If you don't have a vehicle with CarPlay installed natively, there are a number of third-party aftermarket CarPlay receivers from companies like Alpine and Pioneer, which can be an affordable way to get CarPlay integration in your car.
Boss Audio, known for its range of car speakers and accessories, recently launched a new CarPlay receiver, the BVCP9685A, and its $250 price tag makes it one of the cheaper CarPlay options on the market. For a limited time, there's a $40 coupon available on Amazon, dropping the price even further to $210.
The BVCP9685A from Boss Audio features a 6.75-inch capacitive touchscreen LCD, and the company says that this new version has a number of upgrades over the prior BVCP9675A option. The unit depth is now 5.3 inches instead of 6.7-inches, with the shallower body allowing for an easier installation process.
With proper car wiring, steering wheel controls and backup camera are supported, and an external mic improves voice pick up when giving voice commands to Siri.
Other BVCP9685A features include Android Auto support, AM/FM radio receiver, RDS and RBDS tuner, Aux and AV input, subwoofer pre-amp outputs, USB charging, multi-color illumination, and true double din.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Wednesday September 24, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by Juli Clover
With the iPhone 15 series, I did an experiment and kept my iPhone's Charge Limit set at 80 percent for an entire year. It provided an interesting look at the impact of charge limits on battery longevity, so I decided to repeat it for the iPhone 16 line.
Since September 2024, my iPhone 16 Pro Max has been limited to an 80 percent charge, with no cheating. As of today, my battery's maximum...
Thursday September 25, 2025 1:11 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple is developing an all-new operating system codenamed "Charismatic," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Apple smart home hub concept based on rumors
This is likely Apple's long-rumored "homeOS" operating system.
In a report last month, Gurman said both Apple's rumored smart home hub in 2026 and tabletop robot in 2027 will run the new operating system. He said the software platform ...
Wednesday September 24, 2025 7:20 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple's annual "Back to School" promotion for students ends soon, so act fast if you want to score free AirPods with the purchase of an eligible new Mac or iPad.
Until Tuesday, September 30, college students and qualifying educational staff in the U.S. can receive free AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. This is a $179 value.
...
Thursday September 25, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions.
MacRumors has also seen evidence of iOS 26.0.1 in its visitor logs in recent days.
It is likely that iOS 26.0.1 will fix a camera-related bug on the new iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro models. In his iPhone Air review, CNN Underscored's...
Tuesday September 23, 2025 8:55 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are still a year away, there are already a few rumors about the devices that offer an early look ahead.
Below, we have recapped some of the early iPhone 18 Pro rumors so far. This story was published previously, and it has been updated to reflect the latest rumors.
Many early rumors prove to be true, but nothing is confirmed yet, and Apple's...
Monday September 22, 2025 12:44 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple released the first beta of iOS 26.1 today, just a week after launching iOS 26. iOS 26.1 mainly adds new languages to Apple Intelligence, but there are a few other features that are worth knowing about.
New Apple Intelligence Languages
Apple Intelligence is now available in Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese.
AirPo...
Monday September 22, 2025 10:00 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
The next Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device.
Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors.
Likely Features
N1 Chip With Wi-Fi 7
Last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the next Apple TV would be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, which is...
Friday September 26, 2025 6:57 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
In March, Apple delayed the launch of its personalized Siri features, and soon after the company was hit with multiple class action lawsuits over the situation.
The plaintiffs said they never would have purchased an iPhone 16, or would have paid less, had they known Apple's marketing about the Siri features was false.
In the U.S., all of the complaints were consolidated into one class...
What are you talking about???? I fitted an aftermarket head unit like this and it involved none of the steps you described... there are companies that sell specific wiring loom converters so it’s litterally plug and play.. getting the dash open to see what you’re doing takes way longer than the wiring side, but anyone with some practical skills and YouTube can carry out the fitting.
Yea sure if the seller wires the car harnesses to the receivers' wiring for you. But if you don't opt for that route, you have to splice wires and you do that by reading the wiring diagrams. Not every car is the same my friend. [doublepost=1553040209][/doublepost]
I would want wire not wireless and lose audio quality
That makes no sense. The wireless is over WiFi, which by today's standards are at least 300 Mbps. Nothing is lost. Not to mention if it was bad enough to cause audio loss, then it's way too bad to project an interface onto the display.
Having wireless CarPlay would be cool but is it really worth spending an extra $400+ just for that feature? No..
Most of us like to have our phones charging while we drive, so that means we're going to have to plug in a cable anyways. Yes i know there's wireless Qi charging but its slow compared to USB.
That being said, for those interested in a budget CarPlay headunit should really check out the Soundstream VRCP-65. Its currently $199 on Amazon right now and supports CarPlay, Android PhoneLink, SiriusXM, Bluetooth, DVD, etc.
[doublepost=1553026633][/doublepost]So... what's yours? Model and price?
Well, there is a major price difference. Mine's a bit more expensive Mine's an Alpine, and doesn't support Android Auto. Specifically built for Apple Wireless CarPlay. [doublepost=1553026996][/doublepost]
