Today, most car radios are equipped with Android Auto or Apple CarPlay. If you’re looking for a solution, check out our guide to finding the best Android Auto and Apple CarPlay car radios.
Year after year, technology continues to improve to make driving more comfortable for us. In addition, these “connected” car radios allow you to keep your eyes on the road at all times while using the functions of your smartphone. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay car radios offer an interesting technological addition for traditional cars. This no longer applies to electric cars.
These car radios primarily improve driving. Without interrupting our concentration on the road, they provide us with tons of real-time information (weather, road conditions, alternative routes, etc.). This is clearly a much improved hands-free kit. Sony and Pioneer are two important players in this market and they offer many models, all different. We have selected the best Android Auto and Apple CarPlay car radios to help you choose. Follow the leader!
Alpine iLX-W650BT: the best car radio for Android and Apple
In the high-end market, several competitors are trying to carve out a place in the sun with quality car radios. If you want to break away from the Sony/Pioneer prism, the Alpine Europe brand presents itself as an alternative. Before you go any further, know that it has nothing to do with its Renault namesake.
The Alpine iLX-W650BT is a car radio primarily designed for cars with a standard 2 DIN space. It features a 7-inch capacitive touchscreen compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Bluetooth connection in version 4.2 enables adaptation to smartphones or even iPhones. Sound performance is provided by 4 16W speakers.
Although easy to install, the Alpine iLX-W650BT is still quite expensive. In fact, the car radio is available at a suggested retail price of 369 euros.
Why choose Alpine iLX-W650BT?
- Easy installation
- Its connection capacity
- Compatible with CarPlay and Android Auto
Sony XAV-AX8000: car stereo with safe value
This is the best car radio in our selection. In this case, the Sony XAV-AX8000 is a surplus product with an excellent 9-inch touchscreen. As a result, it can function as a connected dashboard as well as a stereo system. It is an ideal accessory for installation on slightly older cars.
The aspect of connectivity is ensured by the presence of a USB port allowing the connection of a smartphone. An alternative is to use a Bluetooth connection. The sound quality is improved by the integrated sound amplifier, which offers a power of 4 x 55 W and an Extra Bass mode for a more impressive sound.
The installation means that the screen can be tilted in three different ways depending on your driving position. Installation is simple and, above all, the Sony car radio is compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Sony even implements a Weblink system to display the smartphone’s screen on the screen.
Why choose Sony XAV-AX8000?
- Its large touch screen
- Sound quality
- Compatible with CarPlay and Android Auto
Pioneer SPH-DA230DAB: 1Din Android Bluetooth car radio
The Pioneer SPH-DA230DAB car radio is a real multimedia player that you can place in your vehicle. With its 7-inch touchscreen, it offers intuitive connectivity with most smartphones. Its amplification offers a power of 4 x 50 W, which offers good sound quality.
Compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, it’s very easy to connect your smartphone (or tablet) via USB or Bluetooth, so the smartphone menu is accessible on the touch screen. The USB port also allows you to connect other devices, such as a USB stick with your favorite content. It is also compatible with DAB+ for radio.
Why choose Pioneer SPH-DA230DAB?
- A real multimedia player for the car
- Great compatibility with various audio and video formats
- Good value for money
The price of the Pioneer SPH-DA230DAB car radio is usually 550 euros including import costs.
Amazon Echo Auto 2: Alexa in your car
Amazon’s Echo Auto is a new version of its connected object with a redesigned design and new features. It is installed using a simple magnetic bracket to attach to the passenger compartment of your vehicle. It is powered by a cigarette lighter cable.
This will allow you to connect your car if it is not compatible with Echo Auto. You will then need to download the Alexa app where the setup will be done step by step. This ensures a continuous internet connection with the software activated in the background.
Microphone pickup is excellent, so you can call Alexa without raising your voice too much. This will also allow you to communicate with connected objects in your home and activate them remotely. Our Echo Auto 2 review is available to learn more.
Why choose Amazon Echo Auto?
- Simple installation
- Alexa integration
- Microphone recording
Sony XAV-AX100: the best sound for Android radio
The Sony XAV-AX100 is a car radio model in double DIN format. It offers a 6.4-inch touch screen (i.e. a diagonal of 16.3 cm), which is rather sensitive and high-quality. You can easily access most functions of your smartphone from the interface. Thanks to the amplification of 4 x 55 W, it offers a very satisfactory sound quality.
Compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, navigation is greatly facilitated through the Google Maps and Plans apps. With voice command integration, simply speak to it to choose a route and change the music.
This model is also available with the option of a DVD player, but it is also possible to connect additional equipment such as a reversing camera (which requires specific knowledge to install).
Why choose Sony XAV-AX100?
- Sound quality
- Option to add a DVD player and a reversing camera
- Good value for money
Like the Pioneer link above, the Sony XAV-AX100 can easily be found for less than 400 euros.
Carpuride W103: the independent screen solution
Is your car not equipped with a car radio compatible with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto and you don’t want to replace it? No problem, we found the solution you need. It comes to us from the Chinese company Carpuride, which sells independent screens to mount on the dashboard or windshield. Instead of replacing the original car radio, this connected screen will support it. The screen integrates an internal operating system that makes the car compatible with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. All you have to do is connect your smartphone via Bluetooth to the Carpuride solution to take advantage of one of these wireless systems.
There are several products, but we liked the discretion of the W103 model with a 10.3-inch screen, all in landscape. There are other models with different ratios that come a little closer to the 4/3 screen. In the Volkswagen e-UP, we placed the W103 screen on the dashboard to test Apple’s CarPlay solution.
Everything works correctly, although we feel that we are not dealing with a product of exceptional quality. Either on surface treatments or even on software functions. It happened to us a few times that we did not want to make a Bluetooth connection between the screen and the car stereo (for CarPlay audio output to the car speakers). Fortunately, it is possible to connect both with a classic mini-jack cable.
In addition to Android Auto and CarPlay, the screens connected to the Carpuride also allow you to connect a USB stick and play audio or video content, or you can do this via Airplay or Autolink. But we are far from perfect integration, we will have to put up with some slowdowns and various bugs.
A small bonus: it is possible to connect a reversing camera to the screen if your car does not have one. You must then specify this when ordering and then you will receive a camera to mount on the car under the number plate. It takes a little elbow grease to neatly route the long cable from the camera to the screen.
Junsun: Chinese manufacturer for specific models
Another alternative to the ubiquitous brands in the connected car stereo sector is to turn to Chinese companies. For example, you can find car radios of the Junsun brand on the Aliexpress website. The way the products work is a bit odd as they are often designed for a specific vehicle model. For example, the product will not be identical if you own a Clio 4 or a BMW. You will have to show some ingenuity to install it, but installation is just as simple as the models above. Most of the car stereos on offer are compatible with Apple CarPlay, and for Android Auto you’ll need to go through an APK file to use it.
Which Android/Apple car radio to choose?
Now that you have seen the different compatible car radio models Android Auto AND Apple CarPlaynow you need to know which one is compatible with your vehicle. For this, several pieces of information must be taken into account.
Size: 1 DIN or 2 DIN?
The term “DIN” refers to the size of the space intended for the car radio in the car. There are only two formats on the market: 1 DIN Or 2 DIN (double DIN).
1 DIN car radios measure approximately 5cm in height, this is the standard placement on most car models. They offer the advantage of practicality due to their reduced size compared to double DIN, usually with a removable part to store your car stereo in the glove box.
2 DIN car radios are double, i.e. around 10 cm in height. It is therefore necessary for the car to have two compartments to accommodate a car radio of this size. If not, the storage compartment located under your radio compartment can (in certain cases) be used as a secondary compartment for installing a double DIN car radio. Very often they have the advantage of offering a screen that can reach up to 7 inches with many options.
Before buying a new car radio, do not hesitate to consult the vehicle manual and find out its specifics.
Which car radio is connected to my car?
Most cars have a basic car radio. As mentioned above, the sizes marked “DIN” indicate the space intended for the placement of your car radio. However, be aware that some models on the market are designed exclusively for certain car models. If you are a bit of a DIYer and your car is a bit modern, it is also possible to install a reversing camera.
Do I need to make additional purchases?
If the car radio complies with the ISO standard (which the vast majority of car manufacturers do), it can be easily installed because it is compatible with your vehicle. However, this is not always the case depending on the different models. Brands may then offer adapters to connect to:
- Food : if it is not ISO compatible, you will need to provide an ISO compatible harness depending on the brand of your car radio.
- Antenna: similarly, an antenna adapter will solve the problem if the car radio is not ISO compatible.
- Speakers: Most vehicles are equipped with 4 speakers and car stereos are generally adapted for this configuration. However, some older vehicles may have fewer speakers in the cabin. So it will be necessary to get new speakers if you want to get the most out of the sound of your new car stereo.