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Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

theturnsignalblog.com

341–350 of 537 posts

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#341

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Without constant updates, software that is part a a larger ecosystem will eventually breakdown. This is why we should be so skeptical of tight software integration with durable hardware (e.g., cars and appliances with operational lifespans 10+ years easily). Software has a pretty short half-life, especially software that integrates with internet services; vulnerabilities get discovered in third-party components and…

>so the most sustainable design is one where the software is easily seperable and replaceable from the core durable item. No, the most realistically sustainable design is one where the software is built into the durable item and not connected to the internet, so it never changes and doesn't need to worry about security issues. You can keep using the thing until it fails from mechanical issues and can't be easily repa…

> No, the most realistically sustainable design is one where the software is built into the durable item and not connected to the internet, so it never changes and doesn't need to worry about security issues.

How would that work in a car, where people expect map updates and streaming music or radio over the internet?

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#342

It’s amusing when the author says “when the phone crashes.” My 2022 Subaru Outback head unit frequently crashes or is really unresponsive. My iPhone never crashes. Car infotainment systems are garbage. I’d never buy a car without CarPlay. It’s maybe the #1 measure I have for vehicle quality when I rent on vacation.

Depends on lots of variables, overall not something I want to rely on just to play music. Like I got a Chevy rental and CarPlay took forever to pair then proceeded to play distorted music for some reason, while the FM radio worked fine. Worked better on another car but still took forever to pair. I installed a new stereo for my old car today, intentionally avoided CarPlay and got a simple non-touchscreen JVC. $60, 15…

CarPlay is alright on rentals, but I don’t care for it as a daily driver. Gimme a USB port I can plug a 32GB flash drive full of MP3s into. I don’t mind using a phone holder in the vent when I need to map, but I only map on <10% of trips. This is probably the most luddite thing about me: I loathe using a phone while driving. I just find it too distracting.

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#343
post #181
post #34

There's an interesting gap when discussing carplay/aa. Cars from the 90s up until about 2013 can be easily fitted with a $500 head unit upgrade, and support carplay quite well. With the right tools, it can be done in about two hours right in your driveway. Cars from 2018 and up pretty universally support carplay, and it's generally quite well integrated into the car's infotainment system. But, between 2013 and 2017,…

> But, between 2013 and 2017, things were a complete mess. In-car systems were too integrated to be replaceable with a third party 2-DIN unit, but too primitive to run carplay/AA Mazda sells a retrofit kit for their 2014 (Mazda 3) / 2016 (other models) and newer cars that didn't come with native CP/AA. It's about $200 and DIY if you're the least bit handy: https://mazdaparts.org/mazda-3-smartphone-mirroring-kit.html

This is so cool, I have a compatible Mazda and never thought to check if such an upgrade existed. Have ordered the kit and very excited. Thanks!

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#344
post #291

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If that were true, Tesla would have no problem offering CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. After all, it’s just a protocol to let your phone use the display (or part of it) as a second monitor.

My theory is that Tesla want to strongly encourage people to use the in-built navigation that works very hard to ensure you don't run out of charge.

[deleted]

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#345

It’s amusing when the author says “when the phone crashes.” My 2022 Subaru Outback head unit frequently crashes or is really unresponsive. My iPhone never crashes. Car infotainment systems are garbage. I’d never buy a car without CarPlay. It’s maybe the #1 measure I have for vehicle quality when I rent on vacation.

Once my Ford's infotainment system (Microsoft CE, I believe) crashed hard, and I had to open and close the door while I was at a stoplight to get it to reset.

On the other hand, the voice command system works as badly as it did when I got the car, while Siri has gotten worse.

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#346
post #34

There's an interesting gap when discussing carplay/aa. Cars from the 90s up until about 2013 can be easily fitted with a $500 head unit upgrade, and support carplay quite well. With the right tools, it can be done in about two hours right in your driveway. Cars from 2018 and up pretty universally support carplay, and it's generally quite well integrated into the car's infotainment system. But, between 2013 and 2017,…

Only 21% of people will buy a car without car play? Maaaaybe new cars. Maybe. I sold cars up til a few years ago. Countless cars got sold where Bluetooth itself barely works, and people are basically fine with it. People buying used cars will take Bluetooth as a nice perk, but to think they make major decisions based on carplay in a 2015 Chevy Volt is funny.

> People buying used cars will take Bluetooth as a nice perk, but to think they make major decisions based on carplay in a 2015 Chevy Volt is funny.

That was my position until we bought our last car. We got it second hand, so we did not really have a definite set of required features and CarPlay was just nice to have. After having used it over the last 4 years, it completely changed though, and I can guarantee I won’t consider a car without it for my next one. It helps that around here all non-garbage car have had it for quite a few years now.

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#347

It’s amusing when the author says “when the phone crashes.” My 2022 Subaru Outback head unit frequently crashes or is really unresponsive. My iPhone never crashes. Car infotainment systems are garbage. I’d never buy a car without CarPlay. It’s maybe the #1 measure I have for vehicle quality when I rent on vacation.

Second this, had VW, GM and Ford cars, complete unusable shit without carplay, doubt the other car makers are any better. The insane lag to enter anything on google maps on my 2024 Yukon is ridiculous. Worse, the fact it makes me TYPE in the touchscreen instead of letting me do this on the phone is yet another reason to completely ditch it. Google could easily let me control it through the phone (as they do with yout…

Mercedes seems to be quite good from what I’ve heard and seen on ytube. Not cheap though.

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#348
post #102

It's pretty funny to me to see an Apple user complaining about lack of interop with other ecosystems. You've chosen your walled garden; now it's time to realize you're stuck in it. The author seems to blame everyone but Apple for this, though. Apparently it's Google's fault that his preferred podcast app isn't available on Android. What about the app developer, who has decided not to support Android? And it's the aut…

> It's pretty funny to me to see an Apple user complaining about lack of interop with other ecosystems. You've chosen your walled garden; now it's time to realize you're stuck in it.

I am still amazed that some people see it as a brain-free non-decision to buy into a status symbol.

I have an iPhone. It has things that I like and things that I hate. I have a brain that can process nuance, and it’s entirely possible to say nice things about some features and rant against others.

I bought my current phone knowing what I can do and cannot do with it. It is an informed decision and a compromise by necessity. I bought it expecting it to integrate with my car via CarPlay, and I would definitely complain if it either stopped working or if car manufacturers dropped it.

(I don’t care about CarPlay 2 at all)

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#349

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or because they want to charge a subscription for "premium data" which nobody would buy if there was CarPlay.

You don't need premium data for online maps. Premium data is for sat maps, music and live camera views. Also at $10 per month it's actually quite cheap.

Yeah it doesn't seem to be a profit centre, at the moment anyway.

Re: Apple's risky bet on CarPlay

#350
Two things scare me about Android / Apple car integration - I’d be interested in experiences others have had:

Obsolescence - ‘your phone is too old to use with this car’ or your car being too old for your phone. Double points for software updates to either which disable functions or features.

Vendor lock-in - are the players mutually exclusive? Does having a phone from one manufacturer limit my car choices?

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