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Hello all! So I'm in the market for a 2016-2018 W205 sedan. I think I have a fairly good idea of what I want and found some used ones that are very close to what I want, but one thing that has stumped me and I can't figure it out is COMAND. Like I get it is the cockpit management system, but how can I quickly and easily tell if a W205 has it? I notice that most used 2018 models I find, don't have the trackpad thing whereas the 2016 and 2017 models do. What does the trackpad thing do exactly and if I get a 2018 model without it, what would I be losing? I do see an occasional 2018 model have it. Obviously newer models have it, so I'm wondering why it seems so rare on the 2018 model.
I'm planning to get one of the aftermarket plug-in units so I can get wireless Apple carplay and etc, not sure if that affects anything?
I would search for the answer, but I don't even know exactly what to search for. I've tried Google and can't find what I'm looking. Please help! Thanks in advance and forgive my ignorance!
Ok! So basically it's kinda like having a mouse and a trackpad plugged into the computer at the same time. They don't really do anything differently, they just offer an additionally experience if you wish to use it. This is actually very helpful as it opens up a lot of other W205s I would not have selected because of the missing trackpad!
Ok! So basically it's kinda like having a mouse and a trackpad plugged into the computer at the same time. They don't really do anything differently, they just offer an additionally experience if you wish to use it. This is actually very helpful as it opens up a lot of other W205s I would not have selected because of the missing trackpad!
Sort of, but the touchpad has a couple of extras. It can be used for handwriting destinations one letter at a time and you can do pinch and zoom for the navigation map and other typical touch gestures. COMAND as a whole is the higher end Infotainment system. If the car you are looking at has the touchpad, then it has COMAND or what's referred to as the multimedia package. It means built-in navigation etc. Otherwise it has an entry level Infotainment system that doesn't have built-in navigation and is lacking some other features. Certain other packages like the Driver Assistance package also require COMAND.
For the model years you are looking at you'll get what's now a fairly old COMAND system. Newer models have an updated one that has a widescreen and a much nicer UI along with additional features, better navigation, better live traffic, OTA map updates etc. and can be had in conjunction with a digital instrument cluster. The newer system comes in the 2019 and newer years, also known as the midcycle facelift.
Last edited by superswiss; 05-12-2021 at 06:34 PM.
Sort of, but the touchpad has a couple of extras. It can be used for handwriting destinations one letter at a time and you can do pinch and zoom for the navigation map and other typical touch gestures. COMAND as a whole is the higher end Infotainment system. If the car you are looking at has the touchpad, then it has COMAND or what's referred to as the multimedia package. It means built-in navigation etc. Otherwise it has an entry level Infotainment system that doesn't have built-in navigation and is lacking some other features. Certain other packages like the Driver Assistance package also require COMAND.
For the model years you are looking at you'll get what's now a fairly old COMAND system. Newer models have an updated one that has a widescreen and a much nicer UI along with additional features, better navigation, better live traffic, OTA map updates etc. and can be had in conjunction with a digital instrument cluster. The newer system comes in the 2019 and newer years, also known as the midcycle facelift.
That's absolutely incorrect. You can have the touchpad with Audio20 system (not COMAND) but I don't think you can have COMAND without it.
Every version of COMAND starting with the first produced cars in 2014 would have a bigger screen compared to Audio20 (8.4" rather than 7") and it will be laminated.
That's absolutely incorrect. You can have the touchpad with Audio20 system (not COMAND) but I don't think you can have COMAND without it.
Every version of COMAND starting with the first produced cars in 2014 would have a bigger screen compared to Audio20 (8.4" rather than 7") and it will be laminated.
Not in the USA where OP is located. Touchpad only comes/came with COMAND equipped cars. Maybe in your market, but my response was specifically to OP's location.
The touch pad is a gimmick, rather useless, but it does look cool. The reason why you don’t see it much on 2018’s is because in 2018 for the last year of the pre facelift they released an option called “Smartphone Integration Package” which included Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The touch pad was part of the Multimedia package which included the bigger screen and Mercedes navigation, but for whatever reason you could not spec the Smartphone Integration Package with the Multimedia Package. Most dealers ended up ordering them with the Smartphone Integration Package instead of Multimedia Package because most people valued Apple CarPlay and Android Auto more. It’s up to what you value more for a 2018, but it think having Apple CarPlay and Android Auto would make the car more desirable when you sell it, even if it was only available with the smaller “uglier” screen.
Not in the USA where OP is located. Touchpad only comes/came with COMAND equipped cars. Maybe in your market, but my response was specifically to OP's location.
The touch pad is a gimmick, rather useless, but it does look cool. The reason why you don’t see it much on 2018’s is because in 2018 for the last year of the pre facelift they released an option called “Smartphone Integration Package” which included Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The touch pad was part of the Multimedia package which included the bigger screen and Mercedes navigation, but for whatever reason you could not spec the Smartphone Integration Package with the Multimedia Package. Most dealers ended up ordering them with the Smartphone Integration Package instead of Multimedia Package because most people valued Apple CarPlay and Android Auto more. It’s up to what you value more for a 2018, but it think having Apple CarPlay and Android Auto would make the car more desirable when you sell it, even if it was only available with the smaller “uglier” screen.
Sorry, I'm still new to all this. This will be my first MB, so still trying to learn. I think it's going to a 2017 model as the price seems to be within my budget. I do see a few 2018 pop up that is very close, but they are missing the things I want, so I rather go to a 2017 and get most of what I want rather than just 1 year newer.
I do like the bigger screen, but my ultimate goal is to have Carplay. I know official CarPlay was added in mid-2018 editions, but I'm seeing aftermarket add-ons to C300s with the touch pad but I don't think I've seen any aftermarket CarPlay add-on to C300 with no touch pads leading me to think I need to have the touch pad in order to be able to get CarPlay prior to official release. I'm doing a search of MBWorld and I hear about NTG and Audio20, but I'm not sure what those mean. So is adding unofficial CarPlay difficult? These are the videos I've seen and it seems pretty straightforward to me:
Sort of, but the touchpad has a couple of extras. It can be used for handwriting destinations one letter at a time and you can do pinch and zoom for the navigation map and other typical touch gestures. COMAND as a whole is the higher end Infotainment system. If the car you are looking at has the touchpad, then it has COMAND or what's referred to as the multimedia package. It means built-in navigation etc. Otherwise it has an entry level Infotainment system that doesn't have built-in navigation and is lacking some other features. Certain other packages like the Driver Assistance package also require COMAND.
For the model years you are looking at you'll get what's now a fairly old COMAND system. Newer models have an updated one that has a widescreen and a much nicer UI along with additional features, better navigation, better live traffic, OTA map updates etc. and can be had in conjunction with a digital instrument cluster. The newer system comes in the 2019 and newer years, also known as the midcycle facelift.
Sorry, I'm still new to all this. This will be my first MB, so still trying to learn. I think it's going to a 2017 model as the price seems to be within my budget. I do see a few 2018 pop up that is very close, but they are missing the things I want, so I rather go to a 2017 and get most of what I want rather than just 1 year newer.
I do like the bigger screen, but my ultimate goal is to have Carplay. I know official CarPlay was added in mid-2018 editions, but I'm seeing aftermarket add-ons to C300s with the touch pad but I don't think I've seen any aftermarket CarPlay add-on to C300 with no touch pads leading me to think I need to have the touch pad in order to be able to get CarPlay prior to official release. I'm doing a search of MBWorld and I hear about NTG and Audio20, but I'm not sure what those mean. So is adding unofficial CarPlay difficult? These are the videos I've seen and it seems pretty straightforward to me:
For this mod you don't need the touchpad, just make sure you get the correct version device (that's dependent on whether you'll have a car with Audio20 or COMAND system).
It is a bit daunting to perform yourself if you're not fairly handy but those videos you've linked seem to show everything you need to do to retrofit it though and honestly once you try it it's not too bad and you get the hang of it pretty quickly.
For this mod you don't need the touchpad, just make sure you get the correct version device (that's dependent on whether you'll have a car with Audio20 or COMAND system).
It is a bit daunting to perform yourself if you're not fairly handy but those videos you've linked seem to show everything you need to do to retrofit it though and honestly once you try it it's not too bad and you get the hang of it pretty quickly.
I've done stereo replacement and etc in the past, so I feel pretty confident I can manage this.
When you say "get the correct version device", I'm guessing you mean the aftermarket module needs to match up to whether I have Audio20 or COMAND. Is there a quick way for me to know on a 2016 or 2017 C300 if it has Audio20 or COMAND, is it as simple as if the car has touch pad it has COMAND and if no touchpad, it's Audio20?
I've done stereo replacement and etc in the past, so I feel pretty confident I can manage this.
When you say "get the correct version device", I'm guessing you mean the aftermarket module needs to match up to whether I have Audio20 or COMAND. Is there a quick way for me to know on a 2016 or 2017 C300 if it has Audio20 or COMAND, is it as simple as if the car has touch pad it has COMAND and if no touchpad, it's Audio20?
Like I said before, touchpad doesn't mean it has COMAND or not, mine has the touchpad but came with Audio20 (replaced with the Android screen now though).
Easiest way to tell if it has Audio20 or COMAND is to look at the screen itself.
COMAND on the left, Audio20 on the right
Or if you don't have a clear picture or want a definitive answer ask for the VIN and put it through a decoder/post it here and we can let you know.
Like I said before, touchpad doesn't mean it has COMAND or not, mine has the touchpad but came with Audio20 (replaced with the Android screen now though).
Easiest way to tell if it has Audio20 or COMAND is to look at the screen itself.
COMAND on the left, Audio20 on the right
Or if you don't have a clear picture or want a definitive answer ask for the VIN and put it through a decoder/post it here and we can let you know.
Now that's very helpful! Thank you! I was considering doing the 10.5 inch screen replacement worse case scenario. How do you like your Android screen swap out? Which one did you go with if you don't mind me asking.
Now that's very helpful! Thank you! I was considering doing the 10.5 inch screen replacement worse case scenario. How do you like your Android screen swap out? Which one did you go with if you don't mind me asking.
The Android screen definitely has its quirks and you do need a couple of other bits to make it really good (especially with Benz as opposed to BMW as our cars don't have an AUX input) but if you get one which has the Snapdragon 625 CPU there is a lot of support for it from different people that make it a huge upgrade, for example stuff like https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...d=projekt.auto
The Android screen definitely has its quirks and you do need a couple of other bits to make it really good (especially with Benz as opposed to BMW as our cars don't have an AUX input) but if you get one which has the Snapdragon 625 CPU there is a lot of support for it from different people that make it a huge upgrade, for example stuff like https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...d=projekt.auto
The screen runs Android Auto and Carplay if you want it to but best of all it runs a full on Android which means you can get any Android app on there like Google Maps, Waze, Spotify, Tidal, Plex, Netflix etc. which almost negates the point of using Carplay/AA although I use it myself.
For the screens to really shine you do need a good USB sound card and if you want to use Carplay a CarLinkIt dongle for it and a few apps. If you want more info about it try https://discord.gg/FwTfe9KE as we're kind of going off topic here.
The screen runs Android Auto and Carplay if you want it to but best of all it runs a full on Android which means you can get any Android app on there like Google Maps, Waze, Spotify, Tidal, Plex, Netflix etc. which almost negates the point of using Carplay/AA although I use it myself.
For the screens to really shine you do need a good USB sound card and if you want to use Carplay a CarLinkIt dongle for it and a few apps. If you want more info about it try https://discord.gg/FwTfe9KE as we're kind of going off topic here.
Thank you so much! I really appreciate all your help! This is very helpful in helping me decide which specific C300 I plan to go with!
Sort of, but the touchpad has a couple of extras. It can be used for handwriting destinations one letter at a time and you can do pinch and zoom for the navigation map and other typical touch gestures. COMAND as a whole is the higher end Infotainment system. If the car you are looking at has the touchpad, then it has COMAND or what's referred to as the multimedia package. It means built-in navigation etc. Otherwise it has an entry level Infotainment system that doesn't have built-in navigation and is lacking some other features. Certain other packages like the Driver Assistance package also require COMAND.
For the model years you are looking at you'll get what's now a fairly old COMAND system. Newer models have an updated one that has a widescreen and a much nicer UI along with additional features, better navigation, better live traffic, OTA map updates etc. and can be had in conjunction with a digital instrument cluster. The newer system comes in the 2019 and newer years, also known as the midcycle facelift.
The track pad doesn't necessarily mean it has comand. My 2017 C300 had the track pad but it had Audio 20 which is nowhere near as good as comand.
The track pad doesn't necessarily mean it has comand. My 2017 C300 had the track pad but it had Audio 20 which is nowhere near as good as comand.
So I just picked up my 2016 C300 yesterday that has the track pad and it doesn't look like it has COMAND either...when I startup, it just says don't let the SYSTEM distract you versus don't let COMAND distract you...
So I just picked up my 2016 C300 yesterday that has the track pad and it doesn't look like it has COMAND either...when I startup, it just says don't let the SYSTEM distract you versus don't let COMAND distract you...
05-12-2021, 02:06 PM
