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Joying Auto 8.8" Wide Android Head Unit Installed

137K views 418 replies 82 participants last post by  zr33 
#1 ·
I installed the Joying 8.8" Android head unit with Android 8.0, Oreo, 8-core CPU, 4GB RAM and 32GB of storage and it worked out perfectly. It doesn't block the air vents or the control buttons panel. I just adjusted the monitor mounts one peg down. I bought a sheet of Alfa Romeo stickers on eBay to cover the Joying logo and that actually turned out okay (see the pics).

There was a 10.25" wide monitor also available, but even though I wanted the biggest screen possible, the 8.8" one was more aesthetically pleasing in the 4C. I think if you wanted to later, you could get the larger screen and just pop it on. One more thing, I heard horror stories of buying directly from their site and having to return the unit so I ordered mine for a little more on Amazon to get some buyer protection.

SOUND
The sound quality is excellent and as good as with the Alpine head unit and its 9 band parametric EQ. The problem is the only way to control the volume is by a taskbar that is only sometimes at the top of the screen so it's at least a three tap/click affair. The mono RCA subwoofer has no settings at all and seems to be a preamp out connect to the front RCA output as tested with the fader. The scale on the volume goes to 32 but it's way loud already at 11 so I think the amplifier's gain settings need to be lowered, but I have no way to get to them. I still get clear vocals, crisp highs and full, deep bass (Focal amplified sub under passenger footwell).

FEATURES
It comes with an app called ZLink which provides full Apple Carplay and Android Auto. I can confirm that Carplay works exactly like on my Hyundai with no issues. Phone calls seem to work great as confirmed with friends, but using Carplay, two people said they heard echoes of their own voices with a 1 second delay. Bluetooth calls were fine, but I've yet to test this on the freeway, however, the Alpine worked great there so I think it'll be good.

This is basically an Android tablet so you can install anything on it so I got Poweramp for music, VLC for video, Crunchyroll for anime (Yah I'm a weeb), Waze, etc. but all of these need WiFi which the head unit has. It also comes with the Torque app for vehicle monitoring and fault codes and I bought a $10 OBDII bluetooth thingy. You can also install a DVR using the secondary USB port. I still want to do the reverse camera but I'm lazy so I'll save that for later. The radio app works well and I was able to pull in all the stations I wanted. I shoved the GPS antenna in the passenger side of the dash squeezed between it and the windshield with velcro wrapped around it.

You can have a 3D wallpaper like an aquarium, koi pond, and falling leaves. Here's a showing the looping video I made as the background using the Video Live Wallpaper app. I used a bit from the Grand Tour's Alfa Romeo 4C segment. I love how this turned out and with the right songs it looks even better. Also, you can choose the car manufacturer logo from a list and of course I picked the Alfa Romeo boot logo.

DOWNSIDES:
Since everything is application based, you get weird scratching sounds sometimes and music cutting out briefly. Apps sometimes fight over who owns the sound and sometimes after waking from sleep, the WiFi doesn't work and there might not be sound. One time the rear channel (which on mine is connected to the 6.5" door woofers in a bi-amp setup) just stopped working. All of these issues can be fixed with a soft reboot which takes about 30 seconds from what I recall. You can set the unit to sleep for two days which means it wakes up in 2 seconds. I'm going to pay attention if this causes any extra battery drain, but I drive it often so it should be an problem. The on-screen volume control is kind of an issue, but if it bugs me in the future, I will install an Audison bit Ten D with the digital remote control dial as I feel the volume should always be a dial.

Since the monitor is super wide, you only have two rows of icons as the bottom row is fixed like on an iPhone. For things like Google Maps or Poweramp fiddly to use as you have a very thin window of usable space. Lastly, the USB port doesn't recognize drives formatted in exFAT, but can see NTFS or FAT32.


Sorry for the long post but I'm really excited how well this turned out and love that it almost looks factory. This does almost everything I want as far as in-car-entertainment goes and to have it in my dream car makes it even more awesome. If you guys have any questions or want me to test anything, let me know.
 

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#129 ·
Well I finally got my car back and have installed my 8.8 inch Joying Unit. Everything seems to be working well so far and it's a vast improvement over the standard Alpine unit, both in looks and functionality.

I've only been for two relatively short drives with it so far (about 30 mins each time) and the unit & screen do seem to get quite hot. Have others that have this unit also noticed that it gets pretty hot? I'm just wondering if mine is normal or has some sort of heat sink issue...
 
#132 ·
I've only been for two relatively short drives with it so far (about 30 mins each time) and the unit & screen do seem to get quite hot. Have others that have this unit also noticed that it gets pretty hot? I'm just wondering if mine is normal or has some sort of heat sink issue...
I just had a thought that this heat issue might be due to the live wallpaper app running constantly on the home screen. It came installed on the unit and I didn't bother changing it, but I will disable it and see if runs cooler.
 
#136 · (Edited)
In case users of this head unit missed it....member Joeker did a Youtube video of using the Android app Torque Pro on it. I use Torque Pro on a cell phone and it is great for a lot of information from your car via a BlueTooth OBDII devide that plugs into the OBDII port under the dash. These are cheap. They take additional information from the cars OBDII such as boost, speed, oil temp/pressure, etc. and allow you to access it with the Torque app. That app also lets you time things like 0-60, quarter mile times/speed via the GPS. Not sure what the speed of the GPS is on the Joying but if you have 10mhz you get quite accurate information. I don't have the Joying unit but may in the future....but the ability to put Torque on it would be a big plus for me.
 
#140 ·
I see different screen sizes on Amazon... 6.2".7" 8" and they also show another 7" specifically for Jeep....wondering which is ideal/correct size....I wouldn't mind the smallest screen but it may not be the latest version. Also.....with Parrot radio now....do you need a different harness or kit to install? Thinking of doing the conversion although my Parrot still works fine after a firm ware update?
 
#146 ·
This looks great. I just scheduled install of the Halo 9 from Alpine.
Made deal to buy 4C Spider tonight, but was already debating Halo 9 if I got the car. Take plenty of pics of it installed and please write a good review about how it works. Figured Alpine would be a fairly easy install given the Alpine Premium Sound option, but who really knows for sure?
 
#149 ·
There are some pics of the Halo 9 in a 4C here in another thread. It’s definitely a nicer unit, but the screen being a standard 4:3 proportion means it blocks the vents. We need a smaller/wider option from them. Both are plug and play in the 4C, which may be the easiest ever car to install a radio in as you can reach everything from the passenger’s foot well if needed.
 
#155 ·
Dying to see it installed, because my understanding is that there are several height and rake positions for the screen. Having that adjustability might help lower it some below the vent airflow but keep it above the switches. We'll see....
 
#152 ·
I ran the mic up through the passenger's side a-pillar to the same location as the stock unit. If you had the Alpine mic before you should also be able to use an adapter and continue to use it as it is.

Yes, it holds in place fine. It's a nice tight fit.
 
#154 ·
When I replaced my Parrot unit with the Alpine unit, I couldn't find an adapter that worked. In theory there should be one, but none of those I tried actually worked. Running it through the a-pillar is pretty straight-forward. If you get down un the passenger's side footwell you have full access to route it along other wires and supports to the base of the pillar. There is a (small) opening there right at the base of the pillar. It takes some fussing to get it through there, but it is doable. Then you can simply tuck it behind the pillar cover, or remove the cover and route it where the factory unit went. Then tuck it up into the headliner, and mount the mic where the factory unit is. Takes maybe a half hour if you do it right by removing the pillar cover and the existing Parrot mic.
 
#160 · (Edited)
I tried a few things on mine and in the end decided that they all looked tacked on and the Joying logo is the least obtrusive.

Let us know what you come up with to trim out the base of the unit. I like the size of the 6.2" and that it includes the buttons on the bezel, but with the display being 177mm wide and the base being 180mm wide, I wasn't sure how to hide the base unit in a pleasing manner.

Edit: This video shows the 7", which is 181mmm wide (and 3mm taller than the 8.8" wide screen model), and you can see how the chassis is still exposed:

More details on that install here: https://www.4c-forums.com/13-electronics/53594-gps-7-joying-2-gb-ram-32gb-rom.html

Also, while we're talking different sized screens, this is the original Joying thread on here which was mainly about the 8" non-widescreen model, but post #12 includes a pic of the 6.2" in a 4C. The pic is from dead straight on, and shows that the sizing is good, if you can sort out the base visibility from off angles. https://www.4c-forums.com/13-electronics/59500-headunit-replacement-8-joying.html

I use mine for CarPlay 100% of the time, and the 8.8" screen results in a huge display of the song name and artist while in a music app. A smaller screen would be less ridiculous for that use. The wider format is nice for nav use though.
 
#162 ·
The base is a standard width conforming to the single-DIN standard. If you bend the positioning tabs you can push it in closer, and if this one is like the 8.8" screen then raising it one position higher will let the curved section of the screen recess further into the radio opening. My guess is that the opening and the frame will still be visible from the top and sides, but that will help.

On my 8.8" I coated the back of the screen and the cover panel (which is now different on the newer units) with black plastidip to hide them. It might work to do the same on the base unit itself.
 
#163 ·
I just noticed that I forgot to paste in the link to the original Joying thread that contained the pic of the 6.2" in my earlier post. I've added the link now, but here's the actual photo:



The size looks great straight on. Let us know how you sort it for the sides.
 
#164 ·
A question that i saw a few month on joying forum without solution:

For those who drive at night, does the screen brightness bother you in the absolute night?

I put it to the minimum and it bother me. Is a matte black smoked vinyl a solution? Probably...the cheapest [emoji16]

I expect a software update
 
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