok-ish on the V2 around 500ms, so.... can't say for sure.

 

[samabbott]

made just one call, it seemed fine. On V2 i noticed lag when answering an incoming call (press green, wait 1-2s then call timer appears. On V3 i dialled out myself so can't compare yet apples to apples Just got the V3 today, will test more. Dropped delay from default 1000ms to 500ms, no audio stutter/creakes/hiccups yet...but was already ok-ish on the V2 around 500ms, so.... can't say for sure.

Thanks for the detailed information! I ordered a v3.0 from the previous page. Should be here tomorrow. The 'new' v2.0 I have has some weird issues as well.. If the 3.0 doesn't work I'll probably give the mini a shot in a few months when it's available.

 

[Garkan]

so, after owning both v2 and v3 i can confirm the following:
(both realtek chips, same channel 36)

- V2 uses WiFi 4 - 802.11N, 40Mhz width, PHY 300mbps
- V3 uses WiFi 5 - 802.11AC, 80Mhz width, PHY 433mbps
- V2 transmitting power mid-low 50s
- V3 transmitting power mid-high 50s, even 60-61dBm (seems less powerful signal)
- V3 has so-called "autokit" UI (red/black), V2 classic (green/grey)
- V3 seems to show the Carplay screen slightly faster after turning ignition on. By the time i buckle the seatbelt and select gear, it's on (max 8-10 seconds for me).
- same design, same cable
- V3 package box seems smaller / "thinner" (sealed package image) compared to "squared" v2 box from last year
- V3 has slightly more stuff engraved on the backside than V2

V3 box came with some June firmware, i updated 2-3 times and ended up on latest 2021.08.24

Now the interesting part: I can swear that prior to 24.08 FW (i fired up the android wifi analyzer while on 2021.07.05 i think, just before updating to latest 24.08) the PHY was 867mbps. Now on latest FW it's settled to 433mbps. Could this be the "power optimization for less heat" mentioned in the 24.08 FW?

The Carlinkit 3.0 Mini is another device altogether, white, rounded-square shape, passive cooling vents. Available only in China atm, no EU warehouses in stock. Early reports suggest heating & stability issues. Has new BT 5.0 chip.

Best bet atm is the 2.0 v3 device.

I want to test mine too, can you tell me the app name? i opened it up and its no mention of Realtek on any chip. I have a v3 produced in April i think.

 

[xmoo]

Hi, Anyone with Green UI - Have the latest update?

The Mini unit that just came out - is this the best unit to buy? i.e WiFi6?

Nope, nothing here.

 

[zerozoneice]

I want to test mine too, can you tell me the app name? i opened it up and its no mention of Realtek on any chip. I have a v3 produced in April i think.

app name is WifiMan

 

[BleedingMe]

V3 isn't necessarily WiFi 5.

 

[Garkan]

app name is WifiMan

It dosent shows that stats on iphone..

 

[Arnau]

Did the wifi check on the podofo/cheerdriving cheap alternative, reports as:

-38dBm
WiFi 4 802.11n
PHY 150 MBps
CH149 - 5735-5775MHz
Width 40MHz

Seeing the carplay functionality works perfectly, I think a "better and faster wifi" is not really something that really matters at all.

 

[M.Mowner]

It dosent shows that stats on iphone..

iPhone is my primary phone, but I purchased an Android phone just for WiFi analysis. Android app WiFi Analyzer and WiFiMan provide a lot more information than what free iOS apps can do.

 

[Garkan]

Damn, no spare android phone atm.

 

[zerozoneice]

iPhone is my primary phone, but I purchased an Android phone just for WiFi analysis. Android app WiFi Analyzer and WiFiMan provide a lot more information than what free iOS apps can do.

there are no proper wifi analyzers on ios anymore afaik.
80mhz is channel bonding which should provide more throughput than 20 or 40 mhz
wifi is key in carplay since all comms go thru it. BT is used only for initial pairing afaik.
@simps100 which audio call lag did you refer to exactly? how to repro it?

 

[simps100]

there are no proper wifi analyzers on ios anymore afaik.
80mhz is channel bonding which should provide more throughput than 20 or 40 mhz
wifi is key in carplay since all comms go thru it. BT is used only for initial pairing afaik.
@simps100 which audio call lag did you refer to exactly? how to repro it?

So I’ve found when using wireless car play there’s a bit of a delay in call audio vs wired / normal call and can make for some awkward conversations talking over each other etc I think some other shave mentioned it too.

not sure if there’s some sort of latency testing number can call? I’ve not found one in the U.K. !

 

[dvst8s]

So I’ve found when using wireless car play there’s a bit of a delay in call audio vs wired / normal call and can make for some awkward conversations talking over each other etc I think some other shave mentioned it too.

not sure if there’s some sort of latency testing number can call? I’ve not found one in the U.K. !

I have yet to notice a delay on a call, I do notice it with music though.

 

[ForceX]

I have the Carlinkit v2 I "successfully" updated to the latest version today (OTA). It said it fixed power and heat issues not sure of the revision number i believe it was August_?_2021. After the update the unit just searches for my iPhone starts to connect then fails to connect. The iPhone's Bluetooth shows that it is connected but the unit just resets the connection and retries, endlessly.

Trying to rollback the unit does not respond to any of the rollback img. I have tried many rollback files and renaming them U2W_Update.img & U2W_AUTOKIT_Update.img but the unit just stays solid red.

Any ideas are welcome.

Edit : Problem fixed. I figured out that I can connect directly to the wifi and rollback using the web interface.

 

[Mavro]

OK -- received my V3.0 dongle (red interface), confirmed it's running at 802.11AC -- this is out of the box (says volkswagon).

 

[Mavro]

Weird - on the v3.0 I can install the latest official firmware, but if I try to install any of the custom firmware I get update failed. I must be missing something.

EDIT: seems like I could only update using the latest Autokit firmware, then rollback via web interface.

 

[samabbott]

OK -- received my V3.0 dongle (red interface) -- it has ver 2020.11.10.2139 on it... how do I update it with @VLud CFW? It's not taking any of the updates.

Also - confirmed it's running at 802.11AC -- this is out of the box (says volkswagon).View attachment 1826234View attachment 1826239

That's interesting. Based on your screenshot compared to the one above (the one above w/ 2021.08.30); it looks like they might have disabled one of the radio spatial streams. This would explain the drop in bandwidth; and could actually hurt some performance. The screenshot above w/ the latest update shows 433mbps and no longer 2x2MIMO...

I wish they would give control over the radio, e.g. allowing users to set the channel, width, etc... I would imagine a 20MHz channel on 165 would offer a more stable and reliable connection, compared to the lower channels. When I drive through radio-busy areas, my connection will often cutout, sometimes to the point of my phone disconnecting. 2x2 @ 20MHz would still offer ~170mbps link-rate//~100mbps usable throughput.

I think I'll hold off on taking the 08.30.2021 update on the v3.0 I received today. It came loaded with the 03.06.2021; I've upgraded it to the point it's wanting the 08.30.2021 update. I verified it's running the same as mentioned in the reply; 2x2 @80Mhz//867mbps w/ the 03.06.2021 but didn't verify on the version prior to 08.30.2021. I'll check again tomorrow and make sure it's still showing the 867mbps link-rate.

 

[Mavro]

That's interesting. Based on your screenshot compared to the one above (the one above w/ 2021.08.30); it looks like they might have disabled one of the radio spatial streams. This would explain the drop in bandwidth; and could actually hurt some performance. The screenshot above w/ the latest update shows 433mbps and no longer 2x2MIMO...

I wish they would give control over the radio, e.g. allowing users to set the channel, width, etc... I would imagine a 20MHz channel on 165 would offer a more stable and reliable connection, compared to the lower channels. When I drive through radio-busy areas, my connection will often cutout, sometimes to the point of my phone disconnecting. 2x2 @ 20MHz would still offer ~170mbps link-rate//~100mbps usable throughput.

I think I'll hold off on taking the 08.30.2021 update on the v3.0 I received today. It came loaded with the 03.06.2021; I've upgraded it to the point it's wanting the 08.30.2021 update. I verified it's running the same as mentioned in the reply; 2x2 @80Mhz//867mbps w/ the 03.06.2021 but didn't verify on the version prior to 08.30.2021. I'll check again tomorrow and make sure it's still showing the 867mbps link-rate.

So I just confirmed... 2021.07.05.2319 is 2x2MIMO. The 2021.08.24.1817 drops it down to 433...

 

[Mavro]

@VLud possible to get a custom firmware of 2021.07.05.2319 which has the 2x2MIMO settings? I bet we could set the channel too in the config.

 

[samabbott]

So I just confirmed... 2021.07.2319 is 2x2MIMO. The 2021.08.24.1817 drops it down to 433...

Awesome, yeah... I don't know if I like that they disabled one of the spatial streams. Hopefully it's stable on the version prior... I presume future releases will likely do something similar.

Thanks for the quick reply!

 

[Mavro]

I just did a test between V2.0 which is 802.11n and V3.0 which is running 802.11ac 2x2MIMO using iPhone 12 Pro Max running iOS 15 (BETA) -- anecdotally, I see no difference thus far.

 

[BleedingMe]

OK -- received my V3.0 dongle (red interface), confirmed it's running at 802.11AC -- this is out of the box (says volkswagon).

Interesting part is that it is a Realtek based...

 

[Kurt871]

Anyone have a link to the AUTOKIT (i.e. red UI) version of 2021.07.05.2319? Not up on the GitHub repo unfortunately.