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DICE MEDIABRIDGE MB1500 with Brodit Holder Review

9K views 16 replies 4 participants last post by  Adrian325ci 
#1 · (Edited)
Well I have finally completed my Iphone integration. I have an Iphone 4 (iOS 5), Brodit pass through holder & a Dice Mediabridge MB1500. Thought I would post a quick review for those of you who are thinking about buying a Mediabridge unit. Here are some pics of my finished install:

Electronics Vehicle Car Vehicle audio Center console


Windshield Automotive exterior Vehicle door Auto part Vehicle


INSTALL :

Ok this was an absolute doddle - I followed the video guides by BSW on Youtube and it was straight forward. The hardest part was releasing the bracket holding the emergency triangle in the boot - can be a b*tch to get out. Before I started I disconnected the battery just to be on the safe side. Then just follow the instructions on the videos. Very simple. For the mic I fed the wire up the passenger side A piller, across the top of the windshield and then back down the driver side A piller. Plenty of length on the wire for the mic. For the Brodit holder I connected the 'USB to Iphone cable' to the MB behind the glovebox and fed it through so it comes out below the sunglasses holder. Best to remove the sunglasses holder to do this - just a small pull will release the sunglasses holder.

PLAYING MUSIC (DOCKED):

Works as expected. Just make sure you phone is unlocked before you dock. Then you control your music either via the phone, the stereo or the steering wheel. Whilst docked, the unit will charge your phone.

PLAYING MUSIC (BLUETOOTH):

Ok this is the best thing about the unit. In bluetooth mode the system is amazing. My favorite feature is the fact the you can hold down the speaker button on the steering wheel and once the unit beeps you can use voice commands to operate your phone. For instance you can say "Play Eminem" and the phone will play songs by Eminem. You can also use this feature to select playlists, songs and albums. My phone does not have to leave my pocket in order to use this feature - amazing! If my battery is running low then I can dock the phone to charge it and select bluetooth as on the iphone. You can also listen to internet radio via various apps on available on iTunes.

MAKING CALLS:

Again you can use voice commands to make calls in Bluetooth mode. For instance you can hold down the speaker button on the steering wheel and say "Phone Home" and the phone will make a call to your home number. I have made calls and I can confirm that people can hear me loud and clear. If you receive a call the all you have to do is press the UP button on the steering wheel to answer and DOWN button to hang up. The only negative is that the text display on the stereo does not display the names of your contacts - instead it just displays the phone number.

OVERALL:

I would definitely recommend this unit for those of you who are in two minds about it. TomTom app works as you would expect by using the factory speakers and the music fades when an instruction is given out. When i get in my car I just press the speaker button and say "Play Music" and the the music resumes from where it left off. The fact that I can dock my phone and charge it if the battery is low is also very convenient and tidy.
 
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#10 ·
Well, so I guess the main question is... can I just keep using my factory bluetooth solution for phone calls and then use the mediabridge bluetooth solution for muisc streaming?

Or is that a bad idea?

If I'm forced to use Mediabridge for both, phone calls and music streaming, and I"m forced to use the Mediabridge MIC vs the OEM MIC, there probably isn't much purpose to keep the OEM MIC as well, correct?

Thanks again for all your help btw, I feel like I'm finally getting knowledgeable answers to my specific demands :)

And if I understand correctly the Mediabridge works just fine with an Android, so if I stream music through Rhapsody app on my phone for example, it should probably work just fine... do you have any info on that? I believe Rhapsody claims to support BT streaming, but I don't know if I'd be able to control the music through the steering wheel or not.
Hmm... I assume though if I use the BMW OEM BT for Phone Calls and the Mediabridge BT for Music, that the music will probably not mute when a phone call comes in? Or does the BMW control that part... ugh... so many configurations :)
 
#11 ·
Hmm... I assume though if I use the BMW OEM BT for Phone Calls and the Mediabridge BT for Music, that the music will probably not mute when a phone call comes in? Or does the BMW control that part... ugh... so many configurations :)
Assuming you are using the same Phone to stream the audio as your are to get the incoming call on, it will automatically pause the music for you!
 
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