Do you have that drive fully loaded with music? If so, how is your MINI at indexing it? I've been sticking to smaller drives and everything is great, but I thought there was a (fairly low) limit on how many tags the system would index.

 

Right now I'm just playing with a 4gb drive. My 64 is on the way.

The mini will read and store up to 20,000 tracks worth of info, associated with the USB drive (so you can have a couple of drives and the mini knows which is which).

So while the initial load may take a few mins, after that it should be quick if not instant unless I change the tracks on the drive.

Will report in on how things go, but I know it's better than dealing with iPods plugged into two ports with two cables and poor analogue sound transfer.

 

Wow...$40?

I just paid $28 for a 16-gig thumbdrive and that looked like the best deal I could find.

 

I'm gambling on a Chinese eBay auction Paid through PayPal so I have some protection there.

If the 64GB drive I have coming isn't really 64GB I'll buy a 16GB drive locally, but I thought for US$32 shipped I'd give it a shot.

http://cgi.ebay.com/64GB-USB-FLASH-D...d=p4999.c0.m14

With the pivoting cover removed it should be nice and small and basically invisible.

 

Thanks for the tip...I'll buy one as well (thru PayPal)...I've bought a few things from Hong Kong in the past...I'm amazed at the prices and the cheap shipping.

 

If you guys don't mind, please post back how the big drives work when they are loaded up. I'm cheap and don't want to waste any money if they don't work as good as the 4GB sticks.

 

I got a note from eBay this morning saying they had pulled the auction...but they didn't say why...but, they imply it was fraudulent, and left instructions on how to start a PayPal claim.

Bummer!

 

Really? Here's the link to the one I actually bought - seller is still active, had positive feedback (including for sales of these drives) etc.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=280396654821

 

I received the drive today...checking it's performance now.

 

I haven't received mine yet, but hopefully early next week. Keep us posted on your tests.

 

Aha..well...1st thing I found out is the drive is formatted in something called "exFat":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ExFAT

Needless to say, the 64 gb drive does not work in the Mini.

I'm trying to track down a utility that will format the drive to FAT32, and overcome Windows Fat32 32-gig limit. (there appears to be a few of these out there).

 

Here is one that apparently will do the trick: HP USB Disk Tool

http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/fil...scription.html

 

RE: USB storage limits

A 64GB USB flash drive (PNY Attache, ExFAT) with about 60GB of music (wav files) was working for a couple days, then wouldn't identify the drive regardless of how many files were on it. Older USB flash drives (FAT32) worked fine.

I'm reformatting the PNY flash drive using the utility that Taysan posted above and will report back. I'm hoping that this will allow the use of larger USB flash drives. No more swapping CDs on the road.

 

Looks like FAT32 did the trick! 60+ gigs and still working.

 

i've been reading through a ton of posts and don't know what if my Clubbie has the secrect compartment to play my ipod. I know it doesn't have the remote garage opener. it has std Boost stereo and steering wheel controls. I have done the front/rear swap and added a nice pair of polk components upfront. I would like to integrate my ipod but not sure where the secret compartment is to see if I can plug a cable into my ipod.

I do have the USB/Bluetooth integration option.

 

Having a "Secret Compartment" is not a requirement to use an iPod.
so there are no buttons on the bottom of the Mirror.
depending on the year there are up to three possible "standard boost radios" Base, HiFi, or Harmon Kardon. What year is your car?
Nice upgrade
1. you have not listed where you are from so i am not sure what country you are in. If you are in the USA, Canada or Mexico the Secret Compartment (thats just wheat we call it) is actaully the upper glove box. It is the panel just below the top of the dash on the passenger side just above the glove box. This is explained in the owners manual.

If you are from outside of North America then you may not have it unless you have the "storage option".

As for your specific car. If you have the USB/Bluetooth Option then you "do not" have the cable in the secret compartment for the iPod/iPhone.

It can be installed but at a cost of over $300. And on top of that the operation of the iPod/iPhone is very poor thru that system is very limited in functionality.

Your best bet it to use the USB option to hook up your iPod/iPhone. There are threads here that show how to move the USB port to the Secret Compartment so that the iPod/iPhone can be hidden better.

And if you are in the USA and purchased the car new you should have gotten an iPod cable with the car. If you bought it used then you can go to the dealer and get one.

 

Thanx Schatzy62, this helps me along alot.

I bought my '10 USA Clubbie used so I did not get a manual or cord. There are no buttons on my rearview mirror.

I thought I saw a post somewhere which indicated a mini jack & USB port that was next to the on/off volume button, but my car does not have that. From the option sheet I got from BMWParts store here on the forums, The car is equipped with
6FC RADIO MINI BOOST CD

645 RADIO CONTROL US

693 SATELLITE TUNER PREPARATION

493 STORAGE COMPARTMENT PACKAGE

6ND BLUET.HANDS FREE KIT W.USB/AUD.INTER

255 SPORTS STEERING WHEEL


If there is a USB Port in this car, where do I find it?

I would be happy to use this to hook in my iPod.

On another note, if this car is satellite prepped, what else does one have to do to tie in my XM subscription?

 

That is just not cool to not give someone a manual.

If it was a private sale person to person not much you can do but if you bought it from a dealer of any kind I would go back to them and tell them to get you the correct manual for your car.

And if they wont call you local MINI dealer and have them get you one. It will cost you some cash but it is well worth it. These cars are a lot different that most on the way the controls work.
You will find it under the window switch panel. it is in the little cubby hole below the window and fog light switches and set back so that it is not very visible. You should see a round 1/8" AUX jack and a little sliding door with the USB symbol on it. slide the cover back to insert a USB cord.

To use the steering wheel controls and full functionality of the iPod you will need a special cable from MINI. A normal iPod cable will not work.

Or you could use a USB Stick and just leave that plugged into the car for music. There are a number of threads on this subject here.

It would need a OEM Sat tuner installed and programmed to work in the car.

 

My Bad.... I found the USB hookup tucked underneath the passenger heated seat switch. I used my ipod connector and it hooks up. and plays. In order to use the steering switches, do I have to buy the $300 cable or is theire a cheaper alternative? Some folks appear to pick up a basic cable from Amazon for $10 or so.

Thanx

joe

 

The cables on e-bay or amazon for cheap are old discontinued cables and will not work with newer iPods.

The cable should not cost $300. most dealers charge about $105. If yo cant get one from you dealer then check out Penskeparts.com and give them a call they usually have a very good price on parts.