You don't need to spend that much, especially if you DIY the install. I installed a cheap Linux based head unit (ATOTO F7 WE) in my wife's old commuter car last weekend. $180 Canadian for the head unit, $25 for an aftermarket wiring harness adapter. Took a few hours to splice the harness together and install the head unit in the dash.

The head unit's software is definitely a little janky, but it doesn't really matter as all she uses it for is CarPlay anyway. It even supports wireless CarPlay so she doesn't need to take her phone out of her work bag - our brand new Kia with an expensive infotainment system doesn't even support wireless.

I out one of these ATOTO head units in an old jeep I bought.

It works extremely well.

> for less than $1.5k to $2k.

A bargain compared to the Car Thing's ~$90 price tag.

The people who are unhappy about only getting 2 years of service out of an $80 investment are probably not the people who are giddy about only spending $2,000 on a new radio for their car which will be practically worthless once it is installed.

Why would CarPlay/Android auto compatible head unit be worthless once installed? If anything, it adds to the car’s resale price.

Only by a small fraction of the value of the head unit. You would be lucky to get $250 back out of a $2000 head unit.