In this review, I look at a new CarlinKit CarPlay AI Box Adapter, titled the R2, or it is also known as the CPC200-TBox S. You can only buy this AI Box currently for $109 directly from the CarlinKit store here – https://bit.ly/carlinkitr2.
TLDR: The CarlinKit R2 delivers surprisingly solid performance with half the RAM of its rivals, making it one of the best-value AI Boxes on the market right now.
Just when you think the next AI Box will be much the same, along comes CarlinKit to swing a curveball and keep you on your toes. The R2 CarPlay AI Box from CarlinKit offers all you expect from a fast Qualcomm 6225 chipset AI Box, but they manage it at a rock-bottom price bracket. How’s this possible? Let’s find out…
Design and Build
In the box, you get a paper instruction manual, the R2 AI Box adapter, and a pair of cables to power the adapter.
The R2’s style is a little familiar to some AI Boxes I have reviewed recently. It’s like a catching trend, or a bit like copying someone’s homework, the R2 comes wrapped in aeroplane-grade aluminium, with toughened glass placed on the top and bottom of the adapter. A generic Android logo sits in the middle and is surrounded by a ring of customisable LED lights whilst it’s being powered. Around the sides, you’ll find a status LED light, and on the opposite side, there is a SIM and TF card slot for local internet and expanding storage and a single USB-C port to power the adapter.
Specs and Setup
Inside the R2, you’ll find similar specs to most recently released AI Boxes. It runs Android 13 OS, with a Qualcomm 6225 CPU and Adreno 610 GPU. But what’s different here is that it comes with 4GB RAM and 64GB of storage space. So, half of what I am used to receiving and looking at the adapter’s selling page, this is a fixed specification, with no way to upgrade it. With less RAM and ROM, CarlinKit can reduce its overall retail price, and as a result, the R2 comes in $100 less than its closest rival and some $240 less than the same 6225 spec Ottocast Nano. But does its reduced 4GB RAM hinder the adapter’s performance? In short, not really, which was a BIG surprise for me.
Performance and Interface
Firing up the R2 takes a similar time as any of the 6225 AI Boxes I have tested. It is even faster than half of them. This can be improved by choosing the Style 1 layout, which removes the Google Maps panel and saves time in loading its content. Its main menu is similar to the Bruxe R6 layout, with a grid of panels that display time and date, now playing media, car (GPS) speed, four app shortcuts, and a large panel display Google Maps by default, but this can be replaced with any installed Android app.
A side doc displays time, SIM, WiFi and Bluetooth connection status, four of the last used apps and an app list and home screen toggle button. A floating menu button gives you further access to split screen mode, app switching, reset memory, exit to car system and back and home buttons. You can turn this floating button off, but home and back buttons are required to navigate many Android apps, so if your car system doesn’t have these buttons, you’re forced to use this floating button.
App Performance
Lunching apps do not get affected by the R2’s limited RAM either. Again, it came in around the middle of the 6225 AI Box pack, including AI Boxes with twice the RAM. Benchmarks also showed little effect of a reduction of RAM, with the R2 coming in as the FASTEST 6225 AI Box I have tested, by 1 extra point, though, but still, that just proves RAM isn’t everything when it comes to these AI Boxes. We’ve seen it doesn’t affect boot, launch or benchmarks that much–colour me surprised by these findings. CarlinKit may have done some clever optimising on the R2, but I do think it’s purely down to the hardware and how most Android Apps utilise onboard memory in these AI Boxes.
Video and Media Streaming
Loading up YouTube, I had to test to see if the R2 suffered from a common video performance bug found in some 6225 boxes. Thankfully, the R2 doesn’t have this issue. YouTube ran surprisingly well, with a consistent AV sync of between +80-100 ms and an average AV sync of +92 ms of audio delay. Although not the fastest performing sync, the R2 performs well enough to consider this AI Box over more expensive options that only deliver around +20 less ms, a value you will likely not notice the difference in casual video watching.
Jumping into Netflix, the story is much the same. Lip sync performed well, and navigating through menus was fairly smooth. The Default Screen Width DPI on the R2 was a level that I would adjust in the developer menu to slightly increase the usability in apps that support a higher DPI. Popping in a TF card with media will play back video and music content just as well, so if video streaming is your thing, the R2 does this just as well as any of its competition.
Gaming
Thanks to the Adreno 610 GPU, gaming on the R2 will perform just as well as its competition. The reduction in RAM may lead to slightly slower app launches and level loads, but the differences will be just a few seconds. This isn’t a problem, unless you’re super impatient. But remember its price, and that may ease your mind. I tried Crossy Road, Subway Surfers and Asphalt Extreme with a paired Bluetooth controller. Like the Bruxe R6, I encountered a few of the same audio glitches. Although audio worked the first time, clearing memory and launching Subway Surfers resulted in zero audio. Playing some audio from Spotify or YouTube and switching back to the game, then kicking the audio in, but this is a common trait of many CarlinKit AI Boxes, and it is possibly a trade-off of some of their software optimisations. Finally, Asphalt Extreme ran very well, and it was good fun using a paired Xbox controller to reduce input lag and have better control over my vehicle in the game.
Wireless CarPlay and Android Auto
Using the AutoKit app, wireless CarPlay and Android Auto are emulated through software, like all AI Boxes versus dedicated wireless adapters, so quality and lag are expected, and the R2 manages to do this as best it can. The result is not a bad experience overall. Display feed is a little fuzzy in both platforms, however, the layout and size are close to native wireless on my Cupra Born display. I’ve yet to see turn-by-turn passthrough to the cluster and HUD on an AI Box, and the R2 is no different. However, I was surprised to see Apple Maps pointing the correct way on the map, thanks to the GPS passthrough support set on the AI Box. My car data was feeding this through to the AutoKit app, which is a bonus! With call delay in both CP and AA also being very good, the execution of AutoKit on the R2 was pretty decent as a whole, but it still doesn’t beat a dedicated wireless adapter.
My Impressions
The R2 has been a surprise hit. I opened its packaging expecting it to be yet another underperforming compromise due to its reduced RAM, but the results proved it was anything but that. Which leads me to ask myself: why would you go for any other 6225 AI Box?
The R2 can do it all for a fraction of the price. At its current sale price of $109, that’s $100 less than the Bruxe R6, some $240 cheaper than the Ottocast Nano with its LED screen, but same 6225 inside. Both alternatives come with 8GB RAM, but we’ve seen that there’s no difference in their overall performance. So I would say, if you are looking for a fast-performing AI Box for video streaming and lightweight gaming, the CarlinKit R2 is hard to beat right now, purely due to its price. I am sure the R2 is going to shake up its closest competition, who really can’t compete on the price that CarlinKit can reduce their offerings down to. If you’re looking for an AI Box right now, then the R2 comes recommended, and it doesn’t break the bank doing it either!
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 – Brief Overview
0:33 – Unboxing
0:49 – Features & Design
2:44 – Boot-up & Menu Interface
4:40 – Settings
6:59 – Apps
8:12 – Benchmarks
8:29 – Google Maps
9:13 – YouTube
10:35 – Netflix
11:25 – Spotify
12:15 – SIM card Calling & Messaging
13:07 – Gaming
13:49 – Audio Issues & Workaround
14:45 – Bluetooth Controller Support
15:50 – Wireless Apple CarPlay
18:22 – Wireless Android Auto
20:44 – My Impressions
