Pick my new car up in 2 weeks - really looking forward to using Carplay in it. Again Apple have created a solution that takes the best of the iPhone and applied it in a way that can be used without distraction in the car - just have a google for issues with Android Auto - what a crock of crap with incompatibilities between handsets, crashes, hangs etc.
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Ford Launching 2017 Escape in May as its First CarPlay Vehicle
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I would like to see Apple update CarPlay another time before I buy my first CarPlay car. And I also want existing CarPlay cars to work with any new improvements without having to purchase a new car again.
CarPlay yes, Ford, no thanks.
Previous Ford Escape in shop zero times, new 2015 Jeep in shop 4 times 3 of which had too be towed. Don't think I'm buying another Jeep. Just using that as a reference to Ford. Everyone has there reasons for liking or disliking a type of car.
I don't own a car. I use things like ZipCar or Car2Go when I need to drive somewhere (not that often actually). All the cars I get into have different ways to pair my phone so I can listen to my music or make hand free calls or get directions through the speakers. It ranges from non-existing to frustratingly difficult to set up, to semi-useful. I have yet to run into carplay, but would love this ONLY IF the process to connect my phone was consistent from car to car. Because CarPlay sits on top of another system like Sync in this case, my fear is that it will still be different with each car I get into.
That's exactly the point of CarPlay, put your phone away in the console and just drive. If you need nav, it comes from your phone, not a subscription service or pay to update map system that is antiquated in a year...you can tell the rest to not disturb you if you want. It's liberating, really.
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Interestingly enough, it's 100% software updatable for free...rather than what you get with virtually ever car out there. So it can be fully baked over time, then cooked again, frosted, basted, whatever...it's software. This month, a big update to CarPlay is supposedly coming, for instance. As far as it sucking, I have what is considered the nicest software around built into my car and I still prefer CarPlay.
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That's my car, CarPlay is way better than the native UI. It's strikingly noticeable because it's in a panel like that.
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Looks good man! How does the Music interface look like ? And can you add Google maps or must use Maps ?Been there, done that.
2008 Focus:
Congrats on the car. I'm surprised though, I really like the native UI (admittedly I haven't tried CarPlay on it). Can you maybe explain a bit more - do you have issues with car UI or the CarPlay is somehow just much better/faster/smoother?
I don't get it. Why would anyone want to go to the trouble of plugging their phone in every time they get in the car? If I did that I'm sure I'd forget it when I got out.
My phone stays in my pocket. With Apple Watch I can tell Siri to play music, which streams via bluetooth to the existing car audio. Isn't CarPlay a step backwards in convenience?
My phone stays in my pocket. With Apple Watch I can tell Siri to play music, which streams via bluetooth to the existing car audio. Isn't CarPlay a step backwards in convenience?
My wife had the 2014 CX-5, with the nav and BT, and she hated it. She liked the features, but the software was very slow, buggy, and inconsistent. The forums have many complaints about it from other users. Mazda has used the same CX-5 infotainment system since the CX-5 came out, up to at least the 2014's. Maybe they have since fixed it in the 2016 models.
She traded in the 2014 CX-5 for the 2015 Mazda5 when they were being discontinued last year. I told her to get the base model and I would install an aftermarket CarPlay headunit, which ended up being a lot cheaper and better than any factory option.
I had bad experiences with Fords in the 90s and early 2000s. I swore I would never get another one.
Today I have two in the driveway. Not a single problem with either. Ford has really improved. I can't wait to get CarPlay setup on my 2016 Escape.
Do you have it? I actually do, and it is quite good. Maps, siri, texting, apple music. It all works very good.
My wife has CarPlay in her car, and when I use it, I sometimes forget to grab my phone, although not too often.
Wireless CarPlay is suppose to be coming soon, so a lot of the inconvenience of plugging in the phone won't matter.
I personally think that buying and wearing an Apple watch would be way more inconvenient than plugging in an iPhone in the car.
You still have to take the watch off to charge, so there is a chance of forgetting to grab your watch.
An upside of plugging in the iPhone for CarPlay is that I rarely ever worry about charging my phone when I use my Wife's car.
I do like their system, and they have a nice large screen.
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Not sure if it is my car or a feature of carplay, but it reminds me to grab my phone once the car is turned off.
I have a 2014 Acura Mdx Advance. This gives just bare minimum compatibility for the iPhone 6S+. The article above erroneously quotes Acura in the list of over 100 models with Carplay. I did post on Acura's Facebook page, if there is no carplay when I upgrade my car next, it will not be an Acura if there is no Carplay. I have a junky navigation system in my Acura that is the most unhelpful and use unfriendly navigation system one can design. I continue to use my iPhone 6S+ for navigation.
It is probably your car's system. My wife has the Pioneer App Radio4 with CarPlay, and it does not remind you to grab your phone.
Like I said, I do not forget it often, but it has happened a few times. I bet if I drove her car every day, or had CarPlay in my cars, I would be more used to the routine of grabbing my phone, so forgetting it would happened less often.
There are some good updates to CarPlay in iOS 9.3 - enhancements to Apple Music and new features on the maps including nearby options to find POI's near to you.
I put a Pioneer AVIC unit in my 2015 WRX and have CarPlay. It's easy enough to do, and with the right adapters, you retain steering wheel controls, the USB port in the console, etc. The one good thing about Subaru is it seems they haven't gone to these fully-integrated setups that cars are starting to have, where the head unit can't be replaced with something aftermarket.
That being said, I hardly ever use CarPlay. I got more use out of CarPlay when I had it in a Jetta rental when I went out of town for work and used my phone to navigate, but the rare times I need navi around home, I just use what's built into the AVIC, and use Bluetooth for the rare times I'm not listening to Sirius.
Glad to hear this is coming to existing Sync 3 systems as we just bought a F-150 last weekend with it. I was ready to just deal with the current, less than adequate system. However, I was noticing that the Sync apps seemed to be a little weak and there is no current support. Made me think that they had something up their sleeves as it looks like the whole Sync apps thing looks like it was abandoned when half-finished.
I'm mainly looking forward to Waze on CarPlay. The rest I can live without.
I'm mainly looking forward to Waze on CarPlay. The rest I can live without.
I personally like Android auto more, but CarPlay is what I use since I own an iPhone. But my buddy, a super Android dude, uses Android Auto in his new VW and it's much better from what I can tell.
Still CarPlay isn't bad! Perhaps just the grass appears "greener" (pun intended) on the Android side of the fence.
Still CarPlay isn't bad! Perhaps just the grass appears "greener" (pun intended) on the Android side of the fence.
Ahh, well when that happens I'll trade in my Toyota
Not in the car I don't. Watch and phone go on nightstand charger at bedtime.
I have a newer VW (16' tiguan sel) so it is probably a built in feature. Android auto is also really really good. It is nice having a car system that can be upgraded so easily. I am ready for apple to open it up to 3rd party apps. I have sirius XM, and while I can still listen to it and use carplay, it would be nice to actually use the carplay interface instead of the build in car one for xm radio.
Ahh, well when that happens I'll trade in my Toyota
There was an article a few weeks ago about Apple preventing VW from showing off it's wireless CarPlay. So I think that it is ready to go once Apple gives the okay. But, who knows what models will be able to be upgraded.
I am sure most people charge their watches that way. But at least for me, I could picture myself forgetting my watch at home a lot more often than my phone in the car. Maybe because I do not wear watches.