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      04-04-2012, 04:45 AM   #67
Alligator69
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I think the only "plus" you get with the adapter is that you use the external antenna of the car for phone reception. All the rest comes as through the white cable.

But if you had the "BMW Apps" then I think you would be obliged to use the cradle.
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      04-04-2012, 05:01 AM   #68
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alligator69 View Post
I think the only "plus" you get with the adapter is that you use the external antenna of the car for phone reception. All the rest comes as through the white cable.

But if you had the "BMW Apps" then I think you would be obliged to use the cradle.
Except that we can't get BMW apps in Oz, and the iPhone doesn't use the external antenna... :-/
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      04-04-2012, 05:14 AM   #69
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Whoops! Reading your message i checked on the dock connector pinout and... it seems you're right :-(
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      04-04-2012, 05:49 AM   #70
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alligator69 View Post
I think the only "plus" you get with the adapter is that you use the external antenna of the car for phone reception. All the rest comes as through the white cable.

But if you had the "BMW Apps" then I think you would be obliged to use the cradle.
BMW Apps works with the white cable as well.
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      04-04-2012, 06:23 AM   #71
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BMW Apps works with the white cable as well.
LOL... so all in all the snap in is a waste of money...
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      04-04-2012, 08:37 AM   #72
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Gosh!

I've heard from a guy that does retrofitting the 6NR that to enable it with the white cable might require a change to the usb plug in the armrest. Don't know if from a specific build period on this is not required anymore.
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      04-04-2012, 05:05 PM   #73
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I can sort of understand the benefit of having it in that it means it keeps the USB port free, and that it means I can neatly and safely store the phone while it is connected and charging, but it takes such a huge chunk of storage space in a car that has very little to start with (which is probably my only issue so far with the X3 interior)...
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      07-23-2012, 01:32 AM   #74
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If you got the full infotainment set for your F30, 6NF, 6NK, 615, 6AL, 6NR and 609. the part number 84212218390 would be your option, it also comes with a building fan. It's almost double the price of the 84212199392. My dealer here in South Africa confirmed, still waiting for my car, it is currently (today is 23 Jul 2012) in the paint shop. It is a individual build 320i with about $13 000 of extras, over and above the standard specification of the car.
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      07-23-2012, 01:45 AM   #75
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alligator69 View Post
I think the only "plus" you get with the adapter is that you use the external antenna of the car for phone reception. All the rest comes as through the white cable.

But if you had the "BMW Apps" then I think you would be obliged to use the cradle.
Adapter hooks up phone video output to CIC directly that you can't get it thru USB. Antenna is a minor issue.
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      07-23-2012, 02:42 AM   #76
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On the USB plug mapping I've heard more or less anything... I mean that it appears some (Italian) cars came with the video output properly mapped on the USB plug, others didn't and it seems there were no real (or easy to understand) criteria to derive a reason or a proper combination of accessories in order to ensure one to have the video out through the USB plug.

I'm not that far from first service and I'll be asking for the BMW Apps (official) retrofit, I'll discover by then if what you say is valid everywhere or it is just a result of the different options BMW chooses for different countries.
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      07-23-2012, 05:56 AM   #77
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I decided to wait before buying an adapter as the new iPhone 5 will have a different style connection and as I will probably buy one of these I think I will just be wasting my money buying an adapter for the old one.
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      07-23-2012, 08:46 AM   #78
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@Alligator69: we will wait for your findings.
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      07-23-2012, 09:31 AM   #79
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P.S. Before checking with the retrofitting of 6NR, I discovered that the antenna is not phyisically connected but seems like there's sort of "induction" system that enhances the reception of the phone when in the cradle...
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      07-23-2012, 10:11 AM   #80
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Apple is expected to change from a 30 to 19 pin adaptor for the IPhone 5 approx. October. This would essentially render all existing BMW adapters obsolete.
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      07-23-2012, 10:21 AM   #81
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Antenna connection is based on the well known Physics principle that charge canot pass through a metallic sphere unless a conductor is brought in. Car body acts like a big metallic shield. Shark fin gets the RF signal close to the arm rest and releases to phone to receive it in its conventional way.
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      07-23-2012, 03:33 PM   #82
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Quote:
Originally Posted by April1 View Post
Antenna connection is based on the well known Physics principle that charge canot pass through a metallic sphere unless a conductor is brought in. Car body acts like a big metallic shield. Shark fin gets the RF signal close to the arm rest and releases to phone to receive it in its conventional way.


Thanks!
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      07-23-2012, 03:34 PM   #83
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Quote:
Originally Posted by slam View Post
Apple is expected to change from a 30 to 19 pin adaptor for the IPhone 5 approx. October. This would essentially render all existing BMW adapters obsolete.
See how long it takes for BMW to realize iPhone 5 is on the market...

P.S. This is why I think it's better, much better to have the video out on the usb plug, then whatever the phone adaptor, you just plug it to USB using its own cable...
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      11-12-2012, 03:20 AM   #84
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I've just ordered my F25 with professional media option and 6NF & 6NR. However even after reading through this entire thread I'm still confused on the differences between using a media adapter or the USB socket!

From what I can gather the adapter allows connection to the external aerial for better reception. Is that the only advantage to the adapter over the cable? I prefer to have my iPhone in a case but it sounds like the phone won't then fit in the adapter. I also agree with others that the constantly changing models means having to renew the adapter each time you change model.

Can anyone who has used the cable connection in the UK explain any reduction in functionality between the adapter and cable?

Thanks
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      11-12-2012, 03:32 AM   #85
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Andyh747 View Post
I've just ordered my F25 with professional media option and 6NF & 6NR. However even after reading through this entire thread I'm still confused on the differences between using a media adapter or the USB socket!

From what I can gather the adapter allows connection to the external aerial for better reception. Is that the only advantage to the adapter over the cable? I prefer to have my iPhone in a case but it sounds like the phone won't then fit in the adapter. I also agree with others that the constantly changing models means having to renew the adapter each time you change model.

Can anyone who has used the cable connection in the UK explain any reduction in functionality between the adapter and cable?

Thanks
You also need the media cradle for some (but not all) 6NR functionality, e.g. the iPod plug-in and video playback both need the cradle.
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      11-12-2012, 04:00 AM   #86
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Thanks for the reply.

I'm not interested in the video playback but do want to access the music on my iPhone through the car system. Ideally if album art was displayed that would be great but not essential. Will the cable do that or is that the iPod plugin you mentioned?
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      11-12-2012, 04:05 AM   #87
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Andyh747 View Post
Thanks for the reply.

I'm not interested in the video playback but do want to access the music on my iPhone through the car system. Ideally if album art was displayed that would be great but not essential. Will the cable do that or is that the iPod plugin you mentioned?
You can still do all of that (including artwork) through the standard white USB cable (iphone behaves just like any USB device with music stored on it). All the iPod plug-in gives you is an interface that looks more like an iPod (instead of the standard iDrive interface). You can also playback music over Bluetooth audio if your iPhone isn't plugged in
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      11-12-2012, 05:20 AM   #88
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Excellent news. Thanks for the information.

Thanks also for all your posts on the tech side of things as I've found them really helpful when choosing the options I wanted. Pity BMW weren't so knowledgeable on their own stuff!
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