Mini Review of XTRONS Head Unit for the IS250

[McShmoopy]

Hey everyone,

Former GROM VLINE2 owner, I managed to replace my stock stereo with a Head Unit from XTRONS and I've had a few people show some interest in it so I made this quick little review video for it. Whats good about this is with some efforts from myself and XTRONS you can get near full functionality with this for pre facelift as well as facelift vehicles. For NAVI vehicles you do need to buy an additional fibre optic box to maintain the OEM audio quality.I'll stick some links below. 

https://xtrons.co.uk/lexus-various-android-10-octa-core-4gb-ram-64gb-rom-integrated-4g-solution-pma10isls

https://xtrons.co.uk/lexus-various-iso-wiring-harness-most

The Teyes CC3 is a better head unit overall to but I wasn't a fan of getting one of their units with the OEM Stereo like configuration with the buttons as that was the only one that supported facelift NAVI vehicles like mine. I've been running this for close to 8 weeks and its been rock solid so figured I'll share this here incase anyone else is interested in something like this.

On the to do list is add DAB Radio, TPMS sensors as well as my 360 reverse camera system which this head unit does support. 

[Mr Vlad]

Good video Bilal and an honest one too. Shame about the issues but I suppose one has to expect one or two.

[McShmoopy]

3 hours ago, Mr Vlad said:

Good video Bilal and an honest one too. Shame about the issues but I suppose one has to expect one or two.

Cheer Vlad, unfortunately no solution is perfect but thankfully none of them are deal breakers by any means. I suspect anyone with a pre facelift vehicle will not face the issues I have as according to a gentleman on Reddit his works flawlessly in all aspects and that’s a 2007 with NAVI

[CiaranMcK]

Thanks for the review. I was looking into switching out my vline for this but I don’t think I can stomach spending £100 on cables, and with the reverse camera and built in car play also not working 100% it just seems like a lot of messing around for only a small improvement.

 

My only real gripes with the vline is that the factory screen is pretty small and if I reverse it will revert back to factory UI once back in P or D. My music seems to keep playing and once I press audio again I get my vline screen back. It’s not the end of the world.

The xtrons does look lovely though. The extra screen size and quality makes all the difference. 

 

[McShmoopy]

On 7/13/2022 at 1:54 AM, CiaranMcK said:

Thanks for the review. I was looking into switching out my vline for this but I don’t think I can stomach spending £100 on cables, and with the reverse camera and built in car play also not working 100% it just seems like a lot of messing around for only a small improvement.

 

My only real gripes with the vline is that the factory screen is pretty small and if I reverse it will revert back to factory UI once back in P or D. My music seems to keep playing and once I press audio again I get my vline screen back. It’s not the end of the world.

The xtrons does look lovely though. The extra screen size and quality makes all the difference. 

 

Cheers mate, yes it’s not a completely plug and play solution. For that I’d highly suggest the TEYES CC3 , it is made to support both pre facelift and post facelifted vehicles and these can be NAVI or non Navi. The reverse cam will also work, the only reason I hadn’t gone for that myself is that I wasn’t 100% sure on compatibility with facelifted vehicles and I didn’t like that Facelift compatible vehicles had to have the fascia’s with the smaller screen and additional buttons. 

@ahmed24 recently got a Teyes CC3 and has had great success with it and it works very well. Hopefully we can get a in depth review or something of the sort in the future 

[ahmed24]

On 7/14/2022 at 9:27 AM, McShmoopy said:

@ahmed24 recently got a Teyes CC3 and has had great success with it and it works very well. Hopefully we can get a in depth review or something of the sort in the future 

That is correct, I recently got a Teyes CC3. Haven't finalised my installation yet but will post details once I do. But on the whole it's a very good kit and works perfectly with factory navigation system. Teyes support is fantastic, you have WhatsApp numbers for multiple Teyes Engineers. If buying to replace an OEM satnav screen then the official working kit is the 9" one that I got. It comes in two variants, the Model A and Model B. Model B is for my car which is the 2006-2009 version and Model A is for the newer navigation units. If your car doesn't have factory satnav, then you need the Teyes CC3 10" version which looks similiar to the XTRONS unit mentioned in this thread. Below is just a quick picture comparing my OEM screen to my new Teyes CC3 screen. This is before I hydrodip and upgrade the LED's on the new unit.

 

[agent_dess]

On 7/17/2022 at 11:25 PM, ahmed24 said:

That is correct, I recently got a Teyes CC3. Haven't finalised my installation yet but will post details once I do. But on the whole it's a very good kit and works perfectly with factory navigation system. Teyes support is fantastic, you have WhatsApp numbers for multiple Teyes Engineers. If buying to replace an OEM satnav screen then the official working kit is the 9" one that I got. It comes in two variants, the Model A and Model B. Model B is for my car which is the 2006-2009 version and Model A is for the newer navigation units. If your car doesn't have factory satnav, then you need the Teyes CC3 10" version which looks similiar to the XTRONS unit mentioned in this thread. Below is just a quick picture comparing my OEM screen to my new Teyes CC3 screen. This is before I hydrodip and upgrade the LED's on the new unit.

 

It looks alot smaller without the navigation DVD drive. how will it fit the void? Or is it just the way you took the photo that it looks smaller??

[McShmoopy]

39 minutes ago, agent_dess said:

It looks alot smaller without the navigation DVD drive. how will it fit the void? Or is it just the way you took the photo that it looks smaller??

It ought to be a perfect fit on top of the factory disc drive, what may not be flush is the fitment with your air vents as these android head units are made to better accommodate the facelift IS, so the alignment tabs at the base may not line up perfectly and the air vents will have a noticeable gap. This is easily remedied buy buying 2009+ onward air vents however.

[AFlex]

@ahmed24 nice unit. What made you get the 9 inch rather than the 10? The teyes website seems to suggest that for 2009 or earlier models with Nav, the 10 inch would be compatible - it only causes issues for later models with Nav.

 

Does the unit integrate properly with all the OEM components? Reverse camera, steering wheel buttons, microphone, ML stereo, etc?

 

Thanks!

[McShmoopy]

6 hours ago, AFlex said:

@ahmed24 nice unit. What made you get the 9 inch rather than the 10? The teyes website seems to suggest that for 2009 or earlier models with Nav, the 10 inch would be compatible - it only causes issues for later models with Nav.

 

Does the unit integrate properly with all the OEM components? Reverse camera, steering wheel buttons, microphone, ML stereo, etc?

 

Thanks!

From the conversations I’ve had with Ahmed yes the Teyes accommodates all OEM functionality unlike the XTRONS, just need the ensure when purchasing you pick the right options to receive all the correct harnesses 

[AFlex]

Thanks Bilal

I am 99% set on getting the Teyes CC3 - just need to choose between the 2 versions

The 9" is definitely compatible.

The 10" also appears to be compatible for pre-2009 facelift models: (note the typo below - i think 2019 is supposed to say 2009)

@ahmed24 I'm just wondering what swayed you in the direction of the 9"? Did you prefer the OEM bezels look?

[McShmoopy]

On 8/6/2022 at 3:46 PM, AFlex said:

Thanks Bilal

I am 99% set on getting the Teyes CC3 - just need to choose between the 2 versions

The 9" is definitely compatible.

The 10" also appears to be compatible for pre-2009 facelift models: (note the typo below - i think 2019 is supposed to say 2009)

@ahmed24 I'm just wondering what swayed you in the direction of the 9"? Did you prefer the OEM bezels look?

Glad this has helped! I always knew of the Teyes CC3 but it’s only recently that support for facelifted NAVI vehicles became available even with the Teyes, the XTRONS was the first I saw that had confirmed compatibility with facelifted vehicles but going back if I had the choice I’d certainly opt for the Teyes. The look I do agree is far better with the XTRONS but the only thing I’m missing really is native wireless apple carplay support as well as programming my right hand steering wheel controls

[ahmed24]

On 8/3/2022 at 11:16 PM, agent_dess said:

It looks alot smaller without the navigation DVD drive. how will it fit the void? Or is it just the way you took the photo that it looks smaller??

The screen is a whole lot bigger than OEM screen. OEM screen is 7inch, this is just over 9inches. They've managed to fit a big screen in by reducing all the button sizes which look way better in my opinion. Now that I look at the OEM one the buttons look so bulky. I have been really busy lately and haven't 100% finished up my installation. Once I do, I will create a dedicate thread on the Teyes CC3. Below are some pics of how it looks. I am upgrading to the facelift airvent too. 

 

On 8/4/2022 at 10:34 AM, AFlex said:

@ahmed24 nice unit. What made you get the 9 inch rather than the 10? The teyes website seems to suggest that for 2009 or earlier models with Nav, the 10 inch would be compatible - it only causes issues for later models with Nav.

 

Does the unit integrate properly with all the OEM components? Reverse camera, steering wheel buttons, microphone, ML stereo, etc?

 

Thanks!

I chose the 9inch unit mainly because I wasn't keen on the aftermarket look of the 10inch frame. The 9inch frame maintains that OEM look. Plus speaking to Teyes engineer one WhatsApp, he said that the 10inch frame version is only compatible with cars with no factory navigation. The steering wheel buttons work perfectly. As for microphone, you can de-pin and use OEM microphone but since I previously had a grom unit installed and I had installed aftermarket mic in the OEM location behind the dome light, i just kept that. In regards to reverse camera, the 2006 to 2009 i believe you need to de-pin the wire to get it hooked up but 2010 onwards it's just a matter of connecting a connector if you want the factory camera. Even if camera worked, I wasn't planning to keep OEM camera as the quality was something i always hated. So i've installed a AHD 1080p camera. Picture attached below.

Another thing, I completely dismantled the PCB's from the fascia and upgraded all the LED's to white and blue to match my previous setup. I also hydrodipped the frame to match my previous setup. One thing to note is that the frame itself is made by one company and used by Teyes and many of the other head units. The Passener and Driver temperature buttons are in the LHD orientation. I spoke to the manufacturer of the frame itself regarding whether it was possible to get RHD version and they said it's not possible due to it being mass produced and they don't have enough sales in RHD market. At first I thought I can live with it but then it started annoying me because once you set steering location as Right in the head unit settings then it gets even more annoying because you press the temperature button on the left for driver but the display changes on the right. So in other words the software shows the correct way round but the button is wrong way round and it messes with your head lol. So I set out to fix this. I reverse engineered the PCB board and figured just like how lexus do most other things, the temperature controls are based on resistance values measured by the button presses. So I was able to swap around 2 pairs (4 total) SMD resistors and the problem was fixed. Now I have the temperature buttons working correct way round. I will be sticking the temperature decals on soon. I've also recorded a quick video demo showing the climate controls working right way round. Here is the vide demo:

 

[chr15gb]

I've already got the ML, Satnav and the rest but reading posts like this makes me want to tear it all out and upgrade to something like this.
Shame they aren't truly plug & Play utilising existing mic, GPS and reverse camera, or parhaps not a shame as otherwise I would do it.

Great work all you guys who have taken the plunge, appreciate your time in posting.

[ahmed24]

56 minutes ago, chr15gb said:

I've already got the ML, Satnav and the rest but reading posts like this makes me want to tear it all out and upgrade to something like this.
Shame they aren't truly plug & Play utilising existing mic, GPS and reverse camera, or parhaps not a shame as otherwise I would do it.

Great work all you guys who have taken the plunge, appreciate your time in posting.

I already had factory ML satnav and the full package too but was getting bored of the screen and camera quality and most importantly the resistive touch. Once you start using apple CarPlay or AndroidAuto, it's hard to live without it 🙂

[AFlex]

Thanks a lot @ahmed24 this has convinced me to take the plunge!

I also prefer the OEM-ish look of the 9 inch now that I've seen your photos - thanks for posting! However I have to say you have gone to significant lengths to modify it to make it RHD - the idea of ripping open a brand new sat nav makes me a bit uneasy!

Did the ML stereo link up ok digitally? Does it still work like stock?

Does anyone have any general advice on whether it's worth paying the upgrade for higher amounts of RAM? I dont really need the drive storage so much, just wondering if the lower RAM would slow down the loading times

 

[ahmed24]

15 minutes ago, AFlex said:

However I have to say you have gone to significant lengths to modify it to make it RHD - the idea of ripping open a brand new sat nav makes me a bit uneasy!

Well I'm very confident with electonics. Plus it's not really ripping the satnav out itself, it's just the PCB board on the frame that controls the climate. Plus the frames can be purchased separately even in the even something goes wrong.

 

15 minutes ago, AFlex said:

Does anyone have any general advice on whether it's worth paying the upgrade for higher amounts of RAM? I dont really need the drive storage so much, just wondering if the lower RAM would slow down the loading times

I've gone and always go for the range topping spec. On some aftermarket brands it goes upto 8GB ram version but the Teyes CC3 goes to 6GB RAM and 128GB storage with a Quad-Core processor and DSP. The lower spec units will not have wireless CarPlay and AndroidAuto on them. I can confirm that the 6GB version has wireless AndroidAuto and wireless apple CarPlay. 

What I like about it he Teyes compared to some of the other cheaper Chinese replicas is that the software on the Teyes is so much better. The entire UI including settings and all hidden menus have all been branded and customised to the Teyes theme. I've installed a good number of replica Chinese units for many different Lexus and non Lexus models and what I found in those was that the software and UI is very inconsistent. 

[Andrii]

Hi @ahmed24, it's worth to say I look forward (and maybe other people too) for your separate review and the integration project of Teyes CC3. I want to select from Teyes vs XTRONS and your experience seems to be a key point here. Please don't forget to touch audio quality question (how to integrate CC3 to ML setup).

Thank you all guys for your valuable information and shared experience. 

[ahmed24]

On 8/18/2022 at 1:37 PM, Andrii said:

Hi @ahmed24, it's worth to say I look forward (and maybe other people too) for your separate review and the integration project of Teyes CC3. I want to select from Teyes vs XTRONS and your experience seems to be a key point here. Please don't forget to touch audio quality question (how to integrate CC3 to ML setup).

Thank you all guys for your valuable information and shared experience. 

Will do, I'm currently thoroughly putting it through its paces with long drives and the extreme heat we've had. There have been a few small glitches that I've liased with Teyes engineer with and they released a new system and firmware upgrade which seems to have solved it. 

[AFlex]

How does the parking sensor functionality work with these aftermarket units? Does it still beep and appear on the screen when the sonar detectors pick up close objects?

Thanks

[McShmoopy]

9 hours ago, AFlex said:

How does the parking sensor functionality work with these aftermarket units? Does it still beep and appear on the screen when the sonar detectors pick up close objects?

Thanks

They work perfectly with both systems I believe, you can have parking sensors only show when reversing and when they work they are in the correct orientation for the car. Another option I’ve enabled is that when a parking sensor is triggered it pulls up the 360 parking camera view and the sensors are visualised, when I eventually get around to having the other 3 cameras installed this will let me see a 360 view of the car 

[AFlex]

Wow so it actually integrates really well! I imagine the Teyes is the same or even better given how good its software is.

Do you still get the beeping sound though?

One idea I've been toying with is adding a couple of additional sonar sensors on the front (I feel like 2 really isn't enough). This in addition to upgrading to the aftermarket 4IS style bumper 

[McShmoopy]

3 hours ago, AFlex said:

Wow so it actually integrates really well! I imagine the Teyes is the same or even better given how good its software is.

Do you still get the beeping sound though?

One idea I've been toying with is adding a couple of additional sonar sensors on the front (I feel like 2 really isn't enough). This in addition to upgrading to the aftermarket 4IS style bumper 

Let me know how you get on with that! I’d love to do the same with adding an additional 2 sensors, and yes it still beeps just the same so in fairness the XTRONS does integrate very well, it’s just a case of my car being a facelift you will need slightly different harnesses and changes to the software which only the Teyes fully caters for from what I can tell 

[ahmed24]

On 8/20/2022 at 1:01 AM, AFlex said:

How does the parking sensor functionality work with these aftermarket units? Does it still beep and appear on the screen when the sonar detectors pick up close objects?

Thanks

By parking sensor functionality, if you are referring to the graphical sonar illustration that shows on the factory screen then no you lose that display completely on the Teyes and any other unit including the XTRON. It's not a big loss as the icon showing which corner is close displays on the instrument cluster anyway and beeps. At some point if Teyes don't make an add-on app to add the display, I may make my own android app to display this floating illustration.

In terms of the factory functionalities, the CD player still works but it needs to be accessed via the vehicle settings app. I'm not sure if factory CD player will still play DVD movies through this but will try it one of these days just for the sake of trying it. I've attached a few new photos (some showing the factory settings app). You can also access the climate control app through the vehicle settings app. Although I never use the climate app because i make all my climate changes through the buttons. When I change climate settings, i get a floating widget that shows the climate information at the bottom of the screen, this can be seen in my climate video demo on my previous post. If i'm not mistaken the XTRON puts the entire climate app on top.

 

 

[ahmed24]

On 8/20/2022 at 1:01 AM, AFlex said:

How does the parking sensor functionality work with these aftermarket units? Does it still beep and appear on the screen when the sonar detectors pick up close objects?

Thanks

Ok so further to my last answer. It appears I was mistaken. Just discovered i am able to turn on the parking sensor display. It's an option that's disabled in the menu. I enabled it and now I get a floating illustration showing the corners that are close.