New on the shelves

Price: £889.95 Contact: www.kenwood-electronics.co.uk Kenwood DNX8160DABS head unit

The latest kit, kicked off by a clever Kenwood head unit

WE’VE long been fans of Kenwood’s versatile double-din head units, but the latest really moves the game on. The DNX8160DABS now supports Apple Carplay and Android Auto, with the smaller 6.2-inch screen DNX5160 units featuring Carplay only.

The improvements go further than that, though. While we’ve been testing the VW Group-specific DNX525DAB head unit over a number of months, this new DNX range sees a switch to higherresolution capacitive touchscreens, giving a sharper, more up-to-date look and feel. The user interface has also been changed; it’s now more intuitive and easier to find your way around.

There’s still an enormous range of functions to choose from, including Garmin navigation with free maps for three years and Inrix traffic alerts for two. The system offers lane assistance and eco routes, too.

Kenwood has included Bluetooth, for hands-free calls and music streaming, and DAB radio, plus two USB ports and an SD memory card holder, allowing all manner of audio and video to be played, such as MP3, AAC, FLAC, WMA and WAV files. There’s a CD/DVD slot behind the screen – a seven-inch display on our top-ofthe-range test unit – which can be tilted and removed for security.

For Apple users, the Carplay set-up works seamlessly with the iphone; the big buttons and type make playing music and using the Maps software easy and safe. The text message reader generally works well, although it can be a little garbled at times, and Siri voice control can be used to dictate replies.

In addition, the unit can be used to relay instructions from other sat-nav apps on the phone, although there is a faint hiss through the speakers if this is the only thing being played.

Still, this is a minor niggle for a head unit that’s a big improvement on Kenwood models we’ve tested before and, thanks to Carplay, far safer, too.