i am getting the portable navigation installed in my mini. just curious if anyone else has knowledge of this option. i was told that there would be no wires but not sure how it might stay charged without wires....

 

It's a Garmin Nuvi. It comes with the MINI Click & Drive, the mount.

The Click & Drive has a USB port for power. I don't think this USB port connects to the radio.

That mount uses a Garmin Ball, so you can swap out the Garmin for a compatible iPhone mount if you want in the future. I bought one like the photo at the bottom, I may or may not purchase the Click & Drive.






Here's a picture of the Click & Drive mount.
That long cable gets tucked under the dash.

 

That is actually a superior way to go. The factory navigation, which I have, is fine but it lacks a lot of features that come standard now with most portable navigation screens. One is particular that is visibly missing with the factory navigation is Active Lane Assist where the proper lane is highlighted. As is shown on that Garmin illustration. I have either made the wrong lane change, or almost did, multiple times already. No excuse for BMW to not provide a system that is at least as good as the "average" portable nav units as far as features.