New project: Android OS on the G37 screen
 

Hey everyone

Figured I'd bring up the little project that I'm undertaking. I have a 2008 G37S W/O Nav, however I have always wanted in-dash navigation. For the time being, I have used my Galaxy Nexus as my nav unit, but that just seems insufficient. So I have decided to try to get my phone screen on my car's dash screen. To clarify, I am doing this to have in-dash navigation; this is not to play videos or games, as that is VERY DANGEROUS and ILLEGAL. The unmentionable will be required to get this to work.

Some phones can manage that easily (iPhones and the HTC Incredibles) because their pin arrangements carry an analog signal, thus allowing you to plug it direction to the composite input. However, my phone only carries a digital signal over MHL (Mobile High-definition Link). To get my phone's display on my dash, I am going to try using a HDMI-to-Composite converter box. I know it is possible to do this for analog TVs, so I am optimistic that this will work (and won't turn out to be a waste of $80).

Here is link to a post on androidforums.com that shows a Galaxy Nexus' video output on an analog connection, using the converter box. Hopefully this works for the G too!

I should have the parts in a week, so I will update when I can.

Update 2
I can only verify that this mod works for cars with the Composite input. It will not work with the USB input (to my knowledge).

Update
See post near the bottom of the page

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-q...3-k/2012-06-21

In case anybody was wondering, here is my parts list:


Both the MHL cable and the Converter box will require a power source, so I purchased this high output, dual usb car charger.


This cable will allow me to (try to) put everything in the armrest, and only have a single cable coming out of the armrest to my phone. This cable is responsible for converting my phone's micro USB output to HDMI.


This is the converter box that is needed to convert my phone's digital signal (HDMI) to an analog signal (composite) that the G37 can use.

UPDATE:

This is another option for converter box recommended by dcg37x, on page 3 of this thread. It is smaller, cheaper, and doesn't require a power source. I would recommend this one over the previous.


This power cable SHOULD allow me to power the converter box using the aforementioned USB car charger.


This cable will supply power over the MHL cable, thus charging my phone when it is plugged in.

Sounds like an interesting project. That's alot of stuff you have to buy though. Let us know how things go. Maybe pics and a writeup if you don't mind....

In for more!

in for updates!

Yeah, I was worried when I told the wife, "FYI, there is a good possibility this will NOT work, and will result in me throwing away 80 bucks."

Her response: "Meh, it's only $80." :bowrofl:

Assuming this works, I will do a full write-up of it in this thread (or the DIY). If it doesn't... *sigh*

It's high time that Android users get to plug their phones into their Gs!
"WHO ARE WE?"
"G37 OWNERS!"
"AND WHAT DO WE WANT?"
"TO USE GOOGLE NAVIGATION ON OUR G37 SCREENS!"

in for updates.

its definitly possible one way or another. almost all androids have a video out, especially newer ones, so really its just a matter of getting your phones out converted properly to RCA in our cars.

that being said ive been trying to think of how exactly to get it done for my phone too. cant wait to c ur results.

if your nexus has a mHDMI out then i don't see why this wouldn't work. members over on g35driver have been doing this but using HTC phones with composite out. another option is to buy a mini android computer:

74 USD AllWinner A10 Android 4.0 Mini PC | CNXSoft – Embedded Software Development

also, i'm not sure how familiar you are with the car but you know that video doesn't show through the aux when you're driving right? we can't talk about the forbidden mod here but you can always hook up a nav2go unit or PAC unit to display it on your screen.

all in all the google maps app is one of the best options out there, in my opinion. plus once you do this you can use the phone as your music library/player, which is a nice change.

Yeah, my phone does have MHL (HD video output over micro USB), but it is different from the HTC Incredibles. The Incredibles are able to use a specialized microUSB-to-composite cable, specifically designed for them, because those phones have extra pins in their microUSB connection to carry an analog signal. I made the mistake of buying the cable for $10 in the past :(

As for how to get video over aux while moving, I stated that the unmentionable will be required to get this to really work. I just don't plan on doing said unmentionable until I verify that the hardware I bought works in the car first.

in for the updates! Also if it works you should build/sell the kits and make your money back ;)

get around to trying this yet?

I received the parts in the mail on Tuesday. I performed a dry-run by hooking the components and my phone up to my television. Once I verified that they all worked, I did a crude installation in my car.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0...3-k/2012-06-21
This picture shows the USB-charger, with the MHL charging cable and converter box power cable plugged in. As well as the RCA cables plugged in.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-J...3-k/2012-06-21
Here we have the Converter Box hooked up. HDMI-in, RCA-out.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Y...3-k/2012-06-21
My phone's dashboard, displayed on my car's dashboard :JAMIN:
And for those wondering, that is one of my dogs, Kimchi. He's a Shiba Inu.

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-J...3-k/2012-06-21
Google Navigation app displaying on my phone and dashboard. It was interesting to note that once you plug in MHL, the phone goes into a "tablet-like" mode where it only displays in the horizontal view.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-q...3-k/2012-06-21
This image is a close-up of the Google Navigation app on the dashboard. As you can see, the clarity and resolution are fine for the navigation app. It is a little fuzzy with other things, but Google Nav looks and sounds great on it.

Initial Impression:

The picture quality is decent. The navigation can be seen clearly, the audio is over the car's speakers. So as a in-dash navigation unit, it APPEARS to be a viable option. Keep in mind, however, that I have yet to perform the unmentionable, so I haven't tried it on the road. I am hoping to get that done this weekend, so a full review will be available after that.

The converter box gets VERY hot -- to the point that it hurts to touch it. It doesn't appear to be hot enough to damage the car or the cables in any way, though.

Sometimes the picture starts fuzzing, then it corrects itself. I speculate the RCA cable provided with the converter box sucks.

The MHL adapter/cable I am using doesn't appear to charge my phone in AC/DC mode, but instead registers as USB mode. This means it is only receiving a "trickle charge", which might not be sufficient for the screen to be on the whole time without the battery losing charge. This could be a limitation of the MHL cable or the MicroUSB-to-USB adapter that connects the MHL to the car charger.

The phone MUST BE AWAKE for the picture to appear on the dash screen. This is not a limitation of anything accept the Android OS. The phone will be working "double duty", since the GPU (graphical processor unit) will have to render both the phone's screen, as well as the HDMI output to the in-dash screen. Results = phone gets warm, might mean battery drain is too much b/c of the reason mentioned ^above. Will observe this carefully for full review.

Picture of armrest contents after installation

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-G...619_182645.jpg

Though the above contents look cramped, I can verify that the armrest closes and does not pinch on anything. Talk about a close call lol

awesome to know it works! ive been looking to do this with many of the same parts and just diddnt want to try it and find out i wasted my time and money.

as for the USB charging problem ur having, there is actually a difference between "Charging" cables and "Data" cables. the difference is that the 2 wires responsible for data transfer are useless when charging so they are actually removed or attached together so that they are useless, if you google "changing data cable to charge" you will likely find one of the DIYS on how to open up the wire you have and change it over if you dont wanna spend the 5 bucks on a new a charging cable and you will get full speed charge. it also may be easier to open up your usb power to cig lighter outlet and i believe you solder the 2 data wires together (look it up, i read how to do it somewhere but i dont remember exactly).

thank you for being the guinea pig on this one! :)

edit:
also there is plenty of room under the cup holders to hide all that stuff away and just run the wire through a small hole or take out the ipod connector and run through there.

Do you think with a full charge, that it could push the heat to the next level and get the parts to hot?