Home > Consumer Reviews > Pioneer AVIC-F900BT In-Dash Navigation Audio/Video Receiver with DVD Playback and Advance Voice Controls

I purchased this for our 2005 Honda Odyssey. Crutchfield did not have the
mounting kit so I ordered it from another company. I also purchased the
PAC SWI-PS for the steering wheel buttons. When I tried installing it myself
I had an annoying hiss coming from the speakers. Also, the computer voice
was very scratchy. I called Crutchfield and they sent me a noise filter. I
wasn't sure that was the problem so I checked some forums, avic411.com,
and found that someone else had the same problem and they installed a
PAC OEM-2. The problem stemmed from my factory amp putting off too
much voltage and this PAC OEM-2 allows you to lower the amount of volts
that go into the speakers (or something like that). I ordered one from
Crutchfield. I then paid someone to install it. He did an excellent job. He is
in Baltimore (12 Voltz is the name of his company) and is very reasonably priced. Crutchfield is definitely
a top notch company. They helped me as much as they could through my
first atept at installing this stereo. I literally called them about 15 times.
For the price, this stereo has everything that you want. The sound is
excellent and the navigation works great. So if you have a factory amp and
you are having a hiss (soft shushing noise) from your speakers definitely
order the PAC OEM-2 with this stereo.

The unit takes a nearly two minutes to boot up completly!! the bluetooth disconnects every two minutes from my blackberry, when I called the company they said "sorry, we havnt been able to make the avic stay connected to blackberry" the guy said that they havnt smoothed out the software glitches yet!! this unit seemed very apealing based on write up and specs. Unfortunatly using the the unit is a dissapointment.

cant use it for calls... what a waste

HEY PIONEER, PLEASE SMOOTH OUT THE GLITCHES BEFORE YOU RELEASE A PRODUCT.

I purchased this from a dealer in January, 2009, who installed it very well. 2.0 firmware out of the box. The unit has some good points, however, the bottom line is that it is *mostly annoying*

What drove me over the edge is that today I received an Email from Pioneer wanting $120 for new maps and new OS. I will NEVER buy another Pioneer product!

Nevertheless, to give you more detail:

PROS;
1.) It generally works, sooner or later. The integrated functionality with bluetooth, iPod, DVD, GPS is nice.
2.) iPod functionality is much like the real iPod interface using the touchscreen.

CONS: This unit is slow. The touchscreen is slow, sometimes pauses for a long time. The unit reminds me of when Microsoft came out with Windows ME when pentiuum first hit the streets: Flaky and slow and it gets confused about once a day. . . needs a Ctrl/Alt/Delete key to reboot it seems

The GPS is slow. Slow. Forget a rear camera because it takes much too long to boot. My wife has a Magellian which is much better as it announces street names and is faster and gets it right more often. Being new to Houston, it is tempting to borrow her Magellian just to not have to put up with this (garmen) contraption.

The voice recognition is poor. It misses more than it get it right.

My biggest complaint are the FONTS (Pioneer are you listening!?) I replaced a nice clock in the dash and because the fonts are soo small and some baby-blue color, I frequently have to have a passenger tell me what time it is, much less the GPS info. Annoying is an understatement.

Bluetooth is also annoying. The volume is all over the place some days. The fidelity of the voices coming through the car speakers is very shrill and cannot be adjusted, even though the other audio is OK.

If I thought the dealer would give me a refund this late in the game, I would. There has GOT to be something better out there --reader, you probably want to shop around- I wish someone had warned me. . .

I bought this based on Amazon description and reviews and am totally disappointed ... after paying $350 to have it installed. I updated the firmware and that didn't seem to change much of anything. Can't get the Bluetooth to work with my phone and there is no sound when the IPod is connected. Navigation is the biggest disappointment. Can't understand the map screen at all -- not intuitive and there is no manual to keep in the car -- only online or on accompanying DVD. The touch screen doesn't work half the time, despite several calibrations. One of my main uses of a navi is for points of interest so I can find stores, but the menu is awkward to use and has limited search capabilities. I would like to return this ... but once paying for installation, what does one do?

I love this headunit! This was the best price found & a great product!