Well something had to be done. People could buy any head unit they liked. There was even a DIN standard size and connector and they would talk to the car's built in display. Aftermarket units were often far better. How is a dealer meant to sell $MANUFACTURER units with a market like that? (/s, clearly)

I've once left a car that I fully intended to buy because the dealer would not deliver it with a DIN slot. I absolutely hate integrated audio/media/navigation solutions, they always suck and a couple of years down the line nothing will work with them.

Do any cars come with DIN slots nowadays? Looks to me like they're all custom-moulded into the dash. Very irritating.