Kenwood DNX-6180 vs -6980 & GPS question

[Bomber-Stud]

Can anyone tell me the practical differences between these two units? Other than (I believe) the 6980 will carry a 2yr warranty, while the 6180 is only 1yr.

With any of these double DIN units (including Pioneer), I've heard that GPS updates are super expensive, and not that frequent. Is this so?

In other words, is a separate GPS unit a more cost effective and more up to date GPS solution? I don't use GPS that often, so I'm having a hard time justifying an extra $300-500 for a navigation feature.

Cheers.

[runner2k]

Hello,

The DX-6980 is Excelon, that is the reason why it carry 2 years warranty.

Usually Excelon are better than the regular kenwood model.

Main differences are:

Audio DNX6180

- Full Bandwidth Power: 22Wx4
- Preout Level(V) : 2.0 Volts
- Preout Impedance(Ω): Under 600Ω


Audio

Audio DNX 6980(Excelon)

- Full Bandwidth Power: 22Wx4
Preout Level(V) : 5.0 Volts
- Preout Impedance(Ω): Under 80Ω


How much would you get the 6180 and the 6980?


http://www.kenwood.ca/CompareProducts/?Models=DNX6980,DNX6180

[Felks24]

I have an Kenwood Excelon DNX6960 in my other car (RAV4) and it is fantastic. The Garmin unit included in this HU is wicked fast. Love it. Can't beat having a 7" screen for your GPS.

It looks like the map updates are $99 and come on an SD card. I don't see an update for the 6980 yet.

[Bomber-Stud]

It looks like the map updates are $99 and come on an SD card. I don't see an update for the 6980 yet.



It looks like the map updates are $99 and come on an SD card. I don't see an update for the 6980 yet.

My dad has a stand alone Garmin unit in his car, and he paid $99 for unlimited updates. That theoreticaly means as cities expand, he updates his GPS direct from the Garmin site (as far as I know). But I'm getting the feeling that these combined HU/GPS units won't be as up to date, which makes them kinda useless to me.:bang

I don't need a GPS to tell me how to get to an old neighborhood (which I already know); I need help with the expanding suburbs and new street names... And waiting a year for an update is even more useless.:bang