CarPlay

Today at CES 2016, Pioneer will unveil an upgraded lineup of NEX series in-dash receivers featuring Apple CarPlay and Siri Eyes Free. Pioneer first brought Apple’s CarPlay infotainment system to cars through aftermarket displays in 2014. This year’s third-generation CarPlay head units from Pioneer include models with both 6.2-inch and 7-inch resistive and capacitive touchscreen displays.

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Harman today has announced the JBL Legend CP100 in-car infotainment system. The JBL Legend CP100 marks the company’s first in-car solution that is compatible with Apple’s CarPlay system, joining the growing number of aftermarket solutions for obtaining Apple’s car infotainment system in older vehicles.

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While Apple doesn’t make a public appearance at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, most of the companies building products for Macs and iOS devices do. That’s why we have most of the team at CES 2016 this year covering the new and notable for Apple related products as the show officially kicks off tomorrow.

It can be a little much to go through day by day with announcements already happening by the hour, so we’re compiling the best of the best here to give you one quick and easy place to check out all of the best new iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch accessories on show this week.
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Welcome to the latest edition of Jeremy’s 5, my latest quick roundup of 5 interesting little things that aren’t big enough for full articles, but are still worth sharing with you.

My first edition of 2016 looks at two separate topics related to this week’s 2016 CES: first, Apple’s continued absence from the show, and second, the annual event’s seemingly declining interest to Apple fans. I also wanted to share some additional thoughts on Apple’s Remote Loop for the new Apple TV’s Siri Remote, the classic (but ever-evolving) iOS app Akinator the Genie, and the continued scourge of free-to-play games…

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Ford has announced that CarPlay will be coming this spring to all 2017 models equipped with its Sync 3 infotainment system. The 2017 Escape will be the first model to get it (like most car manufacturers, Ford starts selling its 2017 models early this year). The system will also support Android Auto.

Ford was one of the first car manufacturers to sign up to CarPlay, but aside from telling us it would be integrated with its own infotainment system Sync, the company had gone rather quiet since then.

If you’re now kicking yourself that you bought a 2016 model last year, don’t worry …

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While Hyundai was one of the first major car brands to promise CarPlay in its vehicles as a selling point nearly two years ago, the automaker so far hasn’t actually shipped the update to add the feature it promised to customers. Compare that to Pioneer’s CarPlay support announced around the same time which brought the iPhone-based infotainment feature to all cars through aftermarket displays in 2014.

There may be some good news for Hyundai fans still waiting to test drive CarPlay, however, as USA Today reports that Hyundai is committing to rolling out an update to add the feature early next year.

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A memo from Mercedes-Benz USA to its dealer network has revealed the car company’s plans for supporting CarPlay. The memo was leaked to C450 AMG and contains a mix of good news and bad.

The good news is that it will be available for quite a range of models, starting from those produced this month, and will be automatically included at no extra cost for many models equipped with the company’s COMAND Navigation system. The bad news is that it will be an extra cost option for CLA, GLA and B-Class models; the necessary COMAND packages on other models aren’t cheap; and – very disappointingly – it won’t play nicely with COMAND.

The customer will not be able to use the Mercedes-Benz headunit functions at the same time as CarPlay. For example, use of the Spotify app cannot be done simultaneously with COMAND Navigation.

Details of the deals for the full range of supported models can be found below …

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Volvo intially signed on to support CarPlay as soon as Apple launched its in-car infotainment system in 2014. Since then, however, the automaker has been eerily quiet on its CarPlay plans, not announcing when it would start shipping models that supported the software. Today though, Volvo has announced that CarPlay is now available in its 2016 XC90.

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The iPhone is an amazing device. It fits in a pocket, yet it’s an incredibly powerful computer that connects us to the world, entertains us wherever we go, and captures quality photos and videos.

However, some of the iPhone’s tricks are hidden until you connect it to specific accessories. Did you know, for example, that you can save energy on your Christmas lights using your iPhone? Or improve the quality of your sleep with an iPhone-connected sensor? Or turn your car into a giant Siri-controlled entertainment and communications system? These accessories range in price from affordable to expensive, making them perfect gifts for iPhone users who want to unlock new capabilities. Read on to discover these hidden features, as well as the accessories you should grab or put on your wish list to unlock them…

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Ford may be taking its time to equip its vehicles with CarPlay, but the manufacturer has good news for owners of older Fords: it has today announced a software update to add Siri Eyes Free support to more than five million vehicles dating back to 2011. The update is for vehicles equipped with Ford’s own infotainment system, SYNC.

Ford today is releasing a new software update for more than 5 million SYNC-equipped vehicles dating back to the 2011 model year, adding more convenience for Apple iPhone users with Siri Eyes-Free capability.

Ford Electronics director Sherif Marakby said: “Siri Eyes-Free is another great voice-activated feature that not only adds convenience but helps our customers keep their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel.”

While Siri Eyes Free has been rather eclipsed by CarPlay, it’s still a useful halfway house … 
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Since Apple’s CarPlay feature first hit cars — with iTunes Radio built-in — whether or not Pandora Radio would ever support the infotainment platform has been a popular question among users. In the past Pandora has left the door open for CarPlay support at some point, noting that Apple controls which apps are allowed to work with it, and Pandora’s CFO went as far as promising it will support CarPlay earlier this year. Fulfilling that promise 7 months later, Pandora Radio has updated its iPhone app to totally support CarPlay:
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Update: While Google has not commented directly on Porsche’s reported rejection of Android Auto, the company made a statement to The Verge in which it denied that it currently collects any of the data mentioned in the original report. It does not go as far as saying that it has not requested access to such data.

“We take privacy very seriously and do not collect the data the Motor Trend article claims such as throttle position, oil temp, and coolant temp,” Google said in a statement to The Verge. “Users opt in to share information with Android Auto that improves their experience, so the system can be hands-free when in drive, and provide more accurate navigation through the car’s GPS.”

Sportscar manufacturer Porsche has approved CarPlay for the 2017 version of its famous 911, but rejected Android Auto because Google demands access to too much data, reports Motor Trend.

As part of the agreement an automaker would have to enter with Google, certain pieces of data must be collected and [sent] back to Mountain View, California. Stuff like vehicle speed, throttle position, coolant and oil temp, engine revs—basically Google wants a complete OBD2 dump whenever someone activates Android Auto … 

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In an effort to strengthen Siri’s natural language conversation abilities, Apple has acquired a UK-based firm called VocalIQ. Business Weekly was first to report the acquisition today and Apple confirmed the purchase to The Financial Times with the usual boilerplate statement: “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”
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Pioneer’s flagship <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-AVIC-8100NEX-Navigation-Capacitive-Touchscreen/dp/B00SKJHIY4/ref=sr_1_1?sr=8-1&ie=UTF8&keywords=pioneer%2Bnex%2B8100&tag=n003f1-20&qid=1442933054" target="_blank">AVIC-NEX8100</a>

Until Project Titan develops into an actual Apple Car and hits the road, Apple will award “the best iPhone experience on four wheels” title to its CarPlay infotainment feature which it says offers “a smarter, safer way to use your iPhone in the car.” Available on a growing number of vehicles from select manufacturers, CarPlay lets you connect your iPhone to your car for using Siri and an on-screen interface optimized to let you safely access apps while driving.

CarPlay relies on intelligence from your iPhone, using car hardware like microphones and built-in displays for input, so annual iOS updates mean the feature can learn some new tricks just like your iPhone and iPad. So what’s new with CarPlay in iOS 9 and how has the feature changed since my initial review a year ago? Let’s take a look:
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With the release of today’s iOS 9 beta, Apple has introduced several new features. The first on the list, and probably one of the most important, is support for Wi-Fi Calling on AT&T. In previous betas the feature was limited to T-Mobile’s network, but it appears the final version of the software will enable it on multiple carriers.

At the moment, AT&T doesn’t actually support Wi-Fi calling from any device, but has previously promised that the feature would eventually be made available some time this year.

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2015 Volkswagon eGolf electric car

Volkswagen has announced that almost every 2016 VW model “in virtually every trim” will get support for CarPlay, with the first models arriving in showrooms this week.

As the people’s car brand, we knew that it was important to democratize these technologies across the Volkswagen line-up, with features like App-Connect ensuring that more consumers can integrate their smart devices in a wide range of trims on virtually every model the company sells […] 

App-Connect provides seamless smartphone integration through three interfaces: Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and MirrorLink.

“Democratization” only goes so far – the company will offer four different head units of varying sophistication, depending on price level … 
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When CarPlay was debuted in March of 2014, a variety of automobile manufacturers signed on to support Apple’s in-car offering. One of those launch partners was Honda and despite the manufacturer having promised to support the platform from the beginning, it has yet to release any car model with support for CarPlay. Today, however, Honda announced at an event in Silicon Valley that it will begin shipping cars with support for CarPlay in 2016.

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We first saw Kenwood’s aftermarket CarPlay units at CES in January, and the company has now announced pricing as the two models start shipping to dealers. The catchily-named DDX9702S and DDX9902S retail at $900 and $950 respectively (but on Amazon for $750), and support Android Auto as well as CarPlay. Only the 9702S was on Kenwood’s website at the time of writing.

The two double-DIN DDX units are designed to be the center of a vehicle’s entertainment and information system. A large, 6.95-inch resistive touch display puts navigation, back-up camera view (camera required, sold separately), and a wealth of audio / video entertainment options at the driver’s fingertips. Each is equipped with Bluetooth technology to enable handsfree phone conversations as well as playback of streaming media from a Bluetooth-enabled phone or media device.

You also get built-in HD radio, HDMI input, DVD playback and support for Sirius satellite radio … 
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