2018 Rear Entertainment Initial Feedback

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zarga

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I know the Rear Seat Entertainment isn't popular with this crowd, but just in case anyone is interested I'll post my initial reactions. We've only had the car for 2 days.

We have our reasons for wanting the integrated DVD system. (Please don't talk to me about tablets or the outrageous cost of the Ford RSE. I am well aware.) We previously had a 2008 Sienna with a drop down screen (yay!) and it was hardwired to the car audio/stereo system. The audio worked through the car speakers like a charm. When the parking brake was on we could even enjoy the movie on the front nav screen (great when one parent was running a quick errand while the other parent stayed in the car with the kids). The kids could use the headphones to listen to the movie while the adults could listen to the radio. (I'm not a fan of headphones on little kids, so we didn't use them, but whatever.) I could turn off the sound from the audio/nav and flip the screen closed when necessary. As the kids got older, they could reach the buttons on the overhead unit to navigate the DVD functions. Everyone, even those in the 3rd row, could see the screen.

The Expy RSE is a huge disappointment. Its main problem is that it uses bluetooth for audio through the car speakers. Pairing the DVD system with the car was an adventure, and the interface is clunky. The audio lag when watching a DVD is so bad it makes the movie unwatchable. There is no lag when using the headphones, but since we homeschool, the kids are usually watching some lesson that we like to discuss and it's hard to do that while they have headphones on. The controls on the video screen are more difficult to use and some DVDs don't seem to respond at all (e.g. unable to navigate to a particular chapter in the DVD menu). We also can't watch the DVD on the front nav screen when parked.

We haven't spent a lot of time with it yet, but our initial impressions are not very favorable.

On the plus side, the stop and go adaptive cruise control is nice in commuter traffic. :)
 

shane_th_ee

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OT: Welcome, fellow homeschooler from Seattle. As I'm hoping to go test drive (and maybe order) tomorrow, what dealer did you use and would you recommend them?
 

jrc50

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Your description makes my $99 Sylvania 13" DVD player (we seem to use it more for my 4yr old granddaughter inside a house than in our 2017 Expedition Limited) that we bought since the $2k for an semi obsolete device seemed way steep be practical. It will run off a 12V power point or the 120v one in the second row, Big screen and we bought audio splitter for $3 so two in the second row can listen with unit sitting on an Eddie Bauer Aerostar duffle bag behind the console. Screen quality is iffy but the "Lion King" only needs so much resolution!
I really like the fact that it is a lot safer than hanging on a headrest where any impact might cause a head injury of a second row person.
 

twernst

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I know the Rear Seat Entertainment isn't popular with this crowd, but just in case anyone is interested I'll post my initial reactions. We've only had the car for 2 days.

We have our reasons for wanting the integrated DVD system. (Please don't talk to me about tablets or the outrageous cost of the Ford RSE. I am well aware.) We previously had a 2008 Sienna with a drop down screen (yay!) and it was hardwired to the car audio/stereo system. The audio worked through the car speakers like a charm. When the parking brake was on we could even enjoy the movie on the front nav screen (great when one parent was running a quick errand while the other parent stayed in the car with the kids). The kids could use the headphones to listen to the movie while the adults could listen to the radio. (I'm not a fan of headphones on little kids, so we didn't use them, but whatever.) I could turn off the sound from the audio/nav and flip the screen closed when necessary. As the kids got older, they could reach the buttons on the overhead unit to navigate the DVD functions. Everyone, even those in the 3rd row, could see the screen.

The Expy RSE is a huge disappointment. Its main problem is that it uses bluetooth for audio through the car speakers. Pairing the DVD system with the car was an adventure, and the interface is clunky. The audio lag when watching a DVD is so bad it makes the movie unwatchable. There is no lag when using the headphones, but since we homeschool, the kids are usually watching some lesson that we like to discuss and it's hard to do that while they have headphones on. The controls on the video screen are more difficult to use and some DVDs don't seem to respond at all (e.g. unable to navigate to a particular chapter in the DVD menu). We also can't watch the DVD on the front nav screen when parked.

We haven't spent a lot of time with it yet, but our initial impressions are not very favorable.

On the plus side, the stop and go adaptive cruise control is nice in commuter traffic. :)


Thanks for the info, I have 3 kids and the RSE in my wife's MB GL550 and the kids love it. It works well, we have had others work great in Sienna and Highlander's disappointing that it works via blue tooth as they would have just needed to run some cabling. Have you tried to stream from iPads, phones or Android Also have you tried the in car WiFi to see if it is strong enough to stream, to multiple devices/iPads?
 

Garrett

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Thanks for posting, this is extremely helpful!

Personally, this was one of the things I struggle with most, as we want the Gator but are torn because the Platinum Expy with the RSE is a definite need. It looks like I will be crossing this off my list and can go with iPads +Wi-Fi for a much cheaper (and portable) option now.
 

twernst

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Thanks for posting, this is extremely helpful!

Personally, this was one of the things I struggle with most, as we want the Gator but are torn because the Platinum Expy with the RSE is a definite need. It looks like I will be crossing this off my list and can go with iPads +Wi-Fi for a much cheaper (and portable) option now.


Garret, do you have multiple kids, if so how will you combat the different movies issues and no audio other than headphones? I too like Zarga don't like headphones om young kids and although we don't home school we do play a lot of interactive videos for us all to talk about while driving.
 

T Mack

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I know the Rear Seat Entertainment isn't popular with this crowd, but just in case anyone is interested I'll post my initial reactions. We've only had the car for 2 days.

We have our reasons for wanting the integrated DVD system. (Please don't talk to me about tablets or the outrageous cost of the Ford RSE. I am well aware.) We previously had a 2008 Sienna with a drop down screen (yay!) and it was hardwired to the car audio/stereo system. The audio worked through the car speakers like a charm. When the parking brake was on we could even enjoy the movie on the front nav screen (great when one parent was running a quick errand while the other parent stayed in the car with the kids). The kids could use the headphones to listen to the movie while the adults could listen to the radio. (I'm not a fan of headphones on little kids, so we didn't use them, but whatever.) I could turn off the sound from the audio/nav and flip the screen closed when necessary. As the kids got older, they could reach the buttons on the overhead unit to navigate the DVD functions. Everyone, even those in the 3rd row, could see the screen.

The Expy RSE is a huge disappointment. Its main problem is that it uses bluetooth for audio through the car speakers. Pairing the DVD system with the car was an adventure, and the interface is clunky. The audio lag when watching a DVD is so bad it makes the movie unwatchable. There is no lag when using the headphones, but since we homeschool, the kids are usually watching some lesson that we like to discuss and it's hard to do that while they have headphones on. The controls on the video screen are more difficult to use and some DVDs don't seem to respond at all (e.g. unable to navigate to a particular chapter in the DVD menu). We also can't watch the DVD on the front nav screen when parked.

We haven't spent a lot of time with it yet, but our initial impressions are not very favorable.

On the plus side, the stop and go adaptive cruise control is nice in commuter traffic. :)

i picked my Expy up yesterday, i got a white limited. I can not turn on the headrest tv's???
they are there but the power button does nothing?? HELP!!!
 

edizzle

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I know the Rear Seat Entertainment isn't popular with this crowd, but just in case anyone is interested I'll post my initial reactions. We've only had the car for 2 days.

We have our reasons for wanting the integrated DVD system. (Please don't talk to me about tablets or the outrageous cost of the Ford RSE. I am well aware.) We previously had a 2008 Sienna with a drop down screen (yay!) and it was hardwired to the car audio/stereo system. The audio worked through the car speakers like a charm. When the parking brake was on we could even enjoy the movie on the front nav screen (great when one parent was running a quick errand while the other parent stayed in the car with the kids). The kids could use the headphones to listen to the movie while the adults could listen to the radio. (I'm not a fan of headphones on little kids, so we didn't use them, but whatever.) I could turn off the sound from the audio/nav and flip the screen closed when necessary. As the kids got older, they could reach the buttons on the overhead unit to navigate the DVD functions. Everyone, even those in the 3rd row, could see the screen.

The Expy RSE is a huge disappointment. Its main problem is that it uses bluetooth for audio through the car speakers. Pairing the DVD system with the car was an adventure, and the interface is clunky. The audio lag when watching a DVD is so bad it makes the movie unwatchable. There is no lag when using the headphones, but since we homeschool, the kids are usually watching some lesson that we like to discuss and it's hard to do that while they have headphones on. The controls on the video screen are more difficult to use and some DVDs don't seem to respond at all (e.g. unable to navigate to a particular chapter in the DVD menu). We also can't watch the DVD on the front nav screen when parked.

We haven't spent a lot of time with it yet, but our initial impressions are not very favorable.

On the plus side, the stop and go adaptive cruise control is nice in commuter traffic. :)

Are you speaking about the 2018?

i agree that i have never cared for them, and they were not a good value. but the 18s have sling compatibility! if it works well, that will be WELL worth the money. that is why i ordered them on ours. they also have an hdmi input, so you could plug almost anything into, an appletv, game system, whatever.
 
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zarga

zarga

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i picked my Expy up yesterday, i got a white limited. I can not turn on the headrest tv's???
they are there but the power button does nothing?? HELP!!!

It is not obvious how it all works. In fact, the "tech guy" at the dealership had no idea what he was talking about ("You can't run the audio through the car." Ummm...wrong. Thanks for nothing.) and even after taking the car into the shop to "figure it out," they couldn't. My husband and I had to just mess with it to make it work. Unfortunately I didn't document my process. I know you already know this, but the only DVD player is on the driver side headrest. The button on the top left is the eject and the top right is power. The passenger headrest only has power.

I know we had to "Add a Bluetooth Device" which involved adding from the main nav screen (oddly, under the Phone tab, as I recall), while someone followed the prompts to set up from the back video screens. Again, it wasn't intuitive. FWIW, there is a brief instruction sheet in the box with the headphones (which suck, BTW). Also, when you download the Ford Play app (we did on Android), click the settings/gear icon on the lower right of the home screen. From there, click "Download Owners Manual PDF" for more info.

Even though we have it connected, it still isn't as easy to navigate as it should be. Companies really need to spend the money for usability experts and user testing to improve the experience for manufacturer and end user alike. </end rant>

If you still need help, post questions and I'll try to go out to the car and walk through it.
 
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zarga

zarga

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OT: Welcome, fellow homeschooler from Seattle. As I'm hoping to go test drive (and maybe order) tomorrow, what dealer did you use and would you recommend them?

Bickford in Snohomish. Salesman was Jeff. The experience was fine. He was pleasantly laid back. Our price was nothing to get excited about, but we had sold our DVD-superior Sienna, so we needed a car that fit our criteria.
 

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