# Fun With Phones



## supraman (Mar 25, 2008)

I've discovered a few things since I got my car. They might be common knowledge so I'm not going to go into any detail, but you can ask questions if anybody wants to know more.

1. I wasn't sure what would happen if I plugged my phone (an HTC Touch Pro) into the "iPod" port. As I hoped, I was able to charge my phone, play MP3 files, move between tracks using the steering wheel controls, move between albums by holding down the steering wheel controls and even watch a slideshow of photos held on my phone at the same time

2. I was also able to stream music wirelessly over BlueTooth from my phone. I was still able to move between tracks using the steering wheel controls, but I wasn't able to move between albums. You have to remember to turn the volume up on your phone when attempting this (that isn't necessary when using USB).

3. I've exported my lap times from Screen F on the MFD to my phone and opened them in Excel on my PC. I covered this on another thread. Alternatively, any USB memory stick can be used.

4. I've already burned about 40 CDs onto the MusicBox. It was unable to determine the album and track titles for 9 of these CDs. I exported the details of these 9 albums (there is a menu option for this) to a file called export.dat on my phone. I then plugged my phone into my PC and downloaded a PC application from Gracenote Music Box Updates via USB Port with Navigation - Nissan USA which used the export.dat file to find the missing information for all these albums using my internet connection. The application created an import.dat file that I could then use to update my MusicBox. I tried the same process several times using my USB memory stick, but the export.dat file was empty every time. I haven't worked out why the phone works, but the memory stick doesn't. Any ideas?

On a related subject, does anybody know whether it's possible to update the entire GraceNote database to the latest version? There is an menu option labelled something like "Update GraceNote Database From Hard Drive". What does that do?

I hope you found some of this useful.


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

Hi Supraman,

do you have a UK spec car? I may just have overlooked them but I cannot find any USB or iPod port ... can you describe where they are pls?

Like you, I'd also like to know how to update the Gracenote DB ... is this something that the dealers do at each service perhaps?


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## Henry 145 (Jul 15, 2009)

USB port is in cubby hole between the seats...introduced on the Nav cars


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## supraman (Mar 25, 2008)

calumski said:


> do you have a UK spec car? I may just have overlooked them but I cannot find any USB or iPod port ... can you describe where they are pls?


As Henry 145 says, only the Sat Nav cars have the USB port. If you didn't pick up a brand new car in the last month then you're out of luck. Sorry.


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## gtrterry (Mar 9, 2009)

should an ipod plug into this usb and play music through the system mine says 'check usb or ipod' do you know what this means


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## supraman (Mar 25, 2008)

gtrterry said:


> should an ipod plug into this usb and play music through the system mine says 'check usb or ipod' do you know what this means


Yes, iPods are supported. There have been some very positive comments on this forum about how good the iPod integration is. Apparently the GT-R even shows the album art on the MFD.

However, I don't own an iPod, so I can't help diagnose your specific problem. What iPod do you have? Perhaps certain editions aren't supported?

Also, surprisingly my phone causes that message if I engage the keypad lock. Could it be something like that?


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## CJay (Mar 23, 2008)

I plugged my Ipod (Apple 80gb) into the car (Sat Nav car) and the MFD came up with check Ipod which was due to the Ipod screen freezing up which I resolved by pushing the menu & middle button on the Ipod, once plugged back in to the car again it all worked with the Art work to the Albums showing up on the MFD, and its so easy to use. :thumbsup:

Sorry gtrterry not sure what problem you have 

CJ


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## gtrterry (Mar 9, 2009)

HELP, still unable to get the ipod working with the usb when i plug it in it says reading usb then quickly comes up with check usb or ipod, although it will charge the ipod
tried my htc phone and same again check usb but still it charges am i doing something wrong, has anyone else had these problems


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## gtrterry (Mar 9, 2009)

oh its a 30gb ipod


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

Henry 145 said:


> USB port is in cubby hole between the seats...introduced on the Nav cars


bother and blast ... if I'd have known I'd have waited for a Nav car when ordering. The ICE in the non-Nav cars is like something from 10 years ago ... feeling a bit mugged by lack of info when ordering. (not the dealer's fault, I know)

Why don't they call them multi-media cars rather than Nav cars? It would make the differentiation far clearer. Sat Nav I can live without being built in but the hi-res screen, reversing camera, ipod, etc are "must-have" in my book.

Too late


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## misters3 (Jun 23, 2008)

calumski said:


> bother and blast ... if I'd have known I'd have waited for a Nav car when ordering. The ICE in the non-Nav cars is like something from 10 years ago ... feeling a bit mugged by lack of info when ordering. (not the dealer's fault, I know)
> 
> Why don't they call them multi-media cars rather than Nav cars? It would make the differentiation far clearer. Sat Nav I can live without being built in but the hi-res screen, reversing camera, ipod, etc are "must-have" in my book.
> 
> Too late


FWIW:
You can fit reversing / front camera. So far none of us Nav guys have a nice working solution 
Ipod integration mod has been done. Have a search (charles charlie i think)


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## Kamae (Jun 15, 2009)

calumski said:


> bother and blast ... if I'd have known I'd have waited for a Nav car when ordering. The ICE in the non-Nav cars is like something from 10 years ago ... feeling a bit mugged by lack of info when ordering. (not the dealer's fault, I know)
> 
> Why don't they call them multi-media cars rather than Nav cars? It would make the differentiation far clearer. Sat Nav I can live without being built in but the hi-res screen, reversing camera, ipod, etc are "must-have" in my book.
> 
> Too late


S'cuse me - you bought the most iconic, technically advanced and fastest supercar available for under £60k and you think a hi-res screen, reversing camera and ipod dock are essential!?

Words fail me!


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

Kamae said:


> S'cuse me - you bought the most iconic, technically advanced and fastest supercar available for under £60k and you think a hi-res screen, reversing camera and ipod dock are essential!?
> 
> Words fail me!


Depends on your point of reference I guess but for me, yes I would expect it to be standard, as it is on Nissans a third of the price.

I take it you have a Nav car then Kamae or you would feel more empathy I suspect.


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## apj30 (Jun 26, 2009)

Hmm I think he probably doesn't have a Nav car.

Nor do I and I agree with him - the fancy screen connections etc are cool gadgets but essentially just nice-to-haves.

Non Nav cars still have the HDD, you can still upload hundreds of albums, same speakers etc and everything else on the car is exactly the same.

Given the choice between the two would I get the Nav? Sure. But given the choice of waiting umpteen months or having a Nav car NOW - I was more than happy to take the latter option


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## Frosty (Aug 9, 2001)

For me the Ipod integration and more advanced Blutooth was made clear from when I ordered. I would be driving around in my GT-R already, but I decided to wait for the sat nav. It was 12 months or 18 months. I figured at the point I was already waiting a year, I might as well wait the extra 6, and I'm glad I have now.


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## Kamae (Jun 15, 2009)

Of course I have an non-nav car. The key word here is car - If I wanted an Ipod on wheels I would have bought a BMW or a Mercedes - they do 'toys' rather well I hear.

I didn't want to wait an extra 6 months for a sat nav and I certainly didn't think it was worth an extra £2000! (Sorry for all of those ordering cars at nearly £60k a pop. I paid £53k for mine and it's just as good on the road as yours).

As it happens I don't own an Ipod and I'm in no rush to buy one. On the rare occassions when I need a Satnav I stick my wife's tomtom to the window, sometimes I just check a map before I set off - I find this works quite well and recommend it to many of you who may think that a sat nav is the best way to plan a route.

As for reversing cameras and parking sensors - this I don't understand - I can see the rear spoiler in all my mirrors and when I look over my shoulder. A couple of seconds of scientific investigation proved that the back of the car is just under the spoiler, so if I know where my spoiler is I know where the back of my car is. So reversing is not complicated at all and with practice I find I can now judge the backof the car's position to within a couple of centimeters. I can also do this with the front of the car, even though I can't see the bottom of the spoiler I do know where it is.

In all I find those on here who a totally obsessed with the add on kit are really missing out on something. That's not what driving is (or ever was) about. If you want to drive a mobile episode of the gadget show go ahead, but stop posting your thoughts on a forum for car and driving enthusiasts please!


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## misters3 (Jun 23, 2008)

Kamae said:


> Of course I have an non-nav car. The key word here is car - If I wanted an Ipod on wheels I would have bought a BMW or a Mercedes - they do 'toys' rather well I hear.


Ask anyone who didn't spec the 6FL £200 USB option and tried to retrofit it to their BMW how well BMW do toys 



Kamae said:


> In all I find those on here who a totally obsessed with the add on kit are really missing out on something. That's not what driving is (or ever was) about. If you want to drive a mobile episode of the gadget show go ahead, but stop posting your thoughts on a forum for car and driving enthusiasts please!


So you're saying you're a driving enthusiast, who shuns gadgets, but you chose an R35? :chuckle: (maybe it's just me who sees the irony)

If you aren't interested in what some of us are talking about, why read it? 

If you are saying you are now setting the policy for what can and can't be talked about on gtr.co.uk, i must have missed the announcement.


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

apj30 said:


> Hmm I think he probably doesn't have a Nav car.
> 
> Nor do I and I agree with him - the fancy screen connections etc are cool gadgets but essentially just nice-to-haves.
> 
> ...


Perhaps I'm missing something fundamental with my non-Nav car... as far as I know, I can only load music to my HDD in realtime. That is, to load 40 Albums I would first of all have to actually have the 40 physical CDs and even then I can only load them in realtime .. that's a slow process. As such, I only have 5 albums on my HDD and even then they have tracks missing because I've perhaps swapped CDs mid-upload. 

As for navigaing to the album of choice while driving, compared with say an iPod Touch, well I stand by my "10-year-old technology" statement.

And that brings us back to being on-topic. Does anyone know how to update the on-board Gracenotes DB? With no graphics for the album and no text either, I can only select "album 4 track 3" and hope that it's not Britney Spears... not looking so "technically advanced" now, is it!


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

misters3 said:


> If you aren't interested in what some of us are talking about, why read it?
> 
> If you are saying you are now setting the policy for what can and can't be talked about on gtr.co.uk, i must have missed the announcement.


Well said.. :thumbsup:


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## apj30 (Jun 26, 2009)

Agreed it's not the most optimal process. Not quite realtime though. On an average album it normally takes around 10 minutes (2-3 tracks) worth of time to burn the entire CD to disk.

I didn't do all mine in one go, just keep loading it up a few CDs at a time each time I make a journey.



calumski said:


> Perhaps I'm missing something fundamental with my non-Nav car... as far as I know, I can only load music to my HDD in realtime. That is, to load 40 Albums I would first of all have to actually have the 40 physical CDs and even then I can only load them in realtime .. that's a slow process. As such, I only have 5 albums on my HDD and even then they have tracks missing because I've perhaps swapped CDs mid-upload.


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## misters3 (Jun 23, 2008)

2 answers of no real help coming up. Sorry.



calumski said:


> Perhaps I'm missing something fundamental with my non-Nav car... as far as I know, I can only load music to my HDD in realtime. That is, to load 40 Albums I would first of all have to actually have the 40 physical CDs and even then I can only load them in realtime .. that's a slow process. As such, I only have 5 albums on my HDD and even then they have tracks missing because I've perhaps swapped CDs mid-upload.


On the Nav car it burns a lot quicker. Whole album done in 5 mins or so. i.e while listening to the first track or two



calumski said:


> And that brings us back to being on-topic. Does anyone know how to update the on-board Gracenotes DB? With no graphics for the album and no text either, I can only select "album 4 track 3" and hope that it's not Britney Spears... not looking so "technically advanced" now, is it!


Supraman posted a solution for the Nav guys which required a USB stick. 

Is there an option to update the Gracenote DB by disc in the non-nav cars?


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## mickv (May 27, 2009)

calumski said:


> Perhaps I'm missing something fundamental with my non-Nav car... as far as I know, I can only load music to my HDD in realtime. That is, to load 40 Albums I would first of all have to actually have the 40 physical CDs and even then I can only load them in realtime .. that's a slow process. As such, I only have 5 albums on my HDD and even then they have tracks missing because I've perhaps swapped CDs mid-upload.
> 
> As for navigaing to the album of choice while driving, compared with say an iPod Touch, well I stand by my "10-year-old technology" statement.
> 
> And that brings us back to being on-topic. Does anyone know how to update the on-board Gracenotes DB? With no graphics for the album and no text either, I can only select "album 4 track 3" and hope that it's not Britney Spears... not looking so "technically advanced" now, is it!


I'd like to know whether the Gracenote DB can be updated, but I've not seen anything which leads me to believe anyone has an answer to this yet.
I get around the problem by burning albums that aren't recognised from itunes to disc whilst checking the "include cd text" box on burning preferences. Long winded way of doing it, but at least you then know what you've got on your musicbox. This workaround was suggested a few months back on here somewhere, so I take no credit for it.


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

apj30 said:


> Agreed it's not the most optimal process. Not quite realtime though. On an average album it normally takes around 10 minutes (2-3 tracks) worth of time to burn the entire CD to disk.
> 
> I didn't do all mine in one go, just keep loading it up a few CDs at a time each time I make a journey.


Ah! that sounds more like it. I'll have another wander though the manual and menus. Even if it only takes 15 mins per album then that's a major boost!


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

Kamae said:


> Of course I have an non-nav car. . . . blah blah blah .. but stop posting your thoughts on a forum for car and driving enthusiasts please!


What is this nonsense?


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## charles charlie (May 3, 2008)

Just to let the blind non-nav owners know..... 

I have posted both a reversing camera and an ipod solution (albeit without steering wheel control and track details).

Use the search button.....


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## supraman (Mar 25, 2008)

misters3 said:


> Supraman posted a solution for the Nav guys which required a USB stick.


Yes I did. It's the first post on this thread! I didn't go into much detail but if any Nav guys can't figure it out from my brief instructions then let me know.


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## Naranja (Dec 4, 2008)

calumski said:


> Ah! that sounds more like it. I'll have another wander though the manual and menus. Even if it only takes 15 mins per album then that's a major boost!


As previously mentioned, it's better then that; takes about 4 minutes to record a whole album to the HD. And that's on my ancient non-nav car.
But it's best to start the car and let it record, without interrupting by using phone, changing to radio etc. Just let it rip....


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

Naranja said:


> As previously mentioned, it's better then that; takes about 4 minutes to record a whole album to the HD. And that's on my ancient non-nav car.
> But it's best to start the car and let it record, without interrupting by using phone, changing to radio etc. Just let it rip....


This is giving me hope. :thumbsup:

I'll delete the part-recorded albums and do them again. I've no idea how it managed to record a ballad by Neyo to be immediately followed by "Smack my Bitch up" ... it stuck that ballad at the start of an entire Prodigy album, including it as track-1 ... FTW !!


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## misters3 (Jun 23, 2008)

calumski said:


> This is giving me hope. :thumbsup:
> 
> I'll delete the part-recorded albums and do them again. I've no idea how it managed to record a ballad by Neyo to be immediately followed by "Smack my Bitch up" ... it stuck that ballad at the start of an entire Prodigy album, including it as track-1 ... FTW !!



Some of these cars are far too clever for their own good!! :nervous:


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## Kamae (Jun 15, 2009)

calumski said:


> This is giving me hope. :thumbsup:
> 
> I'll delete the part-recorded albums and do them again. I've no idea how it managed to record a ballad by Neyo to be immediately followed by "Smack my Bitch up" ... it stuck that ballad at the start of an entire Prodigy album, including it as track-1 ... FTW !!



Looks like your GT-R is having issues with it's sexuality!!


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## calumski (Feb 26, 2008)

supraman said:


> ...does anybody know whether it's possible to update the entire GraceNote database to the latest version? There is an menu option labelled something like "*Update GraceNote Database From Hard Drive*". What does that do?


keeping this thread on topic :smokin:


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## WoREoD (Apr 27, 2008)

Can anyone update the link in the first post? It doesnt seem to go to anything to do with updating Gracenote and the links on that page dont obviously do it either....

Ooops! Found one, not Nissan but I bet it works: http://www.infinitiusa.com/music-update/


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## Protegimus (Aug 31, 2011)

Yep the infiniti version is exactly the same as that originally posted (now moved) on the nissan USA site, Title Information Search file version 1.1.0.1 product version: 1.10

Wierd that nissan have broken the application download link, as the link to the US/Japanese .pdf instruction for those with flash cards still works.

High time Nissan provided a full Gracenote (and Sat Nav) update for all the GT-R's.



WoREoD said:


> Can anyone update the link in the first post? It doesnt seem to go to anything to do with updating Gracenote and the links on that page dont obviously do it either....
> 
> Ooops! Found one, not Nissan but I bet it works: Infiniti Music Box | Updates from Gracenote | Infiniti USA


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## WoREoD (Apr 27, 2008)

I used the infiniti one and can confirm it works. Just got to add the title and artist info for the compilation album now.....


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## Varsity (Oct 24, 2009)

But still no Mac version.

Nissan should know better.


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