last week I received another car stereo add-on screen to test and review. A few months ago I reviewed one from Sjoybring, which I really liked. This one, currently sold by Jataza on Amazon, is actually made by the same company.

The most obvious difference between the two units is the shape and size of the screen. Unlike the previous model which contained a short-but-wide screen (similar to a widescreen television), this one features a slightly more square 9″ display. The unit ships with two mounting options — one with adhesive for your dash and another with a suction cup for your windshield — but no matter where you put it, you’ll be able to see it. If there’s any problem with the screen at all, it’s finding a place to put it that won’t block your view of the windshield!

The Jataza unit features all of the features of the previous unit I tested, with a couple of new upgrades. To use all of the unit’s features, users must connect their phones to it using both WiFi and Bluetooth. It’s a little confusing as to which features use which protocol, but once you’ve set everything up the first time everything reconnects automatically after that. For my test I used my iPhone 15, and all my CarPlay-enabled apps appeared instantly on the device’s screen. I was able to use Apple Maps, listen to the news with the NPR app, listen to podcasts with both Apple’s Podcast app and the my preferred podcatcher, Downcast, and stream music using both Pandora and Spotify. The device supports wireless calling, and you can see and hear your text messages as well. It’s difficult to think of anything a driver would need access to that doesn’t appear on the display.

Also built-in is support for screen mirroring, which allows both Apple and Android users to mirror their phone’s screen directly onto the unit’s. This allows users to display content from apps not directly supported by CarPlay, like YouTube and Twitch. Watching YouTube videos while driving isn’t very safe (or legal), but as a dad who spent lots of time in line waiting to pick up kids from school and basketball practice, I can see the benefits.

On the rear of the device is a dash cam that can record video in both 4k and 2k resolution. The device ships with a 64GB micro-sd card installed, which can be upgraded but is sufficient unless you want to keep weeks worth of driving footage on the device. At 2K resolution (2,650 x 1,440) one minute of video takes up approximately 75MB, so at that resolution the device will store a little over 14 hours of video. The unit uses looping technology, which means it records videos in slices (configurable from one minute to five minutes in length) and when the card is full it will delete the oldest slice and continue recording. In the unfortunate event of a crash, the device will automatically move that video slice into a protected folder that won’t get overwritten. While YouTubers may want to set the camera to 4K, I found 2K to be more than sufficient.

Included in the box is a 1080p backup camera. This camera is wired and comes with a 7.5m (24′) cable, which should be sufficient for all but the longest vehicles. When connected, the Jataza will automatically switch to the backup camera (how? I don’t know!). As a guy who still owns a couple of flatscreen televisions limited to 720p, 1080p is more than enough resolution to see anything behind you while backing up. Like the dashcam, these videos are also stored on the device and will eventually overwrite themselves if and when the card fills up.

For YouTubers or anyone wanting to save their driving videos, the SD card can be removed and inserted into any PC with a Micro-SD card reader. The videos are stored in mp4 format which can be played by just about anything.

For people who have concerns that this device won’t connect to their car stereo, the short answer is… it will. When the device is first powered on it runs through a brief setup that walks users through multiple steps. First, it’ll prompt you to connect to your car’s stereo via Bluetooth, which is probably the most convenient (and more wire-free) way to use the device. If your stereo does not have Bluetooth, the second option is to use a standard 3.5mm cable (like a small headphone jack). If that’s not available, a third option is using the unit’s built-in FM transmitter. Simply pick a radio frequency that is not being used in your area and the device will broadcast itself to your car’s radio. Additionally, the device has built-in speakers, which means it could even be used in a vehicle with no stereo at all!

I really like this device. My original plan was to move it back and forth between cars, keeping the dash mount in one car and the suction cup mount in the other, but when my wife hinted at using it as well, I decided to go ahead and order a second one. My wife’s car has CarPlay, my car does not, and the stereo in my van is questionable at best. It’ll be nice to be able to use the same interface no matter which car I’m in. For anyone wanting to add CarPlay, a hands-free speaker phone, a gigantic GPS, or any of these other features, I can honestly recommend this one, especially at the current sale price on Amazon.

Jataza 9″ Smart Screen on Amazon: LINK