Pioneer FH-P8000BT Double-Din In-Dash CD/MP3/WMA/AAC Receiver with Built-In Bluetooth, iPod Control, and Rear USB Input Order Now

After living with this unit for the past month or so, I am scratching my head as to why Pioneer blundered what could have been an absolutely terrific unit. The 8000BT is not a failure by any stretch, but it simply has way too many flaws to be usable on a daily basis by a regular person.

Pros: Good reception, awesome built in Bluetooth that actually works great, plenty of inputs/sources, excellent XM integration, reasonably large display characters that can be read even in sunlight (for the most part)

Cons:
INSANELY complicated user interface with the multi function dial that makes it hard to know where you are while navigating the features.

Absolutely microscopic buttons and labels on the front panel to navigate settings, some of the most important functions are NOT backlit, so you simply cannot see them at night.

Presets are ridiculously difficult to navigate to. Radio or XM presets are just a massive hassle to get to and select while driving.

Sounds lousy (yes, you read that right), not sure why, but the factory head unit sounded better, clearer, more punch, and better highs... this unit sounds muddy, even when I upgraded to Pioneer speakers and amps. Even after fiddling with the Eq settings, crossover, Subwoofer, etc, I cannot coax a decent sound out of it.

Strange display characteristics... The song information scrolls all data about the song ONLY on CD, but NOT on XM/Sirius (so you have to push a zillion buttons to figure out what you're listening to!) I've tried lots of combinations in the setup menus to get this to work, but as the manual points out, scrolling ONLY works with CD. What were they thinking

USB source connection VERY flaky/picky about how the USB device is formatted and set up. If you sync your USB stick with Winamp or Windows Media player, it won't read it half the time (yes, you read that right)

All in all, an expensive mistake on my part. I find that living with this unit day to day is just awful. I am a gadget guy for the most part, and I usually like Pioneer products. This unit is totally ILL conceived... its clear it was designed from the outside in, rather than inside out. Instead of making the most of the double height real estate, they tried to make it pretty and sleek, while making it hard to use on a day to day basis. I suspect that a software update would help some of the dopey features/flaws be a bit more usable, but all in all, I'm totally disappointed.Get more detail about Pioneer FH-P8000BT Double-Din In-Dash CD/MP3/WMA/AAC Receiver with Built-In Bluetooth, iPod Control, and Rear USB Input.