Hi everyone,

I have been driving a Mini Countryman for about a year now. The car is equipped with the Bluetooth option as well as with the Radio Boost (No large screen).

I have recently changed my phone from an Iphone 4 to a Samsung Galaxy S4 and I would highly appreciate if you could give me some details regarding the below two questions:

1) It seems that my phone is not recognized via the bluetooth option. I went on to the compatibility page (http://www.mini.com/connectivity/compatibility/) and found that the S4 is not yet supported. I assume that this is due to the fact that the phone is fairly new. Once the phone will be supported, how should I proceed? Will I have anything to update?

2) Obviously the Iphone Y cable is now useless. I have plugged my phone via the single USB charging cable provided by Samsung and the phone is charging. However it does not seem to be recognized by the stereo system as I am unable to see any track name on the small display.
Has anyone tried a Y cable with an android phone plug? Does it work? Where can you find it ?(I called my Mini dealer and they said that they are only selling Iphone Y Cables)

Any help would be highly appreciated.

Have a great sunday!

 

1) No clue on this one. Bluetooth is a standard, so it shouldn't matter. Maybe they updated the Bluetooth spec recently and the S4 is on the new standard?

2) If I want music from my Android phone, I connect it via the headphone port.

You could also install an aftermarket Bluetooth kit and be able to play music wirelessly. There's a thread about it here: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...mendation.html

 

Thank you very much for your reply.

1) I guess it could be. What about when the IPhone 5 came out, were new users able to pair their phones?
Lets wait and see regarding a potential bluetooth update.

2) If I proceed this way I am unable to control my Music directly on my stereo unit. For example I will not see the name of the tracks on the stereo unit. I would also not be able to change the tracks directly from the steering wheel commands.

I will check out that link.

Any other suggestions?

 

Should work just fine. I think the S4 finally adds Bluetooth 4.0, but my iPhone 5 has that and works fine. Might be a phone software issue? I know the software end of Android can be its best feature, but also it's worst. If the Bluetooth driver is unique to the S4 (which it probably is) then it may be glitchy. When an Android device maker adds features that are not in the official OS release from Google, they have to add their own drivers and support to the OS. My experience with Samsung Andriod devices is that when they do this, it takes them awhile to get the kinks out.
Have you tried pairing it with another Bluetooth audio device? Maybe even an a2dp headset or dock in a box store?

 

Another option (not free): tune2air. I got one, works a treat. It does not retain album art, etc, with Andriod, but you can skip through tracks using the steering wheel controls. I also found the sound a little nicer through the tune2air (nicer DAC in it?).

 

I have the s4 and my car has the same options as you. The Bluetooth connection for phone calls I had to go to settings on the s4 and made sure the phone was viable to all and it connects no problem. For audio streaming I use the blue potato and the sound is amazing. Only the volume buttons work though. Heard great things about the tune 2 air as well.

 

Thanks for the advices!

I managed to get it working by deleting the old paired devices and start the all process.
You have to turn off the bluetooth in the car tand then turn it back on.

As for getting the song name and artist displayed on the radio, I did not manage to make it work.

Will keep you posted if I find a solution.

 

1) I have an S4 and the standard bluetooth works fine.

2) I purchased a Y-cable with a phone holder the is equivalent to the iPhone cable (http://www.iboltshop.com/iBOLT-Charg.../dp/B008MLUTPK). You connect one end to the Samsung micro USB port. On the other end are the 3.5mm aux cable and USB cable for charging. Make sure you set the S4 docking mode to turn external speakers on.

-Kevin

 

Sorry to dig up an old thread, but I have one of the iBolt's as well. You still cant control music via steering controls. Unless im doing something wrong. I've also noticed that the charging doesn't work very well. If using navigation, it uses more power than the charger supplies so my battery is usually dead by the time I get to my destination even though it was charging the whole time. I wish there was another option.

 

You are correct, controlling the music via the steering wheel doesn't work. However, with iBolt, the book phone is always on, and in a convenient spot, so using the phone controls is very easy. Also, I plug the micro USB into a charger which does charge the phone.