My Tablet and Mount

[BoostEasy]

There have been several threads or posts over the last 2+ months covering tablets and mounts, typically for vag-com/VCDS logging, so I figured I'd start my own thread and throw in what I have.

Summary: Buy Arkon SM679 (thanks for proving this out JRan76!) for $15, get a cheap 8" windows (10!) tablet with 2GB RAM for $60-$200 and you're up and running. VCDS cable for logging is about $350.

Tablet:
Dell Venue Pro 3845, 2GB RAM, 32GB storage, 8" windows tablet. Mine was a factory refurb, $64 from Newegg. Not easy to find but keep checking slickdeals/cowboom. Key is to get one that runs Windows, not windows RT and 2GB RAM, ideally 32GB storage. Windows 10 is a free upgrade from Windows 8 (yes, it sucked that bad). Some can be had pre-owned for under $100 on ebay. New is $200 to $300 for a decent 2GB RAM tablet. Check a top 10 review here.

Tablet Mount:
Arkon SM679 mount.

I started with a windshield mount, SM617, but the tablet was too far from me. Hard to see and hard to reach. I tried to mount it inside the MMI screen area but the suction cup was too wide (80mm IIRC) and the MMI plastic finish was a little rough.

So I changed out the base of the unit to GN079WD-SBH, which allowed me to mount the base inside the MMI area as the suction cup was 10mm narrower (70mm) and has some sort of ridiculously sticky silicone type suction cup that's literally difficult to remove even with the suction lever in the "off/up" position. It leaves zero residue when removed because it's just a suction cup. This base has a longer arm as well so the tablet mount can swing up and down a lot and also has a 360' rotation + tilt ball joint. I just popped the "holder" (often called the mount) part of my tablet mount off and slide it onto the new base and I was set.

(edited) Jran tested out Arkon SM679 which is what I ultimately used and what is pictured above.

Cables for VCDS:
1) Basic Vag-com/VCDS Hex+CAN cable. For temporary logging, plug into the OBD port, run up along the left outer side of the dash (open door), over the top of the dash cluster and let drop down in front of dash just to the right of the center console stack. When the driver's door shuts it touches but doesn't pinch/harm the cable.
2) Get a basic USB On-the-go (OTG) cable for your device. For a typical micro USB to USB A cable they run about $5. Plug into device, plug vag-com into USB-OTG. done.

As you can see from the pictures below, I mounted the suction cup for the base into the right hand corner of the MMI screen recess and dropped the arm down a little. This is turns out is a perfect position as my arm reaches it easily and I can actually read the tablet fine while still seeing a portion of the MMI and center vent. The arm is pretty solid and the tablet in short-term testing stays put even when I hit bumps and drive hard and doesn't shake almost at all.

Mount with Tablet mounted








(Below) MMI recess area after mount is removed = no residue or suction cup ring.

[VenturiRS]

Looks neat. I bought a tablet mount that looks like that over a year ago. Never mounted it. Now I have a "sticky" anti-slip pad there and my phone rests there. Maybe I'll look into installing the mount again. I'd be glad if I could mount a tablet flush into the MMI area for WAZE/Spotify etc, then flip it up or out as needed.

[jran76]

Thanks for posting the info.

[BoostEasy]

Looks neat. I bought a tablet mount that looks like that over a year ago. Never mounted it. Now I have a "sticky" anti-slip pad there and my phone rests there. Maybe I'll look into installing the mount again. I'd be glad if I could mount a tablet flush into the MMI area for WAZE/Spotify etc, then flip it up or out as needed.

The trick to the MMI area is the bottom isn't smooth like glass, it has a little bit of a texture to it. And it's relatively small. The 80mm suction cup wouldn't fit so I went with the smaller 70mm one but I'm not sure even if the larger one fit if it would have gripped well. So, depending on what you want, suction cups might be tricky.

I've never really heard of Arkon before a few months ago but they have a ton of parts and options on their website. If you can't get your mount to work, they probably have something that will do what you want and their prices are pretty reasonable.

People have complained about the current trend of MMI-type screens on BMW, Mercedes and now Audi where it looks like a tablet glued to the dashboard. I'm not sure if I like it or not yet but the thought crossed my mind it would probably be really easy to make a "sunvisor" clip type mount that holds the tablet and literally just slides right over the NAV/MMI screen. Super-easy to slide on/off. Good for what you'd like to do.

[BoostEasy]

Thanks for posting the info.

Thanks for your earlier posts on the topic as well.

[Ma4]

Thanks for this. I was looking to mount my nexus 7 as a Nav, but wasn't really sure which direction to go. This looks good though. Can't really tell from the pics and amazon doesn't have the info, but can the arm swing from left and right? Thanks

[BoostEasy]

Thanks for this. I was looking to mount my nexus 7 as a Nav, but wasn't really sure which direction to go. This looks good though. Can't really tell from the pics and amazon doesn't have the info, but can the arm swing from left and right? Thanks

The 70mm suction cup base for this product doesn't swivel. You'd have to remove, turn and reattach the suction cup to face the arm in direction you wanted.

Arkon does seem to have a load of different mounts for phones and tablets. There are some gooseneck ones that might work but I don't think they'd be very steady while driving. There are some others that do swivel at the base but I'm not sure if they make the base in a 70mm suction cup like I used here. The ones I see on their tablet mount section look like the larger 80mm windshield mount suction cup. http://www.arkon.com/category/tablet..._By=disp_order

[mpatels4]

Cool setup!

[jran76]

I ordered the SM679, so I'll report back shortly on how it works out.

[Acejam]

Cool setup. However what amazes me the most is the astronomical cost of a VAGCOM cable. $350 for a USB to OBD-2? Come on now.

[jran76]

Cool setup. However what amazes me the most is the astronomical cost of a VAGCOM cable. $350 for a USB to OBD-2? Come on now.

You're paying for the continued development and support of the software much more than the cable.

I've had mine for probably 3-4 years, and I feel like I've more than gotten my money's worth out of it. Admittedly, I use mine more than most, but it's been an invaluable tool for me.

[Acejam]

You're paying for the continued development and support of the software much more than the cable.

I've had mine for probably 3-4 years, and I feel like I've more than gotten my money's worth out of it. Admittedly, I use mine more than most, but it's been an invaluable tool for me.

Understood. I guess I'm used to my previous Subaru-based solutions where the cable was $100 and the software was open source/free. Given that VAG is one of the largest car companies in the world, I'm surprised that no one has created open source VAGCOM-related software yet.

[BoostEasy]

I ordered the SM679, so I'll report back shortly on how it works out.

Cool. Looking forward to the update.

Thanks!

[BoostEasy]

Understood. I guess I'm used to my previous Subaru-based solutions where the cable was $100 and the software was open source/free. Given that VAG is one of the largest car companies in the world, I'm surprised that no one has created open source VAGCOM-related software yet.

Each platform has it's strengths and weaknesses and in this case we gotta pay up. At least we have the option. Imagine if you had some other platform like a new Lexus- there's literally nothing like it available AFAIK.

I have it as a I'm a big proponent of logging. It's hugely important when you're modified and I'm working (slowly) towards making it easier.

[jran76]

I tried out the SM679 that I ordered from Amazon, and it worked great. It looks exactly like what you have in your pictures.

It's definitely a better solution than it just laying on the seat like I have been doing. Thanks again for the suggestions.

[BoostEasy]

I tried out the SM679 that I ordered from Amazon, and it worked great. It looks exactly like what you have in your pictures.

It's definitely a better solution than it just laying on the seat like I have been doing. Thanks again for the suggestions.

Great! Thanks for throwing your $15 at it Jran and proving SM679 is the correct one to match what I used.

I hope it works well for you and others. Happy logging!