MMI and AMI

[Lloyd Xmas]

Hello everyone, I've got an A3 SB 2.0 TDi S-Line on order and I'm slightly confused about what to expect from the MMI system. It's not a big deal for me and wouldn't affect my decision to get the car so when I had a test drive and a cable wasn't available to connect up my iPhone I didn't worry about it. However, as I wait for the car I was after some basic info on the functionality I can expect when my iPhone 5 is connected (via an adapter and the cable) to the car. Can I access all my music and playlists through the cars display, is it easy? Can I make phone calls using the car controls, leaving the phone in the centre console? Will the cable charge my phone? Do I lose any functionality if I connect via Bluetooth?

thanks in advance.

 

[NHN]

You should have no issues using the iphones music through mmi, making phone calls through the system aswell & cable should charge fine.

 

[SimonIG10]

You may have seen an earlier thread that I raised. It works great. I have the phone box option and was given a cable to connect my IPhone 4 to the connector in the centre arm rest. The cable I have has got the red collar. If you play your music via the Bluetooth there is very limit search. If you select the phone via the cable connection in the menu you can search by artist/album etc and even play videos. The phone charges through the cable. The music mutes when a call comes through. Now I have worked out what to do (which was pretty obvious) I am really pleased with the setup. Not sure what the connector is like on the IPhone 5 as this could be the only issue but am sure there is some kind of adaptor available. Everything is via the car controls. In fact the only issue I have is that I keep forgetting to take the phone out of the arm rest when I park the car.

 

[A3sportbackMark]

You may have seen an earlier thread that I raised. It works great. I have the phone box option and was given a cable to connect my IPhone 4 to the connector in the centre arm rest. The cable I have has got the red collar. If you play your music via the Bluetooth there is very limit search. If you select the phone via the cable connection in the menu you can search by artist/album etc and even play videos. The phone charges through the cable. The music mutes when a call comes through. Now I have worked out what to do (which was pretty obvious) I am really pleased with the setup. Not sure what the connector is like on the IPhone 5 as this could be the only issue but am sure there is some kind of adaptor available. Everything is via the car controls. In fact the only issue I have is that I keep forgetting to take the phone out of the arm rest when I park the car.

Good to see it works so well.
From your description it appears you get all the functionality you require by cable connection, and limited functionality using bluetooth. In view of this, what advantages do you gain connecting via Bluetooth?......or maybe I am missing something. The phone box, what does this provide?
I havn't had chance to play around with this, don't get my car until sept!

 

[SimonIG10]

There is no advantage using the Bluetooth. I mistakenly chose this connection from the Media menu. Using the bluetooth, all you get is a list of tracks in alphabetical index. The phone box claims to give better phone reception. I think it links your phone into the outside aerial somehow. I take a lot of business calls in the car so opted for this. I can't say if this has made a lot of difference. Phone reception seems strong.

 

[A3sportbackMark]

Thanks Simon.
It does beg the question who would use Bluetooth when the cable provides better functionality?
I guess that Audi still provide it for legacy reasons..... Ahhh and to connect to non iPhones!!

 

[RossR]

Bluetooth is wireless so you don't need to take your phone out and plug in.

 

[mitchd]

Thanks Simon.
It does beg the question who would use Bluetooth when the cable provides better functionality?
I guess that Audi still provide it for legacy reasons..... Ahhh and to connect to non iPhones!!

Simply, you don't have to plug it in to make phone calls from car, I would prob use the sd card slot for music anyway.
As SimonIG10 said, I would also forget phone and leave it in car if it was plugged in

 

[97catalunya]

I have an old 80gb iPod classic so will prob leave that connected for music then I can come and go as I please with my iPhone without having to connect it.
That said I ordered the tech pack and I think that gives 10gb of storage too.

 

[A3sportbackMark]

I have an old 80gb iPod classic so will prob leave that connected for music then I can come and go as I please with my iPhone without having to connect it.
That said I ordered the tech pack and I think that gives 10gb of storage too.

That sounds like a cunning plan! I never thought of that.
Does that mean you can use the cable connection to listen to music and the bluetooth for phone operation at the same time?
To me, that sounds like a step too far, but I'm happy to be wrong.

 

[97catalunya]

That sounds like a cunning plan! I never thought of that.
Does that mean you can use the cable connection to listen to music and the bluetooth for phone operation at the same time?
To me, that sounds like a step too far, but I'm happy to be wrong.

Hi Mark.

That's the way I understand it, the MMI uses bluetooth for the phone connection but hard wired for music

I am ready to be proven wrong though as I haven't got the car yet lol.

 

[A3sportbackMark]

Hi 97,
I'm in the same situation as you, no car yet to try these thing out, just tying to gain knowledge with no practical experience! I currently have a 12 year old car which I've had from new, so all of this is quite a leap in car technology for me. I must admit, I was blown away by the A3 when I test drove it and looked at the interior, and even more so when reading the brochure. Just can't wait to get my hands on the car.......roll on sept!

When is yours due?

 

[hittchy]

Thanks Simon.
It does beg the question who would use Bluetooth when the cable provides better functionality?
I guess that Audi still provide it for legacy reasons..... Ahhh and to connect to non iPhones!!

... and for iPhone 5 which I've found is a PITA to keep connected. It'll work fine over Bluetooth for calls and music, but cable with adapter is very hit and miss.

 

[Vertigo1]

I have an old 80gb iPod classic so will prob leave that connected for music then I can come and go as I please with my iPhone without having to connect it.
That said I ordered the tech pack and I think that gives 10gb of storage too.

I do much the same - have a dedicated 32GB iPod Touch which stays in the car connected to the AMI all the time. The fact it's so thin is a boon as it just slots into the little net pocket at the side, leaving the main box free for me to drop my phone into.

 

[Lloyd Xmas]

This is all great info, thanks guys. I think I'm likely to go with the iPod classic wired in the centre console and Bluetooth the phone. Presumably you can still connect the phone to USB to preserve battery life while the iPod is connected? Can you go through your phone book if its connected via Bluetooth?

 

[Vertigo1]

All phone functions work fine over bluetooth, providing the phone itself is compatible. Phonebook, recent calls, missed calls, dialled numbers etc etc. In addition, if it can read addresses out of your phonebook, you can use those for navigation (not sure if that's Tech Pack only or not).

For powering the phone, if you spec the phone box option then you get a 5V USB connector in there which you can use to power the phone. I bought a tiny three inch apple dock-USB cable which I keep in the net pocket alongside my iPod

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005LB0R60

 

[Lloyd Xmas]

That's great, cheers. I think I made a mistake not adding the phone box, int light pack and ext mono-pur int, do you know if you can add these after the order is placed? At the moment I've been told to expect delivery in October.

 

[Vertigo1]

You can usually amend the order until it gets an actual build slot on the system.

 

[cemerson]

Phone box isn't compatible with Audi Connect I'm wondering if the AMI panel with the USB socket will be available to order as a separate part and retrofit (assuming it doesn't come with the connect system) as charging is the bit I'm bothered about the most from the phone box option

 

[SimonIG10]

You could always use one of the 12v cigarette lighter sockets. There are USB adapters for these which you can then use with the standard white Apple cable for charging. You could put the phone in the cup holder and connect to the front one. You are also less likely to forget to take the phone from the car when you park.

 

[cemerson]

I like to keep my cabling neat though, not trailing all around the car... to the extent that I pulled the dashboard apart in my current car and installed a phone charger and switch into one of the blanking plates underneath the dash

(And I don't have an Apple, nor will I ever buy one of their products...)

 

[Vertigo1]

You could always use one of the 12v cigarette lighter sockets. There are USB adapters for these which you can then use with the standard white Apple cable for charging. You could put the phone in the cup holder and connect to the front one. You are also less likely to forget to take the phone from the car when you park.

Not exactly a tidy solution but it does also have the benefit that you can use a decent 2A charger. The USB socket provided with the phone box is hopeless and probably only supplies the standard USB 500mA, judging by how slowly it charges my iPhone.

The cradle in the 8P was so much better. Neat, tidy and charged my phone in no time. I miss it.

 

[deci]

I never liked the cradle in the 8p. I love the 8v setup.

I have my music via SD cards. Phone via bluetooth and a iphone 5 cable attached to the female USB to MMI cable for when I need to charge on the go (otherwise the phone doesn't leave my pocket). Works perfectly.

 

[cemerson]

Hmmm, perhaps I should install my own charger in there again then... the one in my current car is capable of delivering 3A

 

[tha_ben]

Simple solution so that all works (inc. album art with an iPhone 5, charging, control via mmi eyc)

red ami cable
apple 30pin to lightning Adapter.

I Have no issues with this setup. I tweeted audi about a genuine lightning cable. We should have one by the end of the year!

Ben

 

[97catalunya]

Simple solution so that all works (inc. album art with an iPhone 5, charging, control via mmi eyc)

red ami cable
apple 30pin to lightning Adapter.

I Have no issues with this setup. I tweeted audi about a genuine lightning cable. We should have one by the end of the year!

Ben

That's good news, maybe they will have it when I pick mine up sep/oct?

If not can you play video using the 30 pin adapter?

 

[Trebuchet]

Personally, I prefer just Bluetooth. I use various different apps to deliver audio so wouldn't benefit from closer integration the cable would provide.

When the lightning MMI cable comes out I'll give it a whirl.

 

[Vertigo1]

That's good news, maybe they will have it when I pick mine up sep/oct?

If not can you play video using the 30 pin adapter?

From what I understand, the standard adapter doesn't support video out, so it depends how the video works with the MMI. If it's just getting the device to play the video and then displaying the video output on the screen then you might be in trouble. If, OTOH, it's reading the video file itself and then decoding and playing it you could be ok.

 

[97catalunya]

From what I understand, the standard adapter doesn't support video out, so it depends how the video works with the MMI. If it's just getting the device to play the video and then displaying the video output on the screen then you might be in trouble. If, OTOH, it's reading the video file itself and then decoding and playing it you could be ok.

Cool thanks for the info, not a deal breaker but would be a bonus. The tech pack had a DVD player anyway if I really feel the need for video anytime

 

[97catalunya]

Personally, I prefer just Bluetooth. I use various different apps to deliver audio so wouldn't benefit from closer integration the cable would provide.

When the lightning MMI cable comes out I'll give it a whirl.

Oh cool so if connected by bluetooth it will just stream audio so I can still listen to Internet radio etc!

 

[Trebuchet]

Yep, that's what I was doing yesterday, with the Waze app cutting in with directions when needed.

I was avoiding a jam on the A1 listening to iplayer whilst being directed by Waze along lots if single-track lanes. All over Bluetooth

 

[Karl Alesbury]

Has anybody had a go with Spotify in both wired and bluetooth modes?

 

[Vertigo1]

In theory, once you've selected the phone as the playback device, you should hear any and all sound it produces through the car. You can even use Siri on an iPhone through the car, although you have to press the home button on the phone itself to trigger it.

The one thing it still fails at with an iPhone is iTunes Match. The MMI will only see music that's physically on the phone, not iTunes Match stuff that needs to be downloaded or streamed. You can obviously start such music streaming via the phone and then listen to it, as I presume you could also do with the likes of Spotify, but unfortunately you can't browse the library on the MMI and select music to stream directly from there.

 

[97catalunya]

In theory, once you've selected the phone as the playback device, you should hear any and all sound it produces through the car. You can even use Siri on an iPhone through the car, although you have to press the home button on the phone itself to trigger it.

The one thing it still fails at with an iPhone is iTunes Match. The MMI will only see music that's physically on the phone, not iTunes Match stuff that needs to be downloaded or streamed. You can obviously start such music streaming via the phone and then listen to it, as I presume you could also do with the likes of Spotify, but unfortunately you can't browse the library on the MMI and select music to stream directly from there.

Wow getting to use Siri will be great! Shame no button on the wheel to activate it though! As for iTunes Match, pain in the *** but most things I have connected my phone too will only recognise the music stored locally

 

[tha_ben]

That's good news, maybe they will have it when I pick mine up sep/oct?

If not can you play video using the 30 pin adapter?

Video will NOT work with the 30pin to lightning connector.


iTunes match WILL work with the 30pin to lightning connector.


Later versions of iOS also seem to play nicely with MMI (so far..)

 

[Lloyd Xmas]

In the standard A3 setup without the technology pack, whereabouts is the SD card slot?

 

[cemerson]

In the same place I think - in the glove box

 

[Lloyd Xmas]

Ah I see, so you can just copy your music, plug it in and forget about it, lovely.

 

[Vertigo1]

If memory serves, you only get one SD slot without the Tech Pack and two with it, so presumably if you have the SD nav, that'll fill your one and only card slot.

 

[mjcourtney]

Not quite, the non-tech pack still provides you with 2 SD card slots. If you have the SD Sat Nav it uses one of these slots, leaving one slot free.