That's amazing. Is that from the updated radio or updated Can bus? I can deal with Celsius cause I work on computers.

 

I'm still waiting for my USA version CAN BUS decoder to arrive, but I did go ahead and buy a USB CarPlay adapter which adds Apple CarPlay to Android head units like ours. It works great!

Carlinkit USB Car Play Dongle Electronics Cable Connector (HW01-01)

I've read reviews stating that these adapters don't let enough current flow through to the iPhone to effectively charge the phone while using GPS, but I've not had it long enough to test this aspect. What I can say is that I simply installed this adapter inline between my iPhone dock and the Android unit's USB port and it's a seamless experience. Plug in the iPhone and it launches the app and jumps right into CarPlay. Really nice!

If I do end up experiencing charging problems I think I could build a little adapter to go inline just before the phone that delivers more power directly to the phone and passes only the data transmission lines back through to the CarPlay adapter. But I'll see how this works as-is before diving into that project.

 

This is a thing that exists? Amazing I was hoping carplay support would come to these chinesium units, how does it interact with the climate controls and whatnots?

 

 

That's awesome, this unit doesn't seem to ship to Canada in a way that makes sense to buy, once I find one that can i will definitely buy one!

Did you just put it back behind the unit, or do you have USB cables running somewhere for easy access? also I see that there's a version with a mic, did you get that one? or does the mic on our units work fine

 

 

Big update! @ucflexus @Dukenukemx @linkzx

I received my US Version CAN BUS decoder and installed it. While it did not seem to change anything about the radio station numbers, it DID add one important capability: Numeric temperature display for the heat and air conditioning!

See the attached screenshot! It displays only Celsius temperatures, as far as I can tell, but it works perfectly! It's so nice to have this solved!




So apparently, if you have a US model Lexus IS and this stereo, maybe all you need to do is buy the correct CAN BUS decoder. The next screenshot shows my two decoders. The brown version (top) is the original "universal" decoder that shipped with the Android stereo, and the orange version (bottom) is the US Version that I ordered separately later. The orange version is the one that works with my 2011 IS250.




I told my vendor that this worked and he was very happy and a little surprised, I think. (so I'm starting to feel even less confident that they are actually the manufacturer as they claim! Ha!)

If any of you would like to buy this same CAN BUS decoder I can put you in touch with this company. Just send me a private message and I'll send you their WhatsApp address so that you can set up the purchase. The normal price from them is $35 with (I think) free shipping.

Also: I forgot to answer the last question from @linkzx about my CarPlay adapter. Yes, it can use the mic built-in to the Android unit. There's a configuration option in the software that lets you select which mic to use. Works great! Siri always hears me loud and clear. I'll bet this is the same for all of these units, so you probably don't need the exact model I have. They probably all use roughly the same internals.

 

Eyy congrats on the temp numbers, ive been planning to go out and snap that picture of the can bus version, but its freaking cold outside!

 

No problem! I had already purchased this version. I just didn't *actually* believe it was going to make any difference. I'm amazed that it actually did anything.

 

One other bit of news: My vendor tells me that older units (like those running Android 7.x) cannot be upgraded to 8.1 like I have. Now... since this vendor claimed to be the actual manufacturer but, as it turns out, somehow didn't know what effect the US version CAN BUS adapter would have... well, I'm not sure they're the final word on upgrade potential. But it likely DOES mean that they can't provide us with an upgrade for your older units. They probably can't even provide me with an upgrade for my unit which I bought from them. They're probably just another random reseller! But it's all worked out for me, so I'm happy.

Different note: Does anyone have a USB camera hooked up for DVR functionality? I've been thinking about trying this.

 

I dont have one hooked up but I'd really like to, one thing I noticed though is that on the other (and frankly much better) unit I put in my Camry has an app for dvr, my unit doesn't, maybe its not a problem but it worries me anyway

 

There might be a switch or checkbox you need to select to turn on the DVR functionality.

If you look in the "Config Info" inside of "Extra Settings" (at least, I think that's what the menus are called) there are checkboxes for things like RDS and Air Conditioning, or Air Control or something. I think there's a DVR checkbox, too. I'm away from the car at the moment so I can't verify right now, but I'll take a look later. And I'll try the checkbox myself to see if a new app magically appears.

I might try to get this feature activated and just plug in a USB webcam to see what happens.

 

Did anyone that installed this have Navigation prior?

 

I didn't but the listing where I bought it from said they support replacing the nav unit, for an extra cost of course. However I dont know if i'd buy from them again as my wiring harness came all cut up out of the box.