CarPlay has several resolution options.
They could have easlily used a 16x9 resolution and moved the rest of the infotainment information below the CarPlay interface. This is just terrible UI.
I believe the answer to most of these questions is that Microsoft makes the Ford sync software. Enough said. Luckily Ford has stated that Google will be the base of futures generations. I hate Google but Microsoft just lacks the talent to make things look good and the vision to really understand what people want. Now if Google uses this this as a way to track or provide ads in any way, it will be ripped out of my truck in a heart beat so Ford better be very careful with this. Oh and it better retain wireless Car Play.
Depending on what neighborhood they’re in, they may no longer be fitted with those.
You're implying the thieves don't also have Crown Vics. Maybe they have Marauders instead.
I like to imagine a single head unit just being stolen and installed in a succession of Crown Victorias
Up until Ford Sync v. 3, Ford was all-in with Microsoft and Windows Embedded Automotive -- which was a joke, and Microsoft dropped the ball on that. I was in a usability test for 2011 Ford Explorer with My Ford Touch v.2 on Microsoft's small Bellevue campus near Factoria Mall, and by the end of the hour, me and Microsoft's 2 usability testers were doubled over laughing at how bad the software was. We couldn't even get through their script because Ford Sync and Windows Embedded did not work at all. To its credit, Ford settled a class action lawsuit and recently sent me a generous debit card with the settlement.
Sync 4’s interface style is different from vehicle to vehicle. I agree, this version looks hideous with the garish bright blue. The version they put in the Lincoln Nautilus has MUCH better font and color choices. I personally prefer the aesthetic over CarPlay, which doesn’t scale as well to larger displays.
The documentation could use an update, but vertical (portrait) screen support was added in iOS 14. It’s up the the manufacturer to release an update to their infotainment systems to take advantage of it, which Subaru started doing for their higher-end systems last year. Meanwhile manufacturers like RAM and Volvo haven’t and CarPlay just sits awkwardly in the middle of the screen.
Ford wisely ditched Windows Embedded Automotive for QNX with Sync 3 and 4. And they sent me a nice debit card to apologize for Sync 2 (after settling a class action lawsuit). I'm fairly certain Windows Automotive (which was based on Windows CE) was terminated by Microsoft many years ago. At least I'm unaware of any car manufacturer using it.
That does look better, but still looks very cluttered, looking at just the status bar, the time is in such a strange place, there are 3 different temperatures(I'm assuming the far right is outside temp). The main problem with car manufactures creating the Infotainment system is that it never gets updated once it's in the car. There might be minor updates, but you can't install Sync 5 into a car that came with Sync 3.
Let's face it, car manufacturers design cars, not computer interfaces. Its just not one of their strong suits, but nowadays since cars are rolling computers, it should be.
Software companies can’t even get interfaces right all the time (including Apple), and that IS their job. Infotainment systems get a bad rap but there are some very good ones out there - Ford’s Sync 4 (the hideous F-150 interface notwithstanding), FCA’s UConnect, BMW’s iDrive, to name a few.
My '19 is the same way and I actually don't want it to be full screen because changing FM/satellite radio stations is clumsy when I have to exit CarPlay in order to get to the Sync interface.
With Sync 3, changing between Ford/Lincoln/Raptor/Mustang/etc themes can be done by holding a few buttons down and selecting whichever one you want. That is, I can run the Lincoln theme in my Raptor if I want.
In these cases Ford could create a CarPlay app that controls things in the car, i.e. A/C, radio stations, etc. it could even support the Dashboard view and change channels and temp there.
