Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community - FT86CLUB - Exogear Car Mount Review

I decided to push the button on the EXOGEAR ipad mount cause it had great reviews and seemed like a quality product.. also before I spend big money and modify the car;s dash irreversibly I wanted to see if I would actually use the ipad in the car or if it's just a gimmic...

To be fair I'm a driver not a cruiser so the only button I usually have time to push is the traction control. My main reason for having the iPad mount is to connect it to the OBD2 port and run some sort of monitoring software eventually.

So.. the exogear. Install was a snap.. took me all of 5 minutes including cleaning the dash, fitting the supplied mounting disk and attaching the actual mounting unit. I have a Griffin iTrip which plugs in in the glove compartment (VERY useful, nice one Toyota) and then runs to the auxiliary-in, at the front of the OEM deck. It's not the tidiest install but it really doesn't bother me as it's 100% reversible.. no cutting, no sticking... very very quick to install or remove and best of all I get to test having an iPad in the car.

http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/g...y/IMG_2028.jpg

Opinion? Like all mounts there are good and bad points to it. It does feel a little plasticky.. then again it's made out of plastic so go figure! That said it does feel like really good quality plastic and the mechanisms and locks seem solid enough. Provided at least some part of the ipad makes contact with the dash for stability, the iPad stays still... the mount can hold the pad up and above the dash but then it vibrates slightly with spirited driving... I find the best position is about half height with the lower edge resting against the dash...

http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/g...y/IMG_2025.jpg

As far as integration.. well it's an iPad.. and it plays and charges... what more is there to say.. as for usefulness.. I can't really honestly say until l get the OBD2 wifi connection and see whether it works or not... currently the ipad is no more useful to me than the iphone I also have connected.. however the big screen is nice... and I do get a kick out of playing Prodigy music video with the windows open in the traffic.. I had a pick up truck next to me in bumper to bumper and the guys in the back where head banging to my Prodigy video... so that alone was worth it :)

The iphone which you can see in the 1st pic is an old one which I have jailbroken and simply use as a wifi hub and GPS. It's just a bunch of driving related apps.. no 3G as I've turned off all the cellular functions on the phone... my actual iPhone (not shown here) always has it's "Personal Hotspot" turned on and it rests in the slot between the cupholders where it connects to a separate charger there... that way I have GPS, WIFI, 3G and the usability of the big iPad screen.. all using bits and pieces I had lying around.. I always put a couple of strips of sticky backed velcro on my dashboards and then put strips on old phones... flashlights... whatever I may need.. that way i can simply stick tech to my dash as and when I need it and because you can't see the velcro it looks neat....

http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/g...y/IMG_2029.jpg

I would totally recomend this mount from a visual point of view and as of yet I haven't had an issue with the actual mounting usability.. it does what it should and has well enough adjustment to get the ipad exactly where you need it.. you really don't need to touch the radio once the ipad is on...

My eventual plan is to have NO RADIO, just have an amp mounted in the double din space with face plate full of gauges!! and a single cable to plug in... super clean!