CNET has named the best CarPlay radios and the best Android radios for 2021, but one radio leads both categories as the “best overall”—the Pioneer AVH-W4500NEX (shown at a low online price of $695).
In the CarPlay camp, the radio deemed the “best cheap” model is the Pioneer DMH-1500NEX (shown at a price of $300 at retail).
Under Android, the “best single DIN” was named the Alpine Halo9 iLX-F309 (shown at a price of $1,000).
The Pioneer AVH-W4500NEX is a DVD receiver with wireless CarPlay and Android Auto so your phone can stay in your pocket. It has a 6.94-inch display, Siri Eyes Free, Google voice control and it accepts Hi-Res Audio FLAC files.
If you want help selling a particular unit on the sales floor you may want to print out CNET’s aftermarket rankings for CarPlay radios here and Android Auto radios here.
you should have included the fact that Pioneer will not have any of the radios you show as BEST for months due to the DSP factory burning to the ground in Japan.