I Tried to Save Money on a Chigee and It Turned Into a Total Disaster

Jiggy disaster. Jiggy disaster. Let me write the lesson at the top, the way I now have it written on a personal sticky note: Asad, don't try to be a smart-ass. Do what others are doing. Follow the lead. Everything below is simply the invoice for ignoring that advice.

The Genius Plan

After unboxing my Chigee AIO-5 Lite, I'd been feeling pretty pleased with myself, because of how I'd sourced it. Chigee is a Hong Kong company, and I happen to have a cousin, Ali, in Hong Kong. One casual phone call later, Ali had found a local dealer selling the device for around 1,300 dirhams — versus the 2,500 it sells for in Dubai. Even better, he had a friend flying from Hong Kong to Dubai who hand-carried it over. No shipping, no customs, nearly 50% off. I was, briefly, the smartest man in the UAE.

The Error Message That Ended the Celebration

I had it professionally installed at Oldtimer — full wiring job, everything routed properly. Then I tapped the CarPlay button, and the screen produced a sentence I will never forget: this device is locked for Hong Kong.

It turns out Chigee makes two versions of these units: one for the Chinese/Hong Kong market, and one for the rest of the world. Some retailers — knowingly or not — sell the Chinese version to anyone. It's stated right on Chigee's own website, along with the killer detail: the lock cannot be fixed with a firmware update. Not a settings problem. Not a region toggle. A different device, permanently. My dealer in Hong Kong claimed they didn't know, and promised to check with Chigee's office after their vacation. Wonderful.

As my friends at work say — it's in Urdu, or maybe Punjabi, but let me translate the technical term into English: we are screwed.

Disaster Number Two: The Mount

Oh, and there was a second surprise. Before buying, I had asked multiple dealers — including Oldtimer — whether anything beyond the box contents was needed to mount this on a BMW. Everyone said no. Reality: out of the box, the only mounting option is the handlebar — and on a GSA with a tank bag, a handlebar-mounted screen sits low enough that you're staring down at your navigation instead of at the road. A genuine distraction, exactly where you don't want one. To mount it properly on the crossbar you need a separate accessory bracket, sold — of course — separately by Chigee.

The Rescue Plan

So here's the salvage operation. The wiring is already installed and good, so I'll buy a fresh international-version Chigee locally, swap the screen onto Manchalee, repack the Hong Kong unit into its box, and send it back with the same travelling friend — hoping for a refund, or at least a partial one. Worst case, I digest the 1,300 dirhams as tuition. I've also ordered the crossbar mount from a local distributor, and Oldtimer will fit everything again. Total savings achieved by my brilliant scheme: deeply negative. The full saga continued in the next episode, and the eventual happy ending — a properly working setup — lives in the Chigee AIO6 review. Buy local, friends. Warranty has a postcode.

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