[Android Head-Units] deja100:
NOTE: I tried to post a fully detailed write-up of my issues, with screenshots and links, but because I'm a new member the forum won't let me post this with those URL's in the post. Since there's no way to upload and attach images, I'm happy to provide all of this via alternative means, or update the post with the original links if an admin is willing to remove this restriction from my account (I promise I'm not a spammer of any kind)

Hi all,

First time poster here with some unique issues (at least for me) with one of the newer Android stereo units. (AA0495B)

I've already contacted AUTOPUMPKIN customer support and they were absolutely no help in solving this; I've also done my own testing and tinkering but haven't been able to get anything working so I'm hoping someone here with more knowledge of these Android units can help.

Late last year I got an AUTOPUMPKIN Android 9.0 unit (AA0495B) for my track car; the main reason I got it was to run my track timer apps directly from my car instead of having to run it from my phone in a dash mount as most do; the specific app I use is Harry's Laptimer. Now obviously this app was programmed with phone use in mind, but after a bit of doing I was able to get it working completely on the Android stereo unit, so my questions aren't around that app, but rather some secondary hardware related issues using the unit. Overall this stereo unit has been great and free of any major issues like ones I've seen on other XDA posts about other Android stereo units. The app works, connects to my GoPro over WiFi flawlessly, and records track sessions and syncs to video perfectly. My issue is that the HLT app also supports connecting to other kinds of devices via bluetooth for additional data capture, such as the XGPS160 for obtaining more accurate GPS lap data (The 160 captures GPS coordinates at 10Hz rather than the 1Hz of the AA0495B and most Android phones) and I'm having issues getting the stereo unit to connect to the XGPS160 device.

There are several problems in getting this to work, but to keep things simple I'll start with the first problem and then work down layer by layer as each issues is solved; hopefully, if we can get it to work, this thread can serve as a guide for others to get this stereo unit to connect to this and other GPS devices.

PROBLEM #1 - Getting the AA0495B unit to pair and connect to the XGPS160 over bluetooth

So obviously the first step is to get the XGPS160 connected to the head unit over BT. The instructions for this are fairly straightforward and in the XGPS160 manual which I followed. The AA0495B unit has its own custom UI for managing connections to bluetooth devices rather than using the native OS bluetooth menu. The native OS bluetooth menu can be found in the system menu, however when attempting to use it to pair to devices, no devices are detected. If we instead use the main menu Bluetooth button to open the custom BT interface and then hit the search button to scan for devices, the XGPS160 shows up when ready for pairing, so we know the BT radio is picking it up at least. I then click on the name of XGPS160 and press the Connect button to pair the device. After a few moments, the device name now shows as an "available device" meaning it is paired to the unit (at least in theory). We can then click on the name and click the Connect button again to attempt to connect the device. This is where it stops, as it never shows as being connected. For comparison, the UI does show blue "connected" icons when the stereo is connected to my Galaxy S9. It appears this custom BT UI will only show the blue symbols when the connected device is a phone; I also have an OBDII dongle paired and it will never show as connected from this screen, however apps like Torque Pro are able to make the stereo unit connect to it and pull OBD data from the car. I was hoping that maybe this was a case of this custom UI simply not showing that the device was connected when it actually is, like the OBDII device. I attempted to run the "Bluetooth GPS" helper app to see if I could get it to connect; however the XGPS160 doesn't even show up in the list of available devices, whereas the "OBDII" dongle is listed even though it's not currently connected. Presumably this menu is pulled from the OS's list of paired devices, so if I had to guess, perhaps the XGPS160 isn't really paired even though the Pumpkin custom BT UI shows it as paired?

In contrast, I was able to connect the XGPS160 to my Galaxy S9, update its firmware via the phone app, and install and run the helper apps to pull data from it, so there aren't any problems in the device itself, but appears to be an issue with the stereo unit.

Here are the About Machine details from the unit for reference:

Builder Number: 201907091031

Kernel Version:

4.4.167

#44 Mon 07 1 10:07:31 CST 2019

uboot-06 28 2019-18:00:06_M11 1024x600

MCU Version: CSN2_06252019_163051

CPU and Memory size:

64-bit 8-core Cortex-A53 1.5GHz

4GB TC:29C TGT:29C F0:1200M F1:816M

Model & Hardware: PX5

Android Version: 9

So with all that, does anyone have recommendations on next steps? I'm a software engineer by background (though not in smart devices) so I shouldn't have trouble performing any troubleshooting steps necessary.

thanks!