PunjabiM3

So looks like we will be deciding in the coming weeks if we will indeed order a GL350. At this point I have decided to order a 2015. We have a two year old and will hopefully be having another little one in the near future. My son loves playing with iPhones, iPads, watching Top Gear with me, etc. I am thinking on long drives it would be nice to have some form of rear seat entertainment. All of the new movies I purchase or rent are Bluray with some having included in there a regular DVD disc and digital copy. So my question is, I pretty much have all of the options we want but am trying to decide if we should get either the factory installed RES or iPad docking stations versus getting just the rear pre-wire and perhaps aftermarket setup? Anyone have any thoughts on this? Do the ipad docking stations look hideous when no ipad docked on there? Any pics would be useful as well! Thanks!

fabbrisd1

Well... for "wired-in" rear entertainment the factory option for like $2K gives you ability to play/control content to the rear screens from the front head unit - and play the audio over the car speakers - with that age group those are two features you will appreciate.

As a factory installed option - then that's covered under the 4yr 50K mile Mercedes warranty as well.

Rear entertainment pre-wiring reallky doesn't do much for you frankly.

You can't count on the wired-in iPad holders - since for all we know 6 months from now Appple will change the docking system (again).

Aftermarket you have "holders" and "rear plug-in units" - and both those will play audio with headphones or buds.

For most of my customers they either choose "all" meaning having factory installed rear entertainment as core - or "add nothing" and rely on holders with plug-in units of many types...

It's your call to make ..

JoeMa

(IMO) I find it difficult to understand how the RES is worth the cost these days when you can buy two iPads (or another brand) for less and take them with you when you exit the vehicle and use them to do a lot more than simply watching movies. The RES option on any vehicle may soon become a thing of the past. I'm also not fond of the look of these small screens in the GL. They sort of make the 2nd row seating area seem smaller. Of course this is all subjective and if your family would benefit from having the RES, then go for it. It's your money after all. But you will love owning a GL. It is just the best full-size SUV available.

ymmv

Just ask your customer in the back seat if they want an iPad Air or a video player bolted to the car and a selection of entertainment limited to whatever is in the car? : )

From the school of conscientious parenting, so long as I lock down the iPad (in our case, the Nexus 10) to limit my children to either age-appropriate movies and games with redeeming qualities (especially games that build skills and challenge mental faculties) then they can spend an otherwise tedious, repetitive journey with something more productive than passive movie watching.

Of course, when there's scenery or we're on a road trip to explore the real world, I assign tasks like navigation and finding a healthy place to stop and keep the kids involved and knowing where they are on the planet instead of the "are we there yet" cliche. It's remarkably compelling for a teenager to know our "actual" ETA and alert me to traffic problems and re-route or schedule the next stop to relieve a young bladder, etc. Between Distronic, Bluetec and the Nexus, longer trips are much less tedious.

PunjabiM3

Anyone have a pic of what the ipad docking station looks like WITHOUT the ipad docked?

cookstar

google it. a dozen or more different variations exist.

PunjabiM3

A dozen variation of the one you get from MB? I googled it yesterday to look at the various pics but couldn't tell which one is OEM.

cookstar

Here is the MB one, I was referring to all thats on the market. Hope it helps! good luck. No pic without it docked



http://www.mbusa.com/mercedes/access...artNo:BQACC002

http://www.mercedes-benz.ca/content/...rtainment.html

PunjabiM3

Yeah that is why in my original post I stated without it docked.

cookstar

here it is without it docked in detail, courtesy of Benz blogger. Vehicle is 2012 GL450





http://www.benzblogger.com/2012/05/i...nd-ipad-2.html

fabbrisd1

The "installed + powered" dock is for the birds - since size/thickness and power configuation's on iPads change... wide range of mounts available that clip to the front row headrest rods - a good number of them too cheaply made to be worth $40.. well made ones are a bit more... MB brand one pricey but covered by 2yr Mercedes accessory warranty..

wamochi

wow that looks terrible without ipads in them. i far prefer my $20 removable velcro.

mhj202

Are these the "powered" ones?

mhj202

Do the non-powered ones look similar?

Homey63

Another alternative but less integrated look is a joy factory mount

http://www.thejoyfactory.com/product/MMA107

The ipad mounts onto a back plate in 5 seconds and mounts to a carbon fibre swing arm that swings out of the way when it is not used. If you change ipads down the road, the mounting plate costs peanuts to replace. The arm can also position the ipad between the seats so that the kids can share in watching. I mounted this in my E550 and it works like a charm.

mhj202

I really like that it swings out of the way when not used.


Do they sell mounting plates for Ipad Air or Ipad Mini? couldn't find it on the website.

Homey63

Check out the store, they sell the plates for the Air, mini and 4th generation separately in.

http://www.thejoyfactory.com/store

mhj202

Thanks. Finally found the "Accessories" area-- somehow kept overlooking it.

paulwbenn

If you have young children, I'd suggest you consider the factory rear seat system. We have 2-1/2 year old twins and just wanted something to entertain them on trips. We went with the factory system for our GL and it works great. Its durable, comes with remotes and my kids don't care about HD, etc. at this age. They basically like old cartoons, etc. which are easy to find on old style DVDs. Also, we have three generations of iPads in our house and I don't think any are the same size. I understand that you can also connect the iPad or iPhone to the factory system through the aux. connections to play downloaded movies, and bought an Apple connector for this but have never gotten around to trying it. Good luck.