Andrew O'Hara
This year, CarPlay didn't get the major overhaul we were hoping for, but there are still a few improvements that go a long way to improving the overall experience. Let's hit the road to see what's new with CarPlay in iOS 12.
iOS 12, which is set to debut this fall, is a major overhaul for iPhone and iPad. Since CarPlay is just a projection of your iPhone's display, it makes sense that we'd see at least a few notable changes.
One of the first things we tested out was the new Maps application. Apple is replacing all the mapping data with their own in-house data instead of relying on third parties. Maps is now much more detailed than it has been in the past but is limited at the moment.
This new mapping data is rolling out first in the Bay Area, before spreading to the rest of California and then the rest of the US.
For those who don't prefer Apple Maps, they can rejoice because third-party map and navigation apps can now be used with iOS 12, including popular options like Waze and Google Maps. They work seamlessly and offer unique features not found in Apple's own Maps app. Many developers have already voiced support, including some with offline mapping capabilities.
We also saw a few performance improvements this year to audio apps. They have much-improved performance, with smoother animations and significantly quicker startup times. In our testing, we saw this across the board with any audio app, even ones that have yet to be updated.
We didn't get all the updates we were hoping for, but it seems next year we may be more lucky. In the meantime, faster and more reliable audio apps plus an improved Maps app and third-party mapping applications will surely be welcomed.
Now, if only automakers would make their own apps to go with CarPlay...
Charles Martin
Christine McKee
Wesley Hilliard
Malcolm Owen
Andrew Orr
William Gallagher
Sponsored Content
32 Comments
CarPlay, along with Siri, is still an underachiever for Apple. It lacks some basic things that are useful when driving, e.g., weather, Waze-like apps, decent radio/news stations (e.g., why not make Sirius available — work with them to make it happen!)
I’ve all but stopped using it in my 2018 Audi. Granted, a large piece of it is Audi’s half-hearted implementation of it, but that, again, is the kind of thing Apple should be able to negotiate better, given its size and scope.
Hi, I've got iOS beta 12, and I can't use Google Maps, TomTom or Wase, how did you manage to get them on CarPlay??
"Now, if only automakers would make their own apps to go with CarPlay..."
This! Of course it would just make even more obvious how crappy they are...
anantksundaram said:
Unless they changed something, I found CarPlay to be much better than the Nav system in my 2017 A4. I like the dashboard integration that it has, but the Audi voice recognition system is atrocious. It would routinely refer me to destinations 2 states over. I agree that using a click wheel instead of a touch screen was kind of moronic, though.
As for Sirius, I don't see why they couldn't make an app, but I found Sirius dreadfully overpriced and dumped it as soon as the 6 month trial period was over.
I just recently upgraded my 2009 RAV4 with a Sony XAV-AX100 and I have to say I am wildly pleased. I prefer Google Maps, but Apple Maps has impressed me overall. I'm still looking forward to using GM when it finally arrives in iOS12 in the fall. But in NYC, Apple Maps is not too shabby. The key to me was the music integration. I have a Google Play Music subscription for my family. It's not voice activated for search in CarPlay like Apple Music is, but being able to get access to that music with ease in the car has been fantastic. There's a lot of room for improvement in CarPlay. Mostly I'd like to see them extend voice support to third-party applications. Let me use Google Search if I want. Let me search through Google Play Music. Siri is not useless, but it really is far behind. Overall, I was able to do all these thing when I had my phone on a mount with an aux cable for the music and Bluetooth for the phone. I loose a little bit in functionality, it's true, but this integration is miles better in both large and small ways.