jbondox

in a nut shell

jbondox

please don't ask what a nut shell and an escalade flip down monitor have anything to do with an iPad

wamochi

we have the prewire as well. we did not opt for the system at this time because my 2.5 yr old would destroy it with his feet and frankly, we don't want him watching videos in the car at this age. it would be easier for us to have a flip down to hide it away when not in use, because he's the type of personality that would mess with it (even when it's OFF) and push all the buttons making the unloading/loading of him into the carseat a 10x longer process!!!!!!!!

but i did ask the dealer about other alternatives than the odd factory system, and he told me about the neck-pro issue and that is why they redesigned the head rests. he said they contract out with an electronic company and came up with another integrated headrest version (similar to the previous model years) that has the same functionality but isn't a floppy screen. it can be controlled from front and do all the same things (wireless headsets, inputs, etc.) but is made into the screen. i saw a sample and it pretty much looks like the older system but a nicer/larger screen. they build it into the existing back of the headrest as well.

so yes, there are other alternatives out there for the prewire that maintain all the same functionality. but it varies from dealer to dealer.

jcbutta

mdadgar

Ahh, I didn't realize you were talking about hanging the screen off the seat back vs. integrating it into the back of the headrest.

Thanks.

- Mark

jbondox

No prob, it is Friday, I do nothing seriously on Friday

BallJack

It's an iPad. It's not a dummy monitor that is not worth anything if you don't feed anything to it. iPad is the input itself. You can watch a movie, play a video game, browse the web, make slideshows, prepare presentations, and on and on and on..... within the same device and not having to plug an 'input' to it.

huh? I guess you haven't really tried everything. You have to have a geek on your advisory board. I'm not a geek but I can give you an example of what I can do with the iPad.

I can stream any of my dvds that I ripped onto my desktop at home to my iPad even while I am on the road driving - as long as there is a 3g signal. All I need is an app that costs $3. So from my point of view, why would I bother to lug around my "on the go" dvds with me to play on my COMAND or RES. Good luck if you forgot to bring your daughter's favorite movie.

You definitely need to seach the mac forum to make an expert assessment on this matter. This is already outside of the MB world.

jbondox

LOL... sure, and the minute you are out of 3G... or if you're not grandfathered in for unlimited use with AT&T... you'd be stuck with the Virgin Mobile MiFi which has about as great of reception as AM radio in the mountains...

so streaming a full DVD over a limited bandwidth use is expensive... like I said, I tried everything... including SlingBox...

Maybe next time we can run all the ideas through you seeing you are the answer to everyones needs.

further if you had an 09 COMAND, you can output the DVD video from the built in 6 disk... unfortunately the ipad doesn't have an AV input.... but let me guess, it was a feature that isn't needed because they discussed it with you?

mdadgar

Uhhh, why not just load the movies on the iPad? Event the smallest iPad will hold 8 movies at an Apple TV size and bitrate and you can get more by giving up a bit of quality (that you'll not notice on the small screen) and dropping 5.1 surround sound from the rip.

- Mark

jbondox

I understand all that...

now if you want a different movie... and you didn't download from netflix, etc... on the 09 models and above you can output a DVD A/V signal off the COMAND, why be limited to what you can do...

What I am trying to say, is that the iPad is not total integration for multimedia

BallJack

Relax dude. There's no need to get personal if another person has a different opinion and point of view than yours.

Of course you should know that you can load your movies locally on the iPad's storage - any movie doesn't have to be watched via 3G alone. I can if I want to because I have an unlimited data plan on my phone. Outside of the iPhone, most smartphones come with unlimited data for $20 - well, that's my plan from years ago. At the hotel, rest stop or Starbucks or McDonald's, there's WiFi.

I have a few movies stored on my iPad - for those movies that the kids keep on watching over and over.

I have streamed several movies on the iPad (tethered to my phone) while on my trip from NY to South Carolina via 3G with no problems and the quality was really really good. I also streamed a Netflix movie in between. I think it was like 200 mb on one movie. In that whole trip I did not have a single movie disc with me. Funny you mentioned slingbox. I used it too while at the hotel to catch up on my shows on recorded on the TiVo.

The disk media to me is just passe. Just saying. No need to get your blood pressure up. LOL.

Black Beauty

I just traded in my GL450 with rear entertainment for ml 350 without rear entertainment. I am going the iPad route but what about headphones? Will the mb wireless headphones work with iPad?

alx

alternatives about rear entertainment?

wait a second before i get my mind out of the gutter...

neavissa

I just got a 2009 GL320 Bluetec and was wondering if I can remove the rear entertainment screens?! I have a hard time getting the baby seats in and out...

thanks,
G

azzurribaggio

Bringing this thread back from the dead....I have a 2011 ML350 pre-wired and was thinking of ipads as well for my twins who just turned 2 and we will put their seats forward facing.
Are ipads the way to go or should I have my dealer install the RES , how much would this be btw?

Ppanko01

I had dealer installed 2 iPad docking station in 2013 GL450. They work very well for mine kids. Bunch of movies (Digital Copies), they can easily take the iPod out of docking stations and play games if the chose to..watch Netflix shoes & whatever, etc.

STRADALEF1

Do you need "pre-wiring"? How do the docking stations connect to power, is there some sort of wiring or connectors that come out of the headrests or seats???

Ppanko01

Not sure how it is connected inside front seats. I got the power version that has built in USB, and to my understanding there are two different pin/power cables - options available depending what options are already included in a vehicle.

STRADALEF1

Thanks! I have an ML63 on order, it will be pre-wired (866) but trying to understand how the iPad stations get mounted, if holes in the seat are required, etc.

Ppanko01

I don't think the 866 option is needed or used for iPad. And yes the power version will require a hole in the seat, but it is covered by the docking station base.

Ppanko01

Most importantly, the iPad docking station work fine, but I would rather have a regular / removable iPad holders installed w/o power option if I could do it again. There are a couple power outlets in the second row. And the permanent docking station is good when kids are young but a few years from now... Not sure what I am going to do with it. I recently saw nice headrest iPad mounts for $50 each.

STRADALEF1

On the MB site for ML builds where it shows the iPad stations as an accessory, under "disclaimer" it says pre-wiring required but guess there's more than one way of installing them... Hmmm.. If it means holes in the seats I'm going to look for another option. I did see a MB version that mounts on the metal headrest poles (sorry don't know what they're called)..... Right, either connect to the power outlets or even an Easy Acc power bank which is what I use when my iPad is running low on battery & I'm not next to an outlet. Thanks for your help, appreciate it.

lotuni

From another post I did:

I am very happy with iPads and my ipad mounts (non MB). For me it is the right way to go.

Check out my pics I posted in the 164 forum in my '12 GL.

pics of gripDaddy ipad mounts in GL

I usually make my phone a hotsopt and away they go with netflix or whatever (have 6 Gig and LTE so speed is not normally a problem).

For those times when there is no data available or for people with limited data plans I also have this:


It is a 1 TB drive with built in Wifi. I just load whatever is relevant on to it and they can stream the digital movies or shows right from it (I travel a bit for work and I use this for my travels). Works great inside a GL too

STRADALEF1

That's really helpful, thanks. Looks great & functional. The drive is a great idea too.

Here's the MB ipad docking stations I mentioned. I guess there are 2 types?? One that is hard mounted to the seat back & this one that looks like it mounts on the headrest seat posts.

jbondox

http://store.audiovox.com/webapp/wcs...ory=&pageView=

The best I found so far, and I pretty much tried everything. You can also get the same with built in charging and infrared headphones. Easy to remove also so you can keep it in the case and take it with you.

Power is easy to run, just drop the wire next to the headrest plug/guide, through the seat, and to the cig lighter