How bad is a sub $10 head unit... Lets find out.

So back story a little bit. This is going in my 01 Neon R/T. It currently has a old Sony head unit that is dying. When it gets cold it quits working. Saw this on a Faceplace page and decided how bad can it be for $10....  

LINK: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Blaupunkt-AM-FM-Bluetooth-Media-Receiver-Toronto/836526302

Use: I mostly listen to music and podcast when im driving to and from work, Ill give the Phone  service thing a try.  Ill mostly be using BT.

It feels pretty high quality and instructions are pretty ok. 

The AUX input and BT work great, and radio sounds pretty nice. 

Biggest complaints is there is no clock on it (that I have found), but I normally have my phone mounted to the dash when driving so that is not a total deal breaker. The (app) you can download is worthless and not worth the time to use. Also there is no AM radio, but I listen to that at work. 

Download an app to use the stereo as a speakerphone?  Isn't that just called "Bluetooth"? :)

That's pretty amazing for under $10.  Heck, it seems like it'd be pretty good for $20, but let's not tell them that.

I may get one of those for the Emergency Backup Truck

In reply to wae :

The app act like a remote, its super glitchy and crashes my phone. 

In reply to Professor_Brap :

And yet...  it comes with a hardware remote, right?  I think this was a bunch of dweebs sitting around a conference table one day saying "but there HAS to be an APP FOR THAT!"

For $10 and the fact that you don't actually need the app, I can understand how you can overlook that!

In reply to wae :

It does come with a hardware remote, went right in the junk drawer. I don't use remotes ever. I was more curious if the app was any good for anything, and it is not. 

For $10 I am more than happy, I got 3 more on the way. 

Doesn't have AM? The ad says it has AM. 

I was expecty some brand like "Kenweed" or "Poinear" or "Albine". But nope, it is a Blaupunkt. Wow.

I agree. This looks like a good deal for $10. I would buy one if I needed it.

In reply to mtn :

It’s LABELED Blaupunkt. 

I used to be a fan of Blaupunkt when I was a teenager. They came in European cars so therefore they were exotic in my mind. 

Now I am somewhat sad to see that once proud brand name on an 8.50 radio.

I wish they'd have called it something else so my childhood idol would have been spared.

SVreX said:

In reply to mtn :

It’s LABELED Blaupunkt. 

Good point.

Is it lighting only one color or can you change it?

if you can change it to green lighting, ill take 1, may even buy a spare just in case

This would have been great 3 months ago. The cheapo $40 unit I bought for the shop doesn't have a remote or microphone, and it's the only one I actually want the feature with. Might still buy one for the price. 

In reply to Professor_Brap :

It doesn't even say how much power it has per channel ?!? Blaupunkt used to be pretty high-end stuff.  I suppose it's hard to go wrong for $8...

I bought an old (used) Sony CD player for $20 on a whim for my E30.  It says it's 4x100, but sounds like garbage...which is partially due to bad speakers...but now wholly.

I bought 3 when I saw the deal.  They have not arrived yet.

Why does anyone need a remote for a radio in a car?  I mean it is with in reach yes?  Maybe the back seat people?  If I am driving the back seat would never get the remote  LOL.

In reply to dean1484 :

The head unit in the Jeep has a remote.  Only time I've ever used it is while working on the thing and using the stereo for music.  Saves having to lean in through the open front window and reach for the head unit itself.  

In reply to dean1484 :

I specifically wanted a remote for the head unit that I put in my conversion van.  It wasn't unusual to camp or crash for the night on long drives and being able to control the radio from the bed in the back was pretty nice.

But, yeah, in a car?  Makes no sense to me.  Way back when, I bought a head unit for my Saturn that came with a remote that attached to the steering wheel.  Now THAT was neat, but I haven't seen one like it since.

It has AM.  Press the  band button to cycle thru the 3 FM and 2 AM.

I saw the link in the gastropods thread and bought one for my MR2. 

I don't like how loose the USB ports are already.

I don't like only having one button to access all 6 presets.  Press once for preset one and press again if you want preset two.  if you want preset 6 you will be pressing for a while. 

It also makes it harder to program the presets. 

To program a preset.

• Hold preset button until the preset number on the right side of display starts blinking. 
• Then press preset until you are at the preset number that you want to set. 
• Then hold the preset button until the preset number stops blinking

The app was a little weird.  They want you to use the QR code in the manual that links to a apk file hosted on a google drive.......

In reply to Hoondavan :

The manual says 4x20W max output power.

moxnix said:

It has AM.  Press the  band button to cycle thru the 3 FM and 2 AM.

I saw the link in the gastropods thread and bought one for my MR2. 

I don't like how loose the USB ports are already.

I don't like only having one button to access all 6 presets.  Press once for preset one and press again if you want preset two.  if you want preset 6 you will be pressing for a while. 

It also makes it harder to program the presets. 

To program a preset.

• Hold preset button until the preset number on the right side of display starts blinking. 
• Then press preset until you are at the preset number that you want to set. 
• Then hold the preset button until the preset number stops blinking

The app was a little weird.  They want you to use the QR code in the manual that links to a apk file hosted on a google drive.......

Just found AM was about to post it. I dont use usb so i cant say, but mine seems pretty tight. 

A remote was really nice in my ‘60 Elky. It let me install the head unit in the glove box so I could keep the complete stock looking dash. It was easy to memorize the buttons, which let me control the head without ever taking my eyes off the road. It allowed remote control of the CD disk changer and subwoofer. 

And, it was really nice at car shows and picnics to be able to control the head unit from outside the car. 

I have 3 on the way to keep around, one is going straight in the s40, one might turn into a shop radio.

I used a remote a lot in my Montero, the reach to change songs was just far enough to be distracting so i kept the remote in the center console where i could grab it and change songs or volume without taking my eyes of off the road.

I got one but have done nothing with it yet.   I've never had a car radio before that was not big enough to hold a cassette or CD inside the unit

I was most surprised that the whole box is only the size or slightly larger than a box of Velveeta.  About that size but maybe twice as tall. .  

This unit only has a depth of about 3 inches.  With the remote and app; could be great for a stealthy glove box mount.  

Actual photos