Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iOS in the Car 'Very Important' to Apple, 'Part of the Ecosystem'
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Apple TV was once regarded as "hobby". Tim is saying iOS in the Car is more important than that.
iOS in the Car reminds me of the Motorola ROKR. Apple partnered with another company to offer a near-solution until they could complete their own product. I don't think it makes sense for Apple to make their own deck, but they could be doing something like SYNC.
the converse
It would be very nice to see Honda, Acura and Volvo removed from the list.
They were on the short list for my next car, but if I need an AppleID for the car simply forget it.
Just rented a new Ford Escape with Sync - quite nice. Found my T-Bolt without problems.... (And it's the first time that I've returned a rental to Avis with 8x the mileage that I started with - it had 55 miles and the temporary paper plates in the Windows when I picked it up.)
It would be very nice to see Honda, Acura and Volvo removed from the list.
They were on the short list for my next car, but if I need an AppleID for the car simply forget it.
Just rented a new Ford Escape with Sync - quite nice. Found my T-Bolt without problems.... (And it's the first time that I've returned a rental to Avis with 8x the mileage that I started with - it had 55 miles and the temporary paper plates in the Windows when I picked it up.)
The Appradio 3 adds support for Siri Eyes Free which is having additional functionality added to it with iOS 7. Hardware wise it also should support most changes and all it would take is a firmware flash to the Appradio to add additional support.
No one needs it more then BMW. Their radios are garbage. Don't know if they were first but it's the worst iPod integration out there. I have a 2011 X5. It will be my last BMW.
This doesn't seem like rocket science to me and I've been calling for this sort of thing for at least 3 years (probably a good deal longer). A faceless head unit with a dock, combined with some hard buttons and knobs, and a little bit of software integration, and you're good to go. Sad that it's taken this long to get something like this to market.
The main barrier is that people keep their cars longer than they keep their smartphones. Apple is better poised to take advantage of that, since they've (traditionally, anyway) had a single premier iPhone with the same basic form-factor for 2 years, whereas Android phones are too varied to be able to pull off a single common dock/interface.
But now with decent Bluetooth and WiFi direct (or whatever it's called), there should no longer be a need to physically dock it in the head unit, so the new approach will be better, anyway. Still, I'm surprised there wasn't any movement on getting a head unit which involved physically docking the iPhone into it out there a couple of years ago.
The main barrier is that people keep their cars longer than they keep their smartphones. Apple is better poised to take advantage of that, since they've (traditionally, anyway) had a single premier iPhone with the same basic form-factor for 2 years, whereas Android phones are too varied to be able to pull off a single common dock/interface.
But now with decent Bluetooth and WiFi direct (or whatever it's called), there should no longer be a need to physically dock it in the head unit, so the new approach will be better, anyway. Still, I'm surprised there wasn't any movement on getting a head unit which involved physically docking the iPhone into it out there a couple of years ago.
Advertisers (possibly explicitly, but more likely as "Points of Interest" and then as information for advertising on your other IOS devices) would love to know where you are driving.
This is why Apple wanted its own maps and why Google pushes its maps so hard.
They may not even need to have your Apple ID entered, since the system probably will be able to access it when you pair it with your phone for bluetooth.
You haven't been following Apple very long if you even ask the question. Of course you have to buy a new car.
And, when Apple adds their 30% cut to the price of the car - you won't even care.
I was starting to get serious about buying my first new car in 10 years. I'm definitely waiting for the 2014 models now. Seriously.
So should we point out every manufacturer that is not on the list? Seems kind of pointless. If your on the list then your on the list there is no need to point out everyone not on the list.
I have been waiting for an 800-lbs gorilla like this to move into the automotive connectivity market for a few years. Automotive electronics be it old GM Delco and any other electronic divisions have way too much closet system, proprietary and the infamous "not invented here" mindset when it comes to anything electronic in their car. That is for good reason, failure means more than your device not working, it could be a contributing factor to an accident.
Apple has some of the best UX designers in the world. They get that you don't just make a 3D rendered bitmap on a high resolution screen and keep the same user paradigm. You need to look at the whole experience and workflow. The teeth pulling needed to get Bluetooth built into cars over the past tens years shows a lot.
When this rolls out, I can easily see this as a make or break in automotive sales when people ask "Is there 'iOS in the Car' with this model?" If the sales guy can't say yes, they'll walk out and loose a sale. This is a big winner for Apple. Hell, I can see many holding off on a new car purchase 'til this comes out.
----------
As if most Android users have the money and credit rating to buy a new car. While there are well to do Android users / developers, they are a small minority of the Android economy.
The lion's share of Android users get their phone for free when they sign a wireless service contract, refuse to pay for apps and complains dropping anything over $20 for a case.
They also become drama queens when they walk past a coffee shop and some Hipster's Linux laptop roots their phone via WiFi installing a bunch of nasty stuff -- those security steak outs are fun!!
Too bad there are no more Yugo's, an Android in the Car device would be a perfect match. Then there is Tata ...
Apple has some of the best UX designers in the world. They get that you don't just make a 3D rendered bitmap on a high resolution screen and keep the same user paradigm. You need to look at the whole experience and workflow. The teeth pulling needed to get Bluetooth built into cars over the past tens years shows a lot.
When this rolls out, I can easily see this as a make or break in automotive sales when people ask "Is there 'iOS in the Car' with this model?" If the sales guy can't say yes, they'll walk out and loose a sale. This is a big winner for Apple. Hell, I can see many holding off on a new car purchase 'til this comes out.
----------
As if most Android users have the money and credit rating to buy a new car. While there are well to do Android users / developers, they are a small minority of the Android economy.
The lion's share of Android users get their phone for free when they sign a wireless service contract, refuse to pay for apps and complains dropping anything over $20 for a case.
They also become drama queens when they walk past a coffee shop and some Hipster's Linux laptop roots their phone via WiFi installing a bunch of nasty stuff -- those security steak outs are fun!!
Too bad there are no more Yugo's, an Android in the Car device would be a perfect match. Then there is Tata ...
Please back that up with verifiable statistics.
At my company in Silicon Valley, the engineers typically have Samsung Galaxy phones and HTC. The managers and marketeers have Apple phones.
Of course, that's an unverifiable anecdote - but I admit it. I don't use words like "most" and "lion's share".
This is what somebody should be working on..... a unit that replaces the car entertainment system on older vehicles.
After all of all the new cars being sold how many buyers actually choose to purchase that option.
There's a lot bigger market out there with existing cars...
Are there any third-party units that will do this? AppRadio is such a horrible attempt at this, and I don't want to buy a new car just to get something decent.
Honda, Acura, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Infiniti, Ferrari, Chevrolet, Hyundai, Kia, Volvo, Opel and Jaguar.
Nice enough selection for me. Ford will use Microsoft Sync till the cows come home. If it's a success at Chevy, Cadillac, and Buick will follow. I'd like to see VW and Mazda also, as they are more my price range and style. This could be big if done right.
Consider the following and you wonder if this is such a great idea...
1) Roughly half the smart phones out there are iphones. So if iOS is in a car will it be compatible with other OSes? Auto makers are going to insists as not to lose customers. So, does this water down the branding/advantages?
2) Car companies have not has the best track record for making great system integration. They also like to charge arm and a leg for any features beyond completely bog standard. So how big will an iOS on cars market be?
3) Cars are durable goods. You don't buy a new one every year or every other year. Even leased cars typically goes for 4. That's going to be a much less interesting revenue stream than phones.
4) Car companies don't want Apple to come in and dilute their branding. So far only ford has ever allowed an out side company to come in and brand something in their car. And even then it is a product only available on Ford cars. Unless Apple plans to build cars how much penetration are they going to get? Even then will an Audi branded iOS system be of any use to Apple for building more brand awareness?
5) Are cars really a growing market? Sure in developing nations there is a push for cars. But they really are only a solution to bad urban planning. In many successful Asian cities public transport is the way to go. In Japan cars are a declining industry. So how good an idea is putting iOS in cars?
6) Don't freaking text and drive. What is the point of iOS for a car? The only real use is listening to music and navigation, maybe movies for the kids you are training to be addicted to media with a bug's attention span. Seriously, for me don't try to sell me music, or tell me about restaurants when I am in my car. I am driving in my car, not shopping, not texting, not freaking wanting to know what Apple wants me to do that give them more revenue...
Seriously, why is this soooo important to Apple?
1) Roughly half the smart phones out there are iphones. So if iOS is in a car will it be compatible with other OSes? Auto makers are going to insists as not to lose customers. So, does this water down the branding/advantages?
2) Car companies have not has the best track record for making great system integration. They also like to charge arm and a leg for any features beyond completely bog standard. So how big will an iOS on cars market be?
3) Cars are durable goods. You don't buy a new one every year or every other year. Even leased cars typically goes for 4. That's going to be a much less interesting revenue stream than phones.
4) Car companies don't want Apple to come in and dilute their branding. So far only ford has ever allowed an out side company to come in and brand something in their car. And even then it is a product only available on Ford cars. Unless Apple plans to build cars how much penetration are they going to get? Even then will an Audi branded iOS system be of any use to Apple for building more brand awareness?
5) Are cars really a growing market? Sure in developing nations there is a push for cars. But they really are only a solution to bad urban planning. In many successful Asian cities public transport is the way to go. In Japan cars are a declining industry. So how good an idea is putting iOS in cars?
6) Don't freaking text and drive. What is the point of iOS for a car? The only real use is listening to music and navigation, maybe movies for the kids you are training to be addicted to media with a bug's attention span. Seriously, for me don't try to sell me music, or tell me about restaurants when I am in my car. I am driving in my car, not shopping, not texting, not freaking wanting to know what Apple wants me to do that give them more revenue...
Seriously, why is this soooo important to Apple?
Umm... doesn't AirPlay requires a (WiFi) network to work?
Last time I checked, cars don't typically have a WiFi network. And were it possible for every car to have its own local mobile WiFi network, how much extra do you think that would cost?
----------
Cars don't have to be a "growing market". They are a feature-dependent market. Car manufacturers need to demonstrate unique or customer-desirable FEATURES in order to be competitive.
And all Apple is trying to do here is to bolster the multimedia features built into future cars. It's meant to be a selling point for the cars in question. How good that selling point is.... will depend on how well Apple executes its iOS integration into automobiles. Remains to be seen.
"Got my sparkling new car! Wait...what's this? iOS in the Car? But I have an Android...ahhh I guess I'll get an iPhone!"