Hello all
Let me preface this by saying I am in no way advocating, sponsored, or an affiliate of Carputech. I say this to bring legitimacy and authenticity to this post. I am a normal guy from the South side of Chicago.
Story
I recently joined the Camry subreddit and I immediately noticed someone installed a Apple carplay system. And I ordered the module the item. It arrived and I soon got discouraged because I was not aware the product was a module and not an actual radio. The Youtube video on the module's purchase page was not helpful because the car was not my year and or model. So, I reached out to one of Carputech's recommended shops, J's Sound Shop, only to get quoted $180 before even adding in any labor.
I then emailed Carputech asking for a refund and to return the module. They were reluctant to accept my terms and instead emailed me a Youtube tutorial that was actually my car. Still I pushed back and they agreed to accept the return. Headed to USPS and they wanted a minimal of $66 to ship it back. At that moment, I finally decided to just give the install a try myself.
Install
Overall the install was actually easy. The youtube tutorial kind of skips some things but literally the install is a matter of connecting the 4 harness in the correct spot. They do will not fit anywhere else other than where they are supposed to go. Perhaps the biggest pro of the install was the back camera was not touched at all. There was not any extra camera or parts, the module used my existing backup camera. The module comes with a new car charger. I had to remove the existing one and now there is a hole where the new USB cable comes through. You can see the hole on the backup camera picture. Bought a USB Port Car Charger to fill in the hole.
Review
Thus, I recommend this module for those that want carplay and do want to deal with those radios that require additional backup camera steps. However, please use at your own risk in regards to how long this thing will last. Hypothetically if it craps out on me in a few days I will be pissed. At the same time, Carputech offers a 2 year warranty.
Duration: 10 minutes
Tools: Flat head and phillips head screw driver, socket wrench
My car: 2016 Toyota Camry SE
Carputech link: For Toyota 2014-2019 | Apple Carplay & Android Auto Module
Youtube Tutorial:
USB port charger: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0C84ZBG8R/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_image_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The Apple Carplay screen:
Rear Camera:
USB port module
