Lag-free wireless CarPlay on a budget: Carlinkit Mini SE 2025 review

I bought it from Amazon for a fantastic price, and it has been working perfectly on my Mahindra Thar.

BHPian s4ch recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Carlinkit Wireless CarPlay Adapter Mini SE 2025 Review

I recently purchased the Carlinkit Wireless CarPlay Adapter – Mini SE 2025 from Amazon for Rs 2399. Here is a quick review of using it in my Mahindra Thar.

The Good:

• Super small form factor, looks just like a pen drive (about 5cm long).
• It has dual USB A and USB C, one on either end, with a cap to cover the side you are not using. Perfect to quickly remove and take with you to another car or when travelling. Also future proofed as all new cars today come with USB C.
• Plug and play, no-nonsense setup. It worked straight away in seconds. Plug it in, go to CarPlay on your headunit, connect to the Bluetooth device mentioned on screen and within seconds you are in CarPlay.
• The “Force Display” option is great as it forces the head unit to boot straight into CarPlay rather than having to select CarPlay manually from the media menu each time.
• Absolutely no lag, works super smooth, as good as when connected via cable. Zero disconnections even on long drives. Excellent audio quality.
• By the time I put my seatbelt on and turn up the AC, it is already booted up and in CarPlay.
• Easy backend UI to do a firmware upgrade, change GPS settings, display settings and audio delay. I reduced the audio delay to the lowest setting (400ms) and it works even smoother.
• Cheap! Rs 2300 for a Carlinkit product in India, shipped locally by Amazon, is fantastic pricing! Cheaper than comparable, unknown local brands.

The Not So Good:

• This particular model has Wireless CarPlay only and no Android Auto. There is a “Pro” version that has both, but that is not available on Amazon and needs to be ordered from Carlinkit’s website for $35. However, be prepared to pay import duties on it. Interestingly, on this non-pro version, there is an option to upgrade the firmware to a “CarPlay and Android Auto” version, however, I have not tried this as I only need CarPlay.
• While the form factor is very small (like a 2000’s pen drive), there are much smaller ones available, but from unknown manufacturers. I wanted a reliable brand with solid specs, hence I chose this one instead. Also, the deal on this Carlinkit product made it much cheaper than other local ones.