In this review, I check out another FAST 2-in-1 Wireless CarPlay & Android Auto Dongle from MSXTTLY. You can support my channel/site by buying this adapter for $57.98 from Amazon US > https://amzn.to/3Ky0ABL (use discount code 15LIFE2IN1 for 15% off), for £47.99 from Amazon UK > https://amzn.to/4c9LfDj (use discount code ANTMSX01 for 10% off), and for €55.99 from Amazon DE/IT/FR/ES > https://amzn.to/3yP2Vpo DE / https://amzn.to/3RezVO8 IT / https://amzn.to/3VAr3oN FR / https://amzn.to/4caQFOp ES.
TL/DR: The MSXTTLY 2-in-1 wireless CarPlay & Android Auto adapter is a small, premium-looking, and FAST adapter that converts wired systems to wireless seamlessly. It offers quick connectivity, smooth operation, and some customisation options, though it may have issues switching between CarPlay and Android Auto devices. Overall, it is a great choice for adding wireless connectivity in your car.
The MSXTTLY 2in1 wireless CarPlay & Android Auto adapter is a small thumbdrive-sized wireless adapter that converts a wired CarPlay system into a wireless CarPlay system, or a wired Android Auto system into a wireless Android Auto system, for connection with iPhones and Androids.
In the box, you get a small instruction manual, the adapter itself, two small extension cables, one that is USB-A female to USB-A male and the other is USB-A female to USB-C male for modern USB ports in the car, and finally there’s a small 3M adhesive pad to stick the adapter to your car’s interior when either of the extension cables are used.
The first striking feature is that this adapter is small. Its casing alone measures approximately 38 x 25 x 11 mm in size. It’s basically the size of a small USB thumbdrive, and this size makes it perfect for plugging into a small centre console space without the need of a long wire or have the adapter slide around your centre console.
It looks the part too. Thanks to a carbon fibre pattern casing, a white combined Android Auto and CarPlay logo motif and a blue LED status light on top, and there are some passive cooling holes underneath to keep the chip inside cool. Even its USB is copper/gold plated, which is said to help with conductivity and durability performance.
Connecting the adapter is as simple as inserting the adapter into a CarPlay or Android Auto USB port and waiting around 15 seconds for it to display its launch menu. There’s little you can do here other than check the adapter’s firmware number and the Bluetooth ID that you need to connect to your phone.
I took around 12 seconds to connect to Wireless CarPlay and X to connect wirelessly to Android Auto. This speed makes this 2-in-1 adapter one of the fastest into CarPlay or Android Auto to date from power up, which I clocked at around 17 seconds for both platforms. Compared to some dedicated wireless adapters, this is one quick adapter. Checking its Wi-Fi specs, I was surprised to see that it was the worst out of all the other 2-in-1 adapters I’ve tested to date.
This new wave of wireless adapters is doing something magical, because not only are they quick, they are one of the sharpest and smoothest in frame rates too. It almost feels native in its operation. With these Wi-Fi specs I do not know how this is being done, other than maybe a fast CPU and data stream that’s likely pushing out 60fps – a feature I have also seen in my review for the CarpodGo T3 Pro Display.
Both touch input delay and calling perform very well in CarPlay and Android Auto. Navigating tracks in Android Auto carry a swift 1-2s delay making it feel like my phone is still connected to a wire. The calling delay on both platforms was very minimal. Overall, dare I say it again, it all felt very native.
Heading into the config menu uses the common IP address – 192.168.1.101 – and once inside there are a number of useful options to tailor your overall experience. Compared to CarlinKit and Cuarko adapters, its array of options is rather basic. You can alter WiFi ban, Audio streaming mode, startup delay, and GPS passthrough support. The latter is a welcome addition and I hope over time this shared OS platform gets an update with a few other configuration settings to play with, such as custom media delay 🙂
Unlike its closest rival, this brand has chosen not to allow users to any past firmware versions and only allow applying of newer available software updates. Updating was easy; however, I did encounter an issue that was soon remedied after reconnecting to the adapter over WiFi and continuing the update – at least it didn’t brick the adapter!
One other issue I did face with this adapter was connecting between CarPlay and Android Auto devices. It feels once locked into one platform, it took some attempts (to even factory resetting!) in order to make it detect the other platform. So your own experience might vary, based on the car system used, but for me it wasn’t a smooth and easy process at the time of my review.
There’s a lot to love about this adapter. It looks great, it’s very small and compact. I haven’t experienced any crashing yet, its audio resumes after Siri/Google assistant commands or listening back to spoken messages, and its GPS passthrough seems to operate ok.
With its unmatched speed and buttery smooth playback on my VW Golf Mk7 MIB2.5 Discover Pro system, it was easy to make this 2in1 adapter from MSXTTLY my go-to CarPlay adapter in my car. I think we are closing in on peak wireless adapter; however, there’s still some improvements to be made in areas such as extra config options and adding multi-user support.
