New CarPlay Vehicles From Honda, Kia and Lincoln Debut at Detroit Auto Show

[troy14]

$0.47 in Michigan

And yes, people still need a method to drive. No one 'needs' these extra features. Heck, all I care about is A/C, power steering, power locks, and power windows.

All these seat warmers, motorized seats with memory, TPMS, etc is just more annoyance and drives the cost of the car up. I miss the cars of pre-2000 that didn't have a lot of that crap.

Sure having these features adds safety and comfort, but it isn't selling point of the car itself. If someone wants a Honda Accord they will buy it.

Things that do push a car sale are structural safety, price, performance, mpg, and/or reliability.

Suit yourself. I'm also in Michigan and could never go back to a car that doesn't have a heated steering wheel, heated seats, back up camera, keyless /proximity unlock/start... The list goes on. I fail to see how it's an annoyance but to each their own!

 

[Iconoclysm]

No, I believe an upcoming version of iOS9 will support BT.

Highly unlikely that Bluetooth could support the CarPlay functions, WiDi or AirPlay only I expect.
[doublepost=1453304156][/doublepost]

So all CarPlay vehicles require a hardwired connection to your phone to work right? If so its instantly outdated and you're better off waiting, at least in my mind.

This is a bit of an exaggeration, most people will want to have their phones plugged into their cars for battery saving purposes anyway. Only one phone can connect to CarPlay at a time as well.
[doublepost=1453304215][/doublepost]

There shouldn't be any cost beyond purchasing an iPhone 5 or newer and the vehicle itself. CarPlay is an optional upgrade in some models though.

If only this were true. $640 for CarPlay in a Volvo XC90. $385 for the software, the rest is labor.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

Highly unlikely that Bluetooth could support the CarPlay functions, WiDi or AirPlay only I expect.

Well then you best take it up with Apple and VW because you seem to know something they don't. Perhaps you missed this news item from a couple weeks ago? It was all over the Apple and tech news sites.

 

[gimikinc]

Having carplay is not something that will drive me purchasing a vehicle. The vehicle has to meet your needs vs. amenities. Just like Toyota adding a GoPro mount to their tundra line....guess a $5 mount will be the deal breaker amenity for some consumers...

 

[arggg14]

Get a software update to my 2015 Mazda please and thanks.

You may be able to get one at your local Mazda dealership for $99 later this year

 

[Studioman]

Neat... Carplay & Android as well? More cars should be like this .... Should be all about choice.

I think it sucks that these companies capitulated capitulated to Google's demands to make Apple users wait almost 2 years for them to catch up before providing compatibility. All of these companies were suppose to be compatible a year ago but held until Google could come at the same time. They should have just rolled out what was ready and allowed for software upgrades after.

 

[Iconoclysm]

Well then you best take it up with Apple and VW because you seem to know something they don't. Perhaps you missed this news item from a couple weeks ago? It was all over the Apple and tech news sites.

No need to get snooty, of course I saw the article...which clearly says "wireless" followed by assumptions about it being Bluetooth. Nothing to take up with Apple nor VW, they didn't say a word about how it works.

Bluetooth does not lend itself well to client/server functions that require a lot of bandwidth. Apple will undoubtedly want to leverage AirPlay for this, if only for better quality audio...but also because there are screen mirroring functions happening. When's the last time you used a remote desktop over a bluetooth connection?

 

[Aston441]

Just a personal opinion:

If I end up with a car that has AndroidAuto/CarPlay for my next car, and CarPlay still does not have Google Maps and Waze, then my next phone will be Android and not an iPhone, period. Right now I get by fine with my 6s+ mounted on my dash.

There is no way at all, no way, I will not have Google Maps and Waze for my navigation needs. Those two apps have been, and continue to be a genuine order of magnitude superior in overall functionality as compared to Apple Maps.

Apple needs to be in discussions with Google about getting GMaps and Waze into CarPlay, and concede to Google whatever they want, or there are going to be a whole lot of iPhone users switching over/back to Android.

 

[Iconoclysm]

Having carplay is not something that will drive me purchasing a vehicle. The vehicle has to meet your needs vs. amenities. Just like Toyota adding a GoPro mount to their tundra line....guess a $5 mount will be the deal breaker amenity for some consumers...

There is absolutely no similarity. This is like the vehicle adding a mount that can be upgraded over time, for free, for whatever new technology has come along. You know, something like a tow hitch.
[doublepost=1453306315][/doublepost]

Just a personal opinion:

If I end up with a car that has AndroidAuto/CarPlay for my next car, and CarPlay still does not have Google Maps and Waze, then my next phone will be Android and not an iPhone, period. Right now I get by fine with my 6s+ mounted on my dash.

There is no way at all, no way, I will not have Google Maps and Waze for my navigation needs. Those two apps have been, and continue to be a genuine order of magnitude superior in overall functionality as compared to Apple Maps.

Apple needs to be in discussions with Google about getting GMaps and Waze into CarPlay, and concede to Google whatever they want, or there are going to be a whole lot of iPhone users switching over/back to Android.

I can understand how much you want Waze but that last line about iPhone users switching over that one app is kind of ridiculous.

 

[Aston441]

There is absolutely no similarity. This is like the vehicle adding a mount that can be upgraded over time, for free, for whatever new technology has come along. You know, something like a tow hitch.
[doublepost=1453306315][/doublepost]

I can understand how much you want Waze but that last line about iPhone users switching over that one app is kind of ridiculous.

I never would have bought my first iPhone if Google Maps wasn't available on the platform. If Google pulled Google Maps from the App store I'd have a Nexus phone the next day. My life is often too busy to deal with the limited functionality of Apple Maps. Very often I need to know information about a place or a business immediately, and how to get there ASAP, and Apple Maps doesn't make the cut. If Apple Maps were better than Google Maps, I and millions of others would use it. It is not better. It is not even close. I don't feel like arguing AMaps vs GMaps, just expressing the reality that CarPlay without Google Maps is absolutely useless to me and many millions.

 

[QuarterSwede]

Honestly this is what people are looking for in a new car purchase. All manufacturers should provide CarPlay and android auto and the ability to switch between the two at will. I feel any manufacturer that doesn't do that will see slower sales for the year/s. I myself am considering a new vehicle this year and basically only looking at vehicles with CarPlay, since I don't want to have to learn a whole new system every time I buy a new car.

That was a requirement for our most recent purchase. Had to have the dealership install a 3rd party head unit to get it.

 

[cardfan]

Just a personal opinion:

If I end up with a car that has AndroidAuto/CarPlay for my next car, and CarPlay still does not have Google Maps and Waze, then my next phone will be Android and not an iPhone, period. Right now I get by fine with my 6s+ mounted on my dash.

There is no way at all, no way, I will not have Google Maps and Waze for my navigation needs. Those two apps have been, and continue to be a genuine order of magnitude superior in overall functionality as compared to Apple Maps.

Apple needs to be in discussions with Google about getting GMaps and Waze into CarPlay, and concede to Google whatever they want, or there are going to be a whole lot of iPhone users switching over/back to Android.

This is why I'm not in a rush to get car play. I'm fine with a mounted iphone.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

No need to get snooty, of course I saw the article...which clearly says "wireless" followed by assumptions about it being Bluetooth. Nothing to take up with Apple nor VW, they didn't say a word about how it works.

Bluetooth does not lend itself well to client/server functions that require a lot of bandwidth. Apple will undoubtedly want to leverage AirPlay for this, if only for better quality audio...but also because there are screen mirroring functions happening. When's the last time you used a remote desktop over a bluetooth connection?

I responded the way I did because your response to me was rather uppity and cocksure ("Highly unlikely," was your statement). No one knows the reach of wireless CarPlay, only that its coming, but if it's not BT then all that is left is WiFi. Either way it's wireless and its in the works, if not demo ready.

 

[MJedi]

I'm still waiting for Honda to include CarPlay in the Pilot. I don't understand why the roll-out is so slow. I'm no car expert, but if it's available in the Civic, Accord, and Ridgeline, why not their other vehicles?

 

[stevemiller]

I have a 2012 Toyota with a terrible touchscreen UI. My dad recently got a 2015 Toyota and it's even worse. The software freezes up constantly and becomes a dangerous distraction.

i have no idea what toyotas endgame with their strategy is, aside from negative consumer backlash.

 

[TheShadowKnows!]

Your first example is not CarPlay enabled, if you choose to use your device as an iPod you will not have any CarPlay functionality whatosever, as if it is not connected. Using CarPlay also disables the use of Bluetooth devices with the car, as they are expected to connect to the iPhone instead...and when a CarPlay over AirPlay connection is eventually introduced, the WiFi functions will probably be lost as well.

Sorry to disagree.

I do not know the specs of CarPlay/Wireless, but fully expect CarPlay to be transport agnostic, and behave equally either wired or wireless.

Here is my take:

• The control plane remains always under control of the iDevice: where the iDevice display is sent to the vehicle's in-dash screen via an H.264 video stream. The in-dash display turns into a pass-thru, remote hit-sensitive screen.
• The data plane remains under control of the app on the iDevice: so that what you click-on, see and hear is precisely the content that the app manages.
• The "glue" between the car's in-dash device and the user's iDevice is transport agnostic: wired or wireless.

Could be wrong, of course.

 

[Aston441]

I have a 2012 Toyota with a terrible touchscreen UI. My dad recently got a 2015 Toyota and it's even worse. The software freezes up constantly and becomes a dangerous distraction.

i have no idea what toyotas endgame with their strategy is, aside from negative consumer backlash.

Toyota's end game is using technology on their automobiles that is two generations behind what is available, giving it all large tolerance range before failure (also known as "everything is kinda loose lol" and making it so incredibly reliable I can barely comprehend that an automobile can possibly be so reliable - and so boring. This is sort of the opposite of what the Germans do, which is tech out the wazoo, tight tight tight tolerances, fun as heck, and broken down once a month.

I predict that when the whole Carplay/AAuto thing is sorted out, and there's just a standardized interface that all cars have, and it's perfectly reliable, then Toyota will add it... five years after everyone else does.

 

[Robert.Walter]

Hey Honda, demonstrate some love for your current customers by doing them a solid by releasing a firmware update to enable CarPlay for all vehicles in the field using the car audio display.

You could charge the 50$ or so if you want to profit from it but be creative and give it away as part of the cars next scheduled maintenance. Customers will love you for this instead of cursing your bait and delay approach!

 

[BeefCake 15]

Come on Mazda. Your v55 infotainment update already has some references about it for the 2016 Mazda6 (can't speak for other models):

rootfs1upd/jci/gui/apps/system/js/systemApp.js: { appData : { appName : 'carplay', isVisible : false, mmuiEvent : 'SelectCarPlay' }, text1Id : 'CarPlay', disabled : true, itemStyle : 'style01', hasCaret : false },

There is even a directory of CarPlay resources:

rootfs1upd/rootfs/jci/gui/resources/js/carplay

Just get it together please.

I called and complained by email multiple times! I hate the current infotainment and just waiting for CarPlay.

 

[Speedman100]

That 2017 Lincoln Continental is hot!

 

[e93to]

I was at several dealers a couple of weeks ago. I asked about CarPlay and Android Auto, and.... every person I spoke to was clueless as to what CarPlay and Android Auto were.

Some aftermarket solutions seem to offer CarPlay retrofit though. Not sure how well they work, but I read about them on various car forums

 

[Iconoclysm]

[doublepost=1453316839][/doublepost]

I responded the way I did because your response to me was rather uppity and cocksure ("Highly unlikely," was your statement). No one knows the reach of wireless CarPlay, only that its coming, but if it's not BT then all that is left is WiFi. Either way it's wireless and its in the works, if not demo ready.

Highly unlikely is not a cocksure or uppity statement. It's like you telling me that you're going to stream Netflix over dialup, and I'm going to tell you "highly unlikely". Sorry that you don't like the choice of words but I could have just been completely certain and said "no", it's that cut and dry. Apple leverages WiFi for music with AirPlay, let alone video, they're not going to suddenly switch to an underperforming method. How about I just say that I'm 99.99999999% certain that BT will not be used for anything but negotiating the connection?

WiFi isn't all that's left, AirPlay and WiDi both use that WiFi radio.

[doublepost=1453317102][/doublepost]

Sorry to disagree.

I do not know the specs of CarPlay/Wireless, but fully expect CarPlay to be transport agnostic, and behave equally either wired or wireless.

Here is my take:

• The control plane remains always under control of the iDevice: where the iDevice display is sent to the vehicle's in-dash screen via an H.264 video stream. The in-dash display turns into a pass-thru, remote hit-sensitive screen.
• The data plane remains under control of the app on the iDevice: so that what you click-on, see and hear is precisely the content that the app manages.
• The "glue" between the car's in-dash device and the user's iDevice is transport agnostic: wired or wireless.

Could be wrong, of course.

Nothing that you listed there would be any more "transport agnostic" compared to what I said, you're not disagreeing. AirPlay or Wi-Fi or Wired or WiDi are all the physical layer. AirPlay currently uses the exact same video compression codec with an AppleTV as CarPlay does with the iPhone, AirPlay operates similarly to WiDi, and utilizes TCP at the transport layer. It's only branded AirPlay in the way that it negotiates the connection.

 

[stevemiller]

Toyota's end game is using technology on their automobiles that is two generations behind what is available, giving it all large tolerance range before failure (also known as "everything is kinda loose lol" and making it so incredibly reliable I can barely comprehend that an automobile can possibly be so reliable - and so boring. This is sort of the opposite of what the Germans do, which is tech out the wazoo, tight tight tight tolerances, fun as heck, and broken down once a month.

I predict that when the whole Carplay/AAuto thing is sorted out, and there's just a standardized interface that all cars have, and it's perfectly reliable, then Toyota will add it... five years after everyone else does.

I'd agreed and happily accept that approach as their broad strategy, but their in dash system is anything but reliable.

Convinced someone in their top brass entered into some terrible exclusivity contract with the worlds worst dash system maker. Probably some exec who never understood computers and decided merit on the strength of a handshake. That's my imagined scenario at least.

 

[wood1208]

Ask yourself two questions. How often you replace vehicle and is phone connectivity important in your life ? My answer is I replace car over more than 10 years apart(my oldest running car is 1992 Toyota Camry) so I will not buy my next/new vehicle unless it has deep phone integration(CarPlay/AndroidAuto) with it's touchscreen dashboard/console/infotainment center.. Not open for discussion.

 

[Iconoclysm]

Ask yourself two questions. How often you replace vehicle and is phone connectivity important in your life ? My answer is I replace car over more than 10 years apart(my oldest running car is 1992 Toyota Camry) so I will not buy my next/new vehicle unless it has deep phone integration(CarPlay/AndroidAuto) with it's touchscreen dashboard/console/infotainment center.. Not open for discussion.

Exactly, and that's how Lexus ended up losing a sale to Volvo in my case.