While many of the new products shown at CES are items you’d use in your home or carry in your pocket, the annual show is also a chance for brands in the automotive electronics industry to show off their hot new wares. We caught up with the folks at Kenwood to get the rundown on some of their new car audio components. With a lineup that includes new amps, CD head units and in-dash infotainment centers, one of the features uniting all of these products was a focus on connectivity. By connecting your smartphone to your car audio system and connecting that system to the web, drivers have access to more entertainment and information than ever before. Have a look at the videos below to see what Kenwood has in store for your vehicle in 2015.
In addition to a pair of traditional audio amps, Kenwood showed us the KAC-M1824BT, an amp with built-in Bluetooth. With this amp, users can completely eliminate the head unit and instead wirelessly connect a smartphone or other Bluetooth device right to the amp. This opens up some interesting installation possibilities: Owners of classic cars can get modern sound without altering their vintage interiors; motorcycles and ATVs can be wired for sound without the addition of a head unit; and users looking to add Bluetooth connectivity to car audio systems they’re otherwise happy with now have an easy, high-quality option.
The Kenwood KAC-M1824BT Bluetooth Amp is an easy way to add Bluetooth audio functions to your vehicle.
The Kenwood DNX892 in-dash multimedia receiver offers Garmin navigation, nearly endless entertainment options, and in-depth access to vehicle diagnostics. The amazing features in this unit are almost too numerous to list, so give the video a watch and get the full story.
Apple fans will be happy to see that Kenwood has joined Alpine and Pioneer with the debut of an Apple Carplay-compatible receiver. Carplay gives drivers access to many of the most popular iOS functions like Siri, Apple Maps and music libraries, all through the touch-screen head unit.
But Android fans won’t have to feel left out, because we also got a look at the new Kenwood Android Auto stereo receivers:
And if you’re looking for a Bluetooth head unit but all of these receivers seem a little too intimidating, or your car can only accommodate a single-DIN receiver, or you still enjoy listening to your music on CD, you’re in luck. Kenwood also had on display a full range of in-dash CD receivers with built-in Bluetooth functionality.
There was something for everyone at the Kenwood booth, and our car audio department is eager to begin installing these new receivers. All of them should be on the market in the coming months, with some already available.
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