New BeSpoke info on Scion site!!

[Khalis]

Originally Posted by Brett

The P4400BH Pioneer is nearly identical to that one, but ~$180 cheaper. I think the only diff is multi zone video. In a minivan that's cool, but who cars in an FR-S.

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PU...rs/AVH-P4400BH

Brett

As a noob to every car related subject, would I need aftermarket speakers to keep this radio from being, from lack of a better word, bottlenecked? Would it fit in the FR-S without any cutting etc?

[DarrenDriven]

I'm going to wait to hear how the audio sounds before I worry about speakers. The nice thing is that the BeSpoke upgrade has three sets of outputs for amps... including a subwoofer output. I'm thinking that I will leave the stock speakers in, but add a small sub in the back for some punch.


It would be great if someone with this head unit could post up some video of them using it!

[VADER]

Originally Posted by DarrenDriven

I'm going to wait to hear how the audio sounds before I worry about speakers. The nice thing is that the BeSpoke upgrade has three sets of outputs for amps... including a subwoofer output. I'm thinking that I will leave the stock speakers in, but add a small sub in the back for some punch.


It would be great if someone with this head unit could post up some video of them using it!

I'll try and do so during my memorial day weekend.

[DarrenDriven]

Awesome, thanks man!

[tripjammer]

I forget that the Bespoke app is brand new...so yes, if they can keep updating it...it might be good one day. But damn $850 for the bespoke is too damn expensive, when it does not have real Navigation built in. I believe it won't even play back DVDs or avi movies. But If might play back video using the iphone....

I still say bespoke is something scion should have included into the FR-S and standard.

[Brett]

Originally Posted by Khalis

As a noob to every car related subject, would I need aftermarket speakers to keep this radio from being, from lack of a better word, bottlenecked? Would it fit in the FR-S without any cutting etc?

Nah. I actually like the stock speakers. I think all Scions are made to take a standard double din radio with out an cutting, hacking, or otherwise horrible things. I think you slide the old radio out, unplug old radio, plug in new radio and slide it in. You might need to build a wiring harness, but that's easy. If you don't want to do it yourself you can usually buy them assembled.

[Brett]

Originally Posted by tripjammer

I forget that the Bespoke app is brand new...so yes, if they can keep updating it...it might be good one day. But damn $850 for the bespoke is too damn expensive, when it does not have real Navigation built in. I believe it won't even play back DVDs or avi movies. But If might play back video using the iphone....

I still say bespoke is something scion should have included into the FR-S and standard.

I still can't get over the no navigation part. That's pretty expensive for a step backwards. I'll be interested to hear what people who've had them for a while have to say in a month or two. Maybe it's the bees knees. Maybe Bespoke isn't a numbers radio, just like the FR-S isn't a numbers car.

[DarrenDriven]

I installed the BeSpoke app on my iPhone and although I am hearing that there is no turn-by-turn navigation, there is definitely a map. I don't really need turn-by-turn (although it is nice) and I think that I can get used to just having a map handy.

[Symbiont]

Originally Posted by Brett

The P4400BH Pioneer is nearly identical to that one, but ~$180 cheaper. I think the only diff is multi zone video. In a minivan that's cool, but who cars in an FR-S.

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PU...rs/AVH-P4400BH

Brett

There are actually a few differences. I ended up going with the 8400 for my FRS for the advanced App support that the 4400 doesn't have. The 8400 is the 4400 combined with the Appradio.

[Brett]

Originally Posted by Symbiont

There are actually a few differences. I ended up going with the 8400 for my FRS for the advanced App support that the 4400 doesn't have. The 8400 is the 4400 combined with the Appradio.

The 4400 doesn't have the app support?

Just looked, you're right. The 4400 has "App Mode" but not "Advanced App Mode" like the 8400.

Brett

[jedichimp]

BeSpoke looks awesome, looking forward to using it.

[mkxr]

'Requires iPhone 4' Hmm, well, that's a no-no for me. Can't be that hard to develop an Android version of the app, and open up the availability of the system to more users.
I do like the fact that it has built-in pre-outs, so you can easily upgrade without changing the head-unit.

[rbrtndrws]

Originally Posted by FR-S Dan

Just received my FR-S yesterday and I can tell you that so far, the BeSpoke is GREAT! I wish I had an iPhone to use it's full features but Ill upgrade to an iPhone 5 later in the year. As for quality, It's terrific! I was jamming with my friends every time I went for a joy ride yesterday. I put about 25 miles on it already, plan on doing more on memorial day weekend. The bluetooth connectivity is spectacular. The contact can hear me clearly and I don't have to raise my voice! haha. HD Radio is great. And my car came with it installed so I padi the $850 and that's it. Definitely worth it if you ask me. BeSpoke app is brand new so you can't expect everything to work flawlessly, even super successful apps still need updates. Fixes will come don't worry.

I received my FR-S yesterday with BeSpoke and I have to agree with you, FR-S Dan. I think it's a decent stereo. I cannot compare it to the non-BeSpoke unit in the FR-S but I can compare it to the touch-screen nav system that was in my 2011 Subaru STi.

Interface
Probably the most important part of a radio (or anything in the car for that matter) is how you interact with it and the feedback you receive for your inputs. The BeSpoke has been easy to use so far. I haven't had to pick up the user's manual to look up how to perform a specific function. The touch screen feels very responsive and I had no trouble figuring out how to switch input sources for audio (bluetooth, FM, am, etc). I haven't experienced any lagginess when navigating through the various screens but I've only had the FR-S for a day.

The interface looks nice as well. In comparison to the Nav unit on the 2011 STi, it looks much more modern. The Nav Unit User Interface on the STi just looked like it was developed 10 years ago... this isn't the case with the interface on the BeSpoke unit. The color palette of the interface is dark grays and red/orange colors (from what I've seen so far) and I think it's great.

Bluetooth Call Quality
The call quality over the bluetooth system is WAY better than the STi. I had 3 conversations while cruising at 75 mph on the interstate and everyone could hear me clearly. In my STi, everyone complained that the sound was muffled or that I sounded like I was in a fishbowl.

Bluetooth Audio Quality
Sound quality over bluetooth audio is acceptable. So far I've listened to some alternative rock and some folk music over bluetooth from my Galaxy Nexus. Obviously BT-A isn't going to sound nearly as great as playing a CD or playing MP3s straight from USB but I think the convenience of not having to plug in any cords is worth sacrificing a bit of sound quality.

Speakers
I am impressed with the sound quality of the stock speakers. I guess the speakers are the same in every FR-S but I'm not sure if the BeSpoke unit has more power. I played a few CDs yesterday and the speakers blow my STi speakers out of the water.

I can't say how BeSpoke compares to other aftermarket touch-screen double-din stereos because I haven't used other stereos. However, the BeSpoke does still work with the USB and Aux input ports that are in the lower right-hand portion of the center console. You may lose that USB port functionality if you install an aftermarket stereo, but don't quote me on that.

So... should you get one? Since I don't have an iPhone and can't utilize all of the functionality of the BeSpoke unit, I can't really give it a proper review. I'll have to borrow a friend's iPhone and play with the app before I can really give a complete review of the unit. For now, it does everything I need it to do and it's simple to use. I like it.

:happy0180:

[DarrenDriven]

I can't seem to find it now, but I found it earlier. The BeSpoke head unit gets a 50 watt bump in power over the stock head unit.