Surovich

Hello Club Lexus -

** This post is intended to simply inform people about the replacement LCD I used and my experience - both with the unit and the then the issues once I found the unit to have a defective screen **

Short history - I purchased my 2019 NX300 in January and my first mod was to replace the LCD with one of the Android replacement units that you see on various sites (Mostly overseas.. I couldnt seem to find a seller in the US).

I found one that looked good - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3296...3c2a7e27r204KY from Navirider. I had to go back and forth with them for a few weeks to see if it would fit the 2019 correctly, since they were not sure - they only had it listed up to the 2018 model, but since the LCD seemed to be the same in the 2018 and 2019 we worked it out that I would try it and if it didnt work I could send it back. Thats where the smoothness of this all went South....

The order took almost 2 months after payment - He had constant excuses about the factory this and that, and then he even told me that they only had the larger 64GB and not the 32GB model and it would cost me $60 more. After some talking he did swap the model without the increased price.

It finally arrived and from the start I had issues here and there - The backup camera wasnt working so he needed to send a different cable, so there goes another month of waiting. During this time I playd with what I could and here are my thoughts:

1. Its not a pretty setup at all - when using the stock radio its fine, but their interface is just bad - Words dont fit under icons correctly, etc... Looks like a GUI from 1991.
2. The temp settings are in Celsius and cannot be changed - they also do not read the real temp settings always sying -40C - They never changed, always -40C on the screen.
3. No way to re-arrange the apps on the screen
4. Joystick control on many apps like Google Music are cumbersome and make using the app next to useless - touchscreen was good but the LCD in the NS or RX arent exactly close to make touchscreen use easy.
5. It has a bluetooth pair and that caused problems with my bluetooth pairing for phone calls on the factory unit
6. Resolution seemed low to me - not as crisp a the the factory LCD
7. Steering wheel controls were finicky - they simply stopped working at random times
8. Voice button wold stop working randomly, but volume buttons may work
9. Volume buttons were reversed - up was down and down was up
10. Includes an extra Mic - I couldnt confirm, but it seemed it could not use the factory Mic??

** Its also not as stylich as the main LCD - it has two small holes in the upper left for a mic and a reset, both labeled in white letters - it just takes away from my RX F-Sport look. The trim around the LCD is also not the same, not a huge deal, but I noticed it. **

There were other issues as well - I found myself using it in Factory mode for the larger screen sine my model was the non-GPS version, so 8.5". I liked the extra size, but once I was happy with the unit I took the blue screen protector off the screen and discovered two bad scrathed on the LCD that were actually under the pastic screen on the LCD itself.

This is where the warning comes in - The seller agreed to replace the unit, but of course he wanted the unit sent back before replacing it. The seller insisted that I needed to declare a low value to avoid duties on his part - so at his request I declared it for $20 - he wouldnt take it back if I didnt declare a low valule. Three months have passed and the tracking has been stuck as "in transit" in China. USPS has told me that it appears to be lost so I opened a case with Aliexpress about the replacement unit or a refund. After a month of discussions, Ali has sided with the seller and informed me that I will get nothing - no refund and the unit it lost. They ignore the fact that the seller isisted I use a low value, so now I can only get $20 from USPS. The seller insists its not his fault and will do nothing for me - I even offered to settle on a 50/50 split of the cost since he wanted the low insurance value and I was dumb enough to do it....

In the end, I am now out $600 and no radio.... Aliexpress and Navrider will not work with me and I just wanted to let the forum know what I ran into. The unit itself is not worth $600, maybe $300 - so I would overall avoid the unit itself.

CareAllend

When you buy an app for iOS or Android, you rightly expect it to work, as Apple and Google have written perfect guidelines for the app developers. Don't expect this from any car maker, for understandable reasons. Anyone designing complex systems interfacing with quite complex electronic car modules will rely on trial&error methodologies to develop something that works, with questionable results. My advise is not to buy these items (nothing to do with China...look at the wonderful dji drones they are building). And thanks for your warning... you're right!

For those who're liking adventure, good luck, you need patience and a strong will to succeed: https://support.etcconnect.com/ETC/F...tronic_Systems

chii888

Can you post pictures?

gilrebel

Thanks for the PSA that were on the fence for this replacement. Hope in future we can get a great unit to replace.

nigel821

iTrader: (2)

Complete headache...arg. Totally feel for ya. How exactly did you pay? If you paid by CC is there any way to dispute the charge?

This is one of the main reason's I avoid the Chinese head units. It's just not worth the time and aggravation that is going to follow. Many people have replaced their headunits on the mercedes forum I'm on but it's a debacle of what you have to go through in order to get everything to work such as steering wheel buttons...etc. On top of that little things like you mentioned such as fitment and or lettering is always off. On the one headhunit instead of writing "SIX" they wrote "SEX"...etc.

The lexus is our newest vehicle so it's got the newest infotainment. It's not perfect but out of everything we drive it's got the most features. My wife loves the newly added carplay but I guess if we always switched cars all the time I'd probably want to have the latest and greatest. 99% of the time I use my phone for streaming and gps. IE: If I can get panadora or spotify to the car I'm fine. All other features are moot to me.

-Nigel

chezgk

https://gromaudio.com/store/vline/le...n-upgrade.html

Been scoping this Android box (uses original LCD) for quite some time but never pulled the trigger on it. It's made by an American company, I believe, and the video demos seem to be promising. They claim full compatibility with the touch pad, too.

Surovich

Yeah, Im an Android guy but I did buy an iPhone for Appleplay to see if I cam just use it in the car tethered and that has promise... Only issue Im concerned with is that I want to just leave the iPhone in the car since I wont use it as a phone and Im not sure about the battery drain. I know they are a low draw but I work from home and I may not drive for 2-3 days at a time...

Surovich

I did see a similar unit as well, before I replaces the original LCD with this one - but I used one like that in my RX a few years ago and it just didnt work right, so I sold it after a week of using it. Im sure they have come a long way since then and that one does look nice - it might be a good option.

slypx

Before upgrading to Apple CarPlay to use with my iPhone, I use to have an iPod permanently connected in a USB port in my NX. No issue at all, the battery would last 4-5 days and more and even if it drains completely you don’t loose your data. Just make sure to close all connectivity like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi and any apps that would use connectivity/location or power in the background.

Surovich

I wanted to keep this in the minds of anyone who may be looking at add-ons like this from Aliexpress - I have been trying to get some help from Ali and twice they have sided with the seller now and refuse to help me. The business has actually told me that the return radio is at the Post Office and they will not pick it up with any value attached to it. USPS has told me that China customs wants a higher value on the radio and with that statement the business replied to me with this:

"we asked you write a low price just because if you write a real product value, we will have to pay a very high import tax, even higher than product price, do you think it is economic and practical for us? "

So they will not pick it up since customs says its more valuable than the declared return value - and I agree with them. The unit just had a bad scratch in the LCD, so its worth more that the $20 or so they told me to use for the value. But since the seller will not pick it up, Im out the $600 and the unit (and worse, what will stop them from picking it up in a few weeks and then they have my money and the unit.)

skyshadow

Anything and everything I have purchased off Aliexpress has lied about specs or was just junk. I have built multiple Ebikes and Ali lies about battery specs, controller specs, hubs specs.. you never get what you ordered.