CES 2018: Alpine Electronics Reveals 9-Inch Aftermarket CarPlay System That 'Hovers' in Front of Dash

Alpine Electronics at CES today unveiled a new aftermarket CarPlay system with a "hover" design that floats in front of the vehicle's dashboard instead of being embedded directly into it. The company said that the iLX-F309 "doesn't require custom installation," but professional help will still likely be needed to remove existing infotainment systems before installing the iLX-F309.

Alpine's receiver includes a 9-inch touch screen and will fit in "a variety of vehicles." The 9-inch screen is slightly larger than the average 6-to-7-inch screen size of many other aftermarket CarPlay systems, and Alpine pointed out that the hover design will bring the larger display into vehicles that were previously restricted to dashboards with smaller form factors.

alpine carplay hover
The system uses a 1-DIN chassis and an adjustable mount to give the hover effect after installation. In its announcement, Alpine Electronics described some of the installation mechanics of the iLX-F309 and how users will be able to adjust its angle:

The 9-inch screen is attached to an adjustable mount connected to a 1-DIN chassis. Once installed, the screen and mount are fixed to the chassis for a sturdy installation. The screen hovers over or in front of the dash while its rear housing tapers off cleanly at the edges for a thin and modern silhouette. At its default position, the screen's sliding mount is pushed out, sitting at a 90 degree angle and the bottom of the screen is centered with the 1-DIN chassis.

At this point, the screen can be angled at select positions to assist during installation, help with visibility, or move it away from other items on the dashboard. The screen can be positioned 20 millimeters (mm) back from its default position, to move it closer to the dashboard. It can be moved up or down 30mm from its default position and can be tilted up or down at a maximum of 45 degrees, depending on the position of the up/down location.

In addition to CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, the new system is also an AM/FM receiver with video support. The system doesn't include a CD or DVD slot, but there is a USB port, AUX input, and an HDMI input. The company mentioned that it has Bluetooth technology for audio streaming, but it doesn't appear to include Wi-Fi or support for wireless CarPlay connectivity, like the company's iLX-107.

Multiple add-ons are available for the iLX-F309, including a CD/DVD player, a second HDMI input, and rear/side cameras to see behind the vehicle as it's backing up. Alpine Electronics authorized retailers will begin selling the new system in February for $1,100.

Related Roundup: CarPlay

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Leak Reveals All-New Design

Friday January 17, 2025 2:42 pm PST by
iOS 19 is still around six months away from being announced, but a new leak has allegedly revealed a completely redesigned Camera app. Based on footage it obtained, YouTube channel Front Page Tech shared a video showing what the new Camera app will apparently look like, with the key change being translucent menus for camera controls. Overall, the design of these menus looks similar to...
2024 App Store Awards

Apple Explains Why It Removed TikTok From the App Store in the U.S.

Sunday January 19, 2025 6:58 am PST by
Apple on late Saturday removed TikTok from the App Store in the U.S., and it has now explained why it was required to take this action. Last year, the U.S. passed a law that required Chinese company ByteDance to divest its ownership of TikTok due to potential national security risks, or else the platform would be banned. That law went into effect today, and companies like Apple and Google...
2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

Apple Changes Trade-In Values for iPhones, iPads, Macs, and More

Thursday January 16, 2025 6:45 am PST by
Apple today adjusted estimated trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models in the U.S., according to its website. Some values increased, while others decreased. The changes were not too significant, with most values rising or dropping by $5 to $50. We have outlined some examples below: Device New Value Old Value iPhone 15 Pro Max Up to $630 U ...
Generic iOS 18

Everything New in iOS 18.3 Beta 3

Thursday January 16, 2025 12:39 pm PST by
Apple provided the third beta of iOS 18.3 to developers today, and while the betas have so far been light on new features, the third beta makes some major changes to Notification Summaries and also tweaks a few other features. Notification Summary Changes Apple made multiple changes to Notification Summaries in response to complaints about inaccurate summaries of news headlines. For...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Rumored to Be Compatible With These iPhones

Saturday January 18, 2025 10:28 am PST by
iOS 19 will not drop support for any iPhone models, according to French website iPhoneSoft.fr. The report cited a source who said iOS 19 will be compatible with any iPhone that can run iOS 18, which would mean the following models: iPhone 16 iPhone 16 Plus iPhone 16 Pro iPhone 16 Pro Max iPhone 15 iPhone 15 Plus iPhone 15 Pro iPhone 15 Pro Max iPhone 14 iPhon...
airtag 4 pack blue

AirTag 2 Launching This Year With These 3 New Features

Sunday January 19, 2025 8:11 am PST by
After a four-year wait, a new AirTag is finally expected to launch in 2025. Below, we recap rumored upgrades for the accessory. A few months ago, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple was aiming to release the AirTag 2 around the middle of 2025. While he did not offer a more specific timeframe, that means the AirTag 2 could be announced by the end of June. The original AirTag was announced...
iPad Pro vs iPhone 17 Air Feature

Here's How Thin the iPhone 17 Air Might Be

Friday January 17, 2025 3:38 pm PST by
For the last several months, we've been hearing rumors about a redesigned version of the iPhone 17 that Apple might call the iPhone 17 "Air," or something along those lines. It's going to replace the iPhone 17 Plus as Apple's fourth iPhone option, and it will be offered alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We know the iPhone 17 Air is going to be super slim, but...
apple power beats pro 2

Powerbeats Pro 2 Coming Soon: Apple to Announce Them 'Imminently'

Sunday January 19, 2025 8:25 am PST by
In September, Apple said that it would be launching Powerbeats Pro 2 in 2025, and it appears the wireless earbuds are coming very soon. Powerbeats Pro 2 images found in iOS 18 code In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the Powerbeats Pro 2 are "due imminently." In addition to Apple filing the Powerbeats Pro 2 in regulatory databases last month, Gurman said Apple is...

Top Rated Comments

kyjaotkb Avatar
92 months ago
[doublepost=1515508059][/doublepost]What's the reasoning behind this pricing ? Wouldn't it make more sense to get a mount and use an iPad mini ?
Car accessories in general are pricey - some people must be happy to pay that kind of price. And this one won't benefit from the economies of scale an iPad mini can achieve given its volume. Also - touch targets on an iPad mini are the same size as on an iPhone. That's a life-threatening way of picking up your music when driving.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ijeffgarden Avatar
92 months ago
('https://www.macrumors.com/2018/01/09/ces-2018-alpine-electronics/')


Alpine Electronics at CES today unveiled ('https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-9-inch-ilx-f309-in-dash-system-from-alpine-electronics-will-hover-into-many-vehicles-300579574.html') a new aftermarket CarPlay system with a "hover" design that floats in front of the vehicle's dashboard instead of being embedded directly into it. The company said that the iLX-F309 "doesn't require custom installation," but professional help will still likely be needed to remove existing infotainment systems before installing the iLX-F309.

Alpine's receiver includes a 9-inch touch screen and will fit in "a variety of vehicles." The 9-inch screen is slightly larger than the average 6-to-7-inch screen size of many other aftermarket CarPlay infotainment systems. Alpine pointed out that the hover design will bring the larger display into vehicles that were previously restricted to dashboards with smaller form factors.



The system uses a 1-DIN chassis and an adjustable mount to give the "hover" effect after installation. In its announcement, Alpine Electronics described some of the installation mechanics of the iLX-F309 and how users will be able to adjust its angle:
In addition to CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, the new system is also an AM/FM receiver with video support. The system doesn't include a CD or DVD slot, but there is a USB port, AUX input, and an HDMI input. The company mentioned that it has Bluetooth technology for audio streaming, but it doesn't appear to include Wi-Fi or support for wireless CarPlay connectivity, like the company's iLX-107 ('https://www.macrumors.com/2017/06/29/alpine-first-aftermarket-wireless-carplay-receiver/').

Multiple add-ons are available for the iLX-F309, including a CD/DVD player, a second HDMI input, and rear/side cameras to see behind the vehicle as it's backing up. Alpine Electronics authorized retailers will begin selling the new system in February for $1,100.

Article Link: CES 2018: Alpine Electronics Reveals 9-Inch Aftermarket CarPlay System That 'Hovers' in Front of Dash ('https://www.macrumors.com/2018/01/09/ces-2018-alpine-electronics/')
[doublepost=1515508059][/doublepost]What's the reasoning behind this pricing ? Wouldn't it make more sense to get a mount and use an iPad mini ?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ErikGrim Avatar
92 months ago
480px resolution in a 9” screen for $1100. Bargain.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ehrens Avatar
92 months ago
With most modern cars, this design may cover buttons and other switching.

Looks pretty silly too. Not clean and factory.
The head-unit portion of 12 volt electronics has for the past few years been focused on later-model vehicles where these features wouldn't be available in a factory finish. My car for example is a 7th generation Honda Accord with a dash that is unbelievably hard to modify with an aftermarket head unit:



Commercially available dash kits from Metra, Scoshe and the like that can put a stereo in the factory unit location are upwards of $200, limited to a single DIN and replace the factory climate controls as well. There are less expensive double DIN kits that will go into the pocket below the radio/climate cluster, but these are usually impeded by the console shifter or stick shift, and this is a far from desireable location for a 2-DIN screen. This Alpine unit would be a much better option for both of these locations, either giving you a 9 inch display where no display could be had before or giving you more flexibility for the screen if it was mounted lower.

Also, when it comes to "factory" looks, most OEMs that do bigger screens are also now opting for the floating screen look and they still don't look as good as this Alpine does:

Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mdelvecchio Avatar
92 months ago
[doublepost=1515508059][/doublepost]What's the reasoning behind this pricing ? Wouldn't it make more sense to get a mount and use an iPad mini ?
No, because the ipad UX isn’t tailored for driving like carplay is.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
one more Avatar
92 months ago
For a $1100 we might as well stick a few iPads there! :p
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)