How does audio to headset comms work with these? For me currently phone paired to bike, Sena paired to bike and all seems to work fine. so essentially in this scenario a CarPlay device the phone goes in your pocket but I assume isn’t charging unless plugged in somewhere, nav apps on the phone use some reasonable power so wondered how people deal with that as I assume you need to power both CarPlay device, (whichever you have) AND the phone?
Everything links with the phone, as opposed to the bike. The advantage of this is you can set everything up off the bike and you don't 'lose' connection to the Master unit when the bike is off. Also good if you have more than one bike. The disadvantage is draw on the phone battery, which I might add is less than when using Sygic, as the screen doesn't stay on and no wifi connection, but would still need a power supply for longer journeys. Note that some of the units have built in GPS and don't necessarily need the phone to navigate, and can use off line maps.
The My route app uses off line maps , so this may reduce the battery consumption and data I think but not 100 % I mainly us pre made routes so the lack of internet connection makes little difference to me as us off line maps.
I assume you will lose the bikes phone menu controls in this set up? volume/answer etc. I do believe that CarPlay uses the wifi as well as bluetooth though. apart from the screen size, which I accept could be a biggie, I'm thinking its simpler (for me) to just have my phone mounted. I do like the idea of something less heavy hanging off the mount and reducing the wobble factor a bit, less risk I suppose being a lot cheaper than a phone if it got swiped or fell off. my phone will not fit in the useless tank cubby, so powering that too could be more faff.
I mount my phone (charging) and mount the Android unit. Gives me the bigger screen whilst keeping everything charged.
Not sure about Senna but on the Cardo you have full control of volume/answer etc, and all by voice. You can also select a phone number using Siri/Google - by voice. If you use off line maps then power consumption would be reduced (slightly) as the phone is not looking for data. More so if you turn off data for your other apps as well. You are, however, still using the GPS (on some units). To the best of my knowledge, Carplay and AndroidAuto do not connect to your phone via wifi - only Bluetooth or USB cable.
The initial connection is by bluetooth, then Carplay switches to wifi. My Sena works seamlessly when connected to the phone, in the same way you've described for Cardo. This make sense to me, as it has no 'knowledge' of the fact that the phone is connected to the CarPlay unit. Some CarPlay units connect to the phone and headset simultaneously. I've read that this removes the ability to use the headset's controls.
Apologies for the KTM flavour, but details of my setup, including phone charging, can be found here for anyone who's interested.
Phone Battery drain was an issue I looked at before using a Carpuride. For a normal 100-150 mile run my Pixel 8 is fine if fully charged to begin with. On longer trips it will run down by the end of the day. Google maps eats battery power, TomTom Go and MRA with offline maps use much less power, and if you play music as well then the drain on the battery is even more. Carrying a power bank is fine but bulky and needs a cable to the phone. I then found the Anker Nano Power bank that fits to the phone and in my case also fits inside the waterproof jacket pocket of my Rukka when connected to the phone. Good for longer days and lasts a couple of days at least - problem solved. Anker Nano Power Bank, Mini Portable Charger with Built-In Foldable USB-C Connector, 5,000mAh Battery Pack 22.5W, For iPhone 16/15, Samsung S23 Series, Note20 Series, Huawei, iPad, AirPods, and More : Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo
Phone in tank bag on charge. Headset connects to phone, not Android Auto panel. Used to use phone (Galaxy S22) on wireless charging mount (SP Connect) but the combination of the GPS chip and screen on high brightness (barely adequate in sunlight) was more than the charger could replenish and and it would last about 5 hours, not enough when touring. The Carpuride has a far brighter screen and the phone is fully charged at the end of the day.
FWIW, just came across a used Carpuride W502 (listed as W502b, but can't see anything that mentions BMW). Seller is asking £90, but will take offers. Nothing to do with me or anyone I know, just passing it on.
