What once was iOS in the Car is now CarPlay, and Ferrari, Mercedes, and Volvo will all have models on display at this week's Geneva auto show.
We've been covering Apple's plans
for iOS in the Car quite closely, and now the final product is being shown to
the world -- and given a new name.
Gone with that mouthful, in with
the new moniker: CarPlay. (Not to be confused with a Monster product by the same
name.) The concept stays the same: replication of a simplified iOS interface
into a touchscreen display in the car, plus extensive voice command. As we saw
in earlier videos, the focus here is simplicity and safety, with no complex
interface elements and, seemingly, no virtual keyboards.
Instead, many actions will be made
easier thanks to some intelligent coding. For example, CarPlay can look at your
calendar and emails to anticipate upcoming meetings and appointments,
suggesting directions to the appropriate destinations. Similarly, Siri can read
any incoming text messages and let you dictate a response. Calling, of course,
is possible as well, through voice command.
And, it wouldn't be an iPhone
experience without music, and you'll be able to listen to music and podcasts
plus Spotify and iHeartRadio. However, those appear to be the only non-Apple
apps that will be available through CarPlay, at least for now. It remains to be
seen whether there will be an API exposed that will allow other third-party
developers to get in on the fun. But, we expect to learn quite a bit more
between now and when the first cars hit dealers later this year from
manufacturers like Ferrari, Honda, Hyundai, Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, and Volvo.
(Just about every other marque will follow suit next year.)
And, to be clear, this experience
is completely driven by the phone, more specifically an iPhone 5, 5S, or 5C. The
cars themselves won't be running iOS, just feeding the signal provided by the
phones, which will be connected to the car via Lightning cable.
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