Dension Gateway 500 and iPhone 4 Charging Problem

[cavsct94]

My 2005 had this previously installed with a short cable wired into the armrest. Previous owner used an early generation iPod classic.

I've noticed that plugging my iPhone into the cable allows everything to play fine, and the charging indicator acts as if it is charging, but the phone still loses charge, especially if I have the phone's GPS on. I do get the "this accessory is not compatible..." message on the iPhone as well.

I've tried a Scosche Passport and still get the same message and charging problem.

Any solutions? Thanks.

[Cassiebox]

My 2005 had this previously installed with a short cable wired into the armrest. Previous owner used an early generation iPod classic.

I've noticed that plugging my iPhone into the cable allows everything to play fine, and the charging indicator acts as if it is charging, but the phone still loses charge, especially if I have the phone's GPS on. I do get the "this accessory is not compatible..." message on the iPhone as well.

I've tried a Scosche Passport and still get the same message and charging problem.

Any solutions? Thanks.

Might need a firmware update as I recall there being some fixes for charging issues w/ newer i-equipment.

To check, when you plug the iphone in it should give you the firmware version on the iphone/pod screen in a format like G5MB_xxx - "xxx" is the firmware version installed. An alternative is to plug a usb drive w/ some music on it into the USB slot for a few minutes. Then remove and plug USB drive into a PC. It'll have a file written on it in the same format w/ either an EES or BIN extension showing the f/w version.

The latest f/w is 2.22 (Click on the Dension Firmware link here on bumperplugs.com) which was released back in June of TY. A summary of updates and install instructions are listed in the text files in the zip. You can also email or call Eric at Bumperplugs.com. He's a very helpful person and doubly so when you explain you bought the car used and this was already installed - he is the US distributor for the Dension GW500 products.

Good luck :)

Edited November 24, 2010 by Cassiebox

[wvicary]

I thought the iPhone used a different dock cable then the iPods?

[tekky]

I thought the iPhone used a different dock cable then the iPods?

Same cable/connector.

[cavsct94]

I've contacted Dension and they report that I need to purchase some sort of booster and a new interface cable due to the increased power demands of the iPhone 4.

[harperb]

I've contacted Dension and they report that I need to purchase some sort of booster and a new interface cable due to the increased power demands of the iPhone 4.

Really? My iPhone 4 works just fine with my 997 Dension 500, although maybe it was already installed and I did not know.

Well, by "works just fine", I mean is totally slow and buggy and gets stuck at "loading..." all the time, even with the latest firmware update. It does that even with older iPods too.

I can't even plug in my new iPod Classic to it without it crashing the iPod repeatedly. Need to contact Dension about both of these issues (the former I suspect they won't be able to fix).

Edited January 27, 2011 by harperb

[ThunderRolls]

I had the same issue with iPod and iPhone regular cables, so I think that is the origin of the problem. I had an iPod for quite awhile and then bought and iPhone. The old iPod cords would fit in the iPhone charger socket, but would not charge it. My guess is the Denison you have is an older version that is set for the older version iPod connector. There could be a software patch out there, but I am unaware of it.

[Eric (Plug Guy)]

Cavs - did you get your Dension from us at BumperPlugs.com?

We have direct access to Dension Engineering, and have worked with Dension for more than five years as primary distributor, AND as a result of our participation in the Apple Development Group, discovered this charging issue some time back when the i4 was intro'd.

We carry the iPhone 4 cable and boosters to charge the i4. The issue is twofold: 1) if you plan to connect to the Gateway via cable from the device, you must have the iPhone 4 cable (available on our Order page at BumperPlugs.com), and/or 2) if you need to have charging for the device on the cable, you'll need the booster as well. Boosters have not yet landed in the US but will be in our warehouse in just a couple of weeks.

The iPhone 4 cable charges at 1/2 the power rating of the iPhone 4, so it WILL still charge without the booster, but will take longer. The booster allows full speed charging. And for those using an iPhone 4 with the older cable, forget it - you need the iPhone 4 cable.

But another note: many of our customers know they can stream audio via Bluetooth with our Dension Kits that have the BTA1500, so they don't use the cable at all.

For those of you with older Densions, the iPhone 4 cable may not suffice (older, as in first generation - third gen is what we sell now, and we ALWAYS have the newest boxes in inventory as we receive shipments about every ten days).

Harperb and Thunder - if you bought from us, we're here for support, just email me so I can try to help resolve.

Email me with any questions on this anytime: eric@bumperplugs.com

Edited February 19, 2011 by Eric (Plug Guy)