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Developer Showcases Apple CarPlay Workaround for Teslas
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This is very impressive. Too bad Tesla doesn't support CarPlay.
The Tesla maps is pure crap. However, I don’t want CarPlay taking over my screen.
Just improve the maps and get Apple Music integrated.
Just improve the maps and get Apple Music integrated.
Yea, it can be pretty bad. I like Apple and Tesla both. I've had Android phones in the past and the experience isn't as great for me - but modern Android phones are starting to become really nice devices . I love my Tesla - it's a phenomenal car - but the software is hot trash, especially with the V11 UI update. I hate it when fanboys are just completely blind to any faults and will defend it to the end. I enjoy my Apple ecosystem too but I'll still call them out on their stinkers when they release them.
9-Inch Tesla Model 3 Y Dashboard Display Instrument Panel|Hansshow
9-inch Tesla Model 3 Y dashboard display adopts a new minimalist Linux UI system. The Instrument Panel offers day/night mode and supports wireless Carplay.
His is the next step where you can control via the center screen instead of an additional screen.
If Tesla chooses to do it, I expect you’ll see the update for free (along with Android Auto) going back to at least 2016 cars when they switched from an ARM CPU to Intel for the infotainment system.
They may even choose to support it as far back as 2012.
With the latest infotainment updates rolled out in December, Tesla is clearly preparing to have people add their own third party software to the car. I’m expecting Elon to reveal an official Tesla App Store and/or SDK at the “Tesla Product Roadmap” update next week. I’m expecting to hear about some MyQ integration over the internet connection, and if CarPlay is ever coming, I think it’ll be announced then…
Alternatively, any app developer could probably make a CarPlay app if an SDK is available.
Tesla does what Apple does, control the hardware and the software. If I ever bought one I'd be fine with their software because it is very good. I guess the only thing I would miss would be Apple Music since I dont use Spotify. With other car manufactures I would pay extra for car play - especially those who base their software on Android.
Have you tried the Tesla interface? It's arguably one of the best interfaces I've had in a car (though it's frustrating with some software updates when it changes and is far from perfect). I've used CarPlay in my last 3 vehicles. I'm not saying having some CarPlay integration wouldn't be nice, but I just mount my phone next to the screen and use that when I need to. Having built in maps integration that tells you car when to charge and is more fluid than the phone (I just send destinations from my phone to the car and it navigates there), Spotify integration, and Bluetooth when you want to just use your phone for Apple Music fits the bill for me. Kudos to this person for getting a workaround going!
CarPlay to me was very nice in cars that had such bad UI's that I hated my life. I installed 3rd party head units in vehicles that couldn't upgrade, you name it, in all my other vehicles. Factory navigation was frequently a joke that always needed some random SD card upgrade, and UI elements were bizarre.
I'm by no means a massive defender of Tesla as they have plenty of issues, but I haven't super found the need for CarPlay as I did in other vehicles.
As a Tesla and iPhone owner, Apple CarPlay is not really a wish at all, with the quality of the build in to be honest.
Apple Music native app on the other hand !!!
And I want Overcast for podcasts on CarPlay . Don’t give a damn about Apple Music or Spotify. The nice thing about CarPlay is that it let’s each of us have the apps that we want with no additional effort to integrate them into the car’s infotainment system. They just come for free with CarPlay.
CarPlay doesn’t have to take over the screen. In cars with large screens, like the Tesla, CarPlay appears in one panel on the screen when activated.
Tesla can get away from not having CarPlay, even as an option, is for the pure fact that the EV industry is still in its infancy. There just aren't that many EVs to choose from. Most people are just happy to own a Tesla, and all the prestige that comes with it. As competition gets stiffer and more EVs from different carmakers become available, it's going to be a feature that will weigh more heavily in a buyer's decision.
Tesla's own (infotainment) system isn't superior to CarPlay. It's to their own peril by not seeing the potential threat posed by CarPlay's dominance. It's essentially a war on standards à la Betamax vs VHS. Either Tesla starts attempting to market its own system to other carmakers or sees their pigheadedness increasingly contributes to their isolation.
To your second point, you can't have Apple Music without CarPlay so you're basically saying you want CarPlay when you say Apple Music is on the top of your wishlist.
I honestly don't see Tesla continuing to dominate as more carmakers enter the EV market. It will eventually come down to mapping, AI, and the processing power of the chips an EV has inside (for level 4 and 5 autonomous driving) and these are the things that Google and Apple have a comparative advantage (because their standards are more widely used).
Tesla's own (infotainment) system isn't superior to CarPlay. It's to their own peril by not seeing the potential threat posed by CarPlay's dominance. It's essentially a war on standards à la Betamax vs VHS. Either Tesla starts attempting to market its own system to other carmakers or sees their pigheadedness increasingly contributes to their isolation.
You have no idea how hard it is to monetize things, on a car no less. What platform are the games and apps going to be run on? Are you implying that Ford wants to develop its own mapping and infotainment platform to compete with CarPlay?
It's like something from an earlier time because traditional carmakers just haven't had much experience developing software. And software development is hard.
To your second point, you can't have Apple Music without CarPlay so you're basically saying you want CarPlay when you say Apple Music is on the top of your wishlist.
I honestly don't see Tesla continuing to dominate as more carmakers enter the EV market. It will eventually come down to mapping, AI, and the processing power of the chips an EV has inside (for level 4 and 5 autonomous driving) and these are the things that Google and Apple have a comparative advantage (because their standards are more widely used).
Ya, I'd definitely appreciate Apple Music integration into the Tesla UI (like Spotify, Tidal et al), but it's not a decision maker for me. The entirety of the car (Model 3P) is what sold me and KEEPS on selling me. Best vehicle I have ever owned. 3 years in I enjoy it more than almost any other piece of 'tech' I have ever owned. It puts a smile onto my face each and every time I hit the accelerator ?
Which in a Tesla usually means it takes over the whole screen (minus the car visualization on a 3/Y).
I don’t know where you live but Apple Maps and Waze are better for me … so I mis CarPlay … I have several routes where Tesla Maps took a detour / more energy consuming route than Apple Maps, or even my own knowledge, I‘m actually quite surprised at this, I know Apple Maps has still that early beta image problem, but now it’s always at the top in shortest quickest route and predicted time of arrival, closely followed by Waze and a distant third Tesla. For road trips you need to use Tesla as integrated SC is a plus though ABRP is sometimes better than the build in Maps, and if we would have CarPlay I would probably use that on longer trips …
Carplay, ungh. No thanks.
Been driving a lot of Volvos the last 2 years but I eventually opted to not start Carplay as it really sux. The standard Volvo infotainment is a lot simpler to use while driving, bluetooth audio is good enough for calls and music.
The constant ”oh, I can’t do that in carplay” is really, really annoying.
Been driving a lot of Volvos the last 2 years but I eventually opted to not start Carplay as it really sux. The standard Volvo infotainment is a lot simpler to use while driving, bluetooth audio is good enough for calls and music.
The constant ”oh, I can’t do that in carplay” is really, really annoying.
We are, but Elon’s ears aren’t big enough.
If this were the case then a Tesla would support Android Auto, but it doesn’t support either. My guess is that it has to do with being able to use another mapping system, that doesn’t let you know when to charge.
Teslas do a really good job of routing you to a charger, when you aren’t going to make it to your destination, or give you warning about staying below a certain speed to make it there, if the car doesn’t know where your going, then it can’t warn you. They could integrate with Apple CarPlay to get this information, but they have bigger issues with getting self driving ready and other bugs fixed first. Again this is just my guess.
It doesn't have to. In the current UI, I'd imagine CarPlay as one of the icons along the bottom like Spotify. The Spotify app has three sizes: Full Screen, Half Screen (where it shows Recently Played or Up Next) and just the media controls. I'd imagine a CarPlay interface could implement the Half Screen size since that would fit with the landscape display normally used in CarPlay and would allow you to still access the native Tesla map.
Apple Maps already knows Tesla superchargers. It even has an EV routing capability:
Set up electric vehicle routing in Maps on iPhone
On iPhone, Maps can help you plan trips that include stops for charging your electric vehicle.
support.apple.com
But even if you're happy with the Tesla maps, Carplay is also useful for other things. For example, I like listening to audiobooks in the car, and still have to fumble with my phone because Tesla has no audiobook app.
A few months ago, green found some stubs in Tesla code showing they were working on Apple Music integration. He had some screenshots showing Tidal was also incoming and sure enough, Tidal was added very recently. So maybe we can hope?
Otherwise, Apple Music would be great, but still doesn't cover all the use cases I'd have for CarPlay, namely better podcast support and audiobook support. Tesla's Spotify app doesn't handle downloads very well and likes to just skip a track if it has any hiccup while streaming it and it doesn't seem to keep track of your current Podcast location. Their recent UI update even made it harder since they got rid of the playback timestamp. What's most annoying is when it's playing a podcast and then just dies and starts trying to play the next episode until it finds one it can play.
Otherwise, Apple Music would be great, but still doesn't cover all the use cases I'd have for CarPlay, namely better podcast support and audiobook support. Tesla's Spotify app doesn't handle downloads very well and likes to just skip a track if it has any hiccup while streaming it and it doesn't seem to keep track of your current Podcast location. Their recent UI update even made it harder since they got rid of the playback timestamp. What's most annoying is when it's playing a podcast and then just dies and starts trying to play the next episode until it finds one it can play.
For a small percentage, maybe. But, most people, especially those who are looking at Tesla, probably don't weigh the lack CarPlay as a critical feature. Considering Telsa is selling ever car they can build right now (and was even before the pandemic), they are not hurting from the lack of CarPlay.
I have never used Telsa's system, but being superior is a personal opinion. From other non-Apple forums I have read, most feel that Tesla's system is quite good. (But, there are a lot of complaints of the latest upgrade.)
Also, remember that the Infotainment System in a Telsa is so much more than just navigation and audio. To do just about ANYTHING on a 3/Y you have to use the screen. Climate Control, headlights, and even opening the glove box requires using the screen. From Tesla's POV, I am sure that they would to have a single UX versus have to swtich betwen CarPlay and the regular Tesla UX depending on wht the driver needs.
For me, I don't find CarPlay to be that great either. I actually prefer the cleaner look of the system built-in to my Tiguan.
It is arguable that Tesla is as much a software company as a car company.
That is completely false. There are plenty of third party products that have AppleM usic on them (Amazon Echos, Sonos, etc.) If Telsa/Apple wanted to build Apple Music in to a Telsa, they can
Apple & Google are years behind Telsa in development of FSD. While nowhere near perfect, Tesla is much closer and actually has cars in the field using FSD.
But, I am sure "Tesla is doomed". Musk should sell the company and give the money to the shareholdres? AMIRIGHT?