I recently upgraded my iPhone to version 4.3 (8F190) and it is now incompatible with the 4 month old XNV-L77BT Sony unit. I called technical support to ask when there would be a firmware release to address this and they denied that there was any problem, stated that the unit only supports the original version of the software for the (in this case) iPhone. I pointed out that if I purchased an iPhone today and a new Sony unit the two would be incompatible and that there was no version number specified under the compatibility section of Sony's website. They then tried to say that if I bought a new iPhone it would not have the most recent software version and would therefore be compatible and that it was the fact that I had upgraded software on the iPhone post installation of the XNV-L77BT that was causing the problem.
- This is a £1,200 unit and I am surprised to find that there is no ongoing compatibility policy - you buy it and live with the versions of the software of the devices as at purchase date - that's technical support's stated view when I asked them what their policy was.
- Technical support refuse to accept that incompatibility with v4.3 is an issue.
- They have no knowledge of the release schedule for firmware upgrades and the content of same. Their response is that "we don't work with that department, you'll know as soon as we do from the web site".
- Technical support's response to the lack of version numbers for iPhone compatibility on the website was that "we don't work for that department"
On the whole, an appalling customer service experience. I was going to upgrade my Kenwood unit in my other car to the Sony. The Kenwood is much less user friendly (and the Garmin navigation is not as good as Sony's TomTom) but the difference in support is amazing. Their people know about issues, understand ongoing compatibility and are able to tell you when fixes are coming. I'm not changing now unless Sony get their act together and am going to review all documentation regarding compatibility to see if I have a case for refund and compensation. What a disappointment.
Has anaybody else come across compatibility issues and have they encountered a fix or, even, more helpful responses?
