I loaded about 400 songs into the Mini's HD. If I add additional songs to my music file on my desktop computer, copy it to a flash drive, then copy to the Mini HD, will it overwrite the existing music file or just copy the new music? Thanks.

 

I added more to what I already had - I see no duplicates.

 

Great. Good to know.

 

My system creates a new folder (library) every time I want to import new music to my HD.
This is very annoying, I had about 6 folder with different music. This is very annoying.
I have a workaround, I have an USB stick with a exact copy of the tracks on my HD. When I want some new music I'll add this to the USB stick. Erase the HD in the car and re-import the USB again.

Is there another way?

 

Yes, do a reset of the search for your music

 

Ok, I'll try that.

 

Mini has a Hard Drive?t

Tom

 

If you have a 3rd gen MINI equipped with Connected XL, then yes!

 

I don't think I ever saw a mention of an integrated hard disk, but maybe it's because I wasn't interested in the XL package at all. I guess I'm fine with using a Sandisk Fit - tiniest USB drive plugged in all the time.

So, is it an actual 2.5" HDD? What's the capacity?

 

It's a 200GB HD, but there is only 20GB free for music. The HD also stores the nav info, Gracenote info, internal phone book, speech for the voice activation, then the rest is various system files. They also reserve like 65 GB for nav updates - it will store both the updated maps as well as the old maps at the same time so you can still use nav while it's updating.

 

When I first loaded my music on the hardrive, it didn't load all the songs because I was in the car with engine off but system on. It shuts down completely after about 10 minutes or so. Recently I added more songs to my iTunes then copied them to a flash drive. I started the car, put the flash drive selected the option for loading then drove away. It took about 20 minutes to completely loads the songs. Works great.

 

Is it just with the Connected XL? I have the Mini Connect media package and have heard nothing about a HD.

 

Yes, on Connected XL only

 

Yeah I have Mini Connected and no HD. Just curious, does XL include the NAV? I think the XL is new for the F56.

 

Yep, XL includes nav, though it's optional on the small Visual Boost screen.

XL is new for the 3rd gen MINIs - previously your options were base radio or MINI Connected and then with or without nav for Connected.

XL has a few other extras over the Visual Boost aside from the screen size. HD is one, split screen content, 3D building support for nav, and video playback support.

 

I'm disappointed with the XL, but not because it's bad or anything, only because mine doesn't seem to allow me to play videos, I've tried everything, multiple USB drives, my DVD changer and I even unlocked the function that allows me to play videos while moving with e-sys and the most I've gotten was just sound of the movie out of the USB file, never got any picture!

 

What kind of files are you using?

Also out of curiousity, when you plug your VIN in here:
http://www.bmwarchive.org/vin/bmw-vin-decoder.html
Do you see an option for: S697A - Area Code 1 for DVD?

 

I forgot what file it was the last time I tried, it was a while ago, but I believe it was .mp4, and when I plug my car in to the vin decoder it does say Area-Code 1 for DVD.

 

Do you know what video codec it used? I tried a few different movie files in a F56 at my dealer and they all seemed to work (.MKV, .MP4, .AVI), though I don't know what codecs were used. All were movies acquired by...ahem...semi-legal means.

I remember the video took a few seconds to come up, but once it was playing, it was fine.

Here are the supported codecs/files playable via the HD or from a flash drive:

Videofiles (Codecs)
MPEG-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4/2ASP(XVid,DivX5),MPEG-4/10AVC(H.264),VC-1 (WMV),MS-MPEG4(DivX3),Theora

Audiofiles(Audio Codecs)
MPEG–4/3(aac),MPEG-1(mp2,mp3,mp3pro),DolbyDigital(ac3),WMA,FLAC, ADPCM,LPCM

Container MPEG-4(.mp4,.m4a,.m4v,.m4b),Quicktime(.mov),Matroska
(.mkv),.wmv,.mpeg,.asf,.avi,.wav;

NOT SUPPORTED:
Realmedia .rm and .ra

Flashvideo .flv

Quicktime .mov with old Sorenson Codecs(1998–2002)

DVD formats .vob and .ts container

Ogg .ogg,.ogm,.ogv

 

20Gb isn't much, but it's a whole hell of a lot more than we had on the second GEN...
Interesting...

 

Also the fact it can play full screen movies....

 

Is that still locked to being immobile in order to function?

 

stopped with the park brake on...

 

aha... reasonable enough...

 

So, if you order the "Wired Package" -($1795)" you get the HD also? Strangely, the configuator makes no mention of it.