Car play

[Dell]

Anyone know anything about this
http://www.xcarlink.co.uk/product.php?productid=523&cat=22&page=1

 

[rorywquin]

I know nothing about it but unless there is some feature you are desperate to have, don't waste your money. I am very tech aware and love technology and gadgets but I find CarPlay a total waste of time ....

 

[mercmancdi]

I know nothing about it but unless there is some feature you are desperate to have, don't waste your money. I am very tech aware and love technology and gadgets but I find CarPlay a total waste of time ....

I totally agree vw wanted £200 to activate it on my Tiguan, but when I plug my phone in via cable in armrest
i have it anyway apps and all , plus when done by cable it charging my phone not draining it , ok for few days
like a new toy but it wears off now I never use it. You can get and answer emails etc but not the type of thing one should be doing sitting in middle lane of motorway at 70mph or even at 40 on a back road.
All for show. Memory stick or sd card does all I need.

 

[Alfie]

Anyone know anything about this
http://www.xcarlink.co.uk/product.php?productid=523&cat=22&page=1

It works by intercepting the video signal from the head unit to the screen and routing the audio into the factory head unit via the AUX port.

Quality isnt great to be honest but it works.

 

[Emeye]

Personally I am a big fan of the idea of Carplay and Android Auto - I still have one of the first Carplay Pioneer head units to be released, but it did feel like a beta release. I don't think it is worth £400 in a Merc if you already have Sat Nav and Bluetooth phone integration.

I have not used my Carplay head unit for a couple of years, but I believe it has been improved massively and supports a lot more Apps, so as all the functionality is in the iPhone I am probably going to install my head unit in my W203 Merc I have just bought.

 

[Dell]

Thanks for reply's
All I really want is to activate Siri as I find linguatronic painfully bad.
Dell

 

[Dean Fletcher]

£399

 

[Emeye]

Thanks for reply's
All I really want is to activate Siri as I find linguatronic painfully bad.
Dell

I have not used linguatronic, but from my experience or Siri, it is behind Alexa and Google Assistant, but they all struggle due to background noise in a car. The most important thing is a good microphone and placement - you'd like to think the Merc fitted kit will do the best job.

Try phoning someone as you drive at speed and ask how clear you sound - that should give an indication as to how well voice control will work - as an example, my bro went from a new SEAT Leon Cupra to a new Volvo v90 xcountry, and the difference when he calls me is night and day - the main reasons being that the Volvo is so well isolated from the outside, compared to a hot-hatch, and also the Volvo microphone and electronics are probably much better quality and integrated.

 

[rorywquin]

Personally I am a big fan of the idea of Carplay and Android Auto - I still have one of the first Carplay Pioneer head units to be released, but it did feel like a beta release. I don't think it is worth £400 in a Merc if you already have Sat Nav and Bluetooth phone integration.

I have not used my Carplay head unit for a couple of years, but I believe it has been improved massively and supports a lot more Apps, so as all the functionality is in the iPhone I am probably going to install my head unit in my W203 Merc I have just bought.

If you remove radio / music streaming and navigation, Carplay adds very little value.

• Spotify
• Amazon Music
• Google Play Music
• iPlayer Radio
• CBS Radio
• Pandora
• Slacker Radio
• Tidal
• Audible
• NPR One
• VOX
• Clammr
• Downcast
• Google Maps
• Waze
• Here

 

[rorywquin]

Thanks for reply's
All I really want is to activate Siri as I find linguatronic painfully bad.
Dell

I agree Linguatronic is not the best but it does work & I wouldn't want to spend that sort of money to get Siri on the car system.

You could stick your phone on a holder and use Siri handsfree. "Hey Siri".

 

[Emeye]

If you remove radio / music streaming and navigation, Carplay adds very little value.

• Spotify
• Amazon Music
• Google Play Music
• iPlayer Radio
• CBS Radio
• Pandora
• Slacker Radio
• Tidal
• Audible
• NPR One
• VOX
• Clammr
• Downcast
• Google Maps
• Waze
• Here

I think you are selling it a bit short, and I am basing this on 2 year old Carplay experience....

Being able to voice dial numbers and also dictate voice messages and send them hands free worked reasonably well as long as the car wasn't too noisy - also setting destinations hands free was nice - Siri always struggled with my northern accent - the Apple Music integration worked well, but Spotify was terrible - I have heard Carplay and its apps are much improved now, I will update my experience of it when I have it fitted, hopefully over the bank holiday weekend.

In my pretty much techless 06 car, currently sporting the Audio 20 head unit, installing a double din Carplay head unit which I already own is a bit of a no-brainer and will bring me bang up to date - compared with installing it in my previous 07 E92 BMW coupe it should be a breeze..

 

[rorywquin]

I think you are selling it a bit short, and I am basing this on 2 year old Carplay experience....

Being able to voice dial numbers and also dictate voice messages and send them hands free worked reasonably well as long as the car wasn't too noisy - also setting destinations hands free was nice - .

You can do that with the MB system and it works fine in my current drive and worked just as well in my 2012 R172 SLK350 (cannot dictate messages but can receive and have the system read them out. However messaging is the last feature I'd use in a car while I am driving and if I'm not driving, I'll use my phone. I don't have prolonged telephone chats (while driving) either - too much evidence that it is a distraction to driving. You can always tell if the driver ahead is on the telephone (even hands free)

Ramble over.....My point is, if you take the above plus navigation and streaming away from CarPlay what does it add?

I've had CarPlay for 2 years! It works well but I don't get what it adds and would never pay to have it.

 

[Emeye]

Many peoples’ lives revolve around their phone...

I think the vision for CarPlay and android auto was always to replace the tech in your car rather than compliment it, but it seems to have failed to get there.

There are some benefits - if you move around cars, you have a common, fully integrated, online experience every time you plug your phone in - no messing around with having to sync everything up every time - we keep being told that personal car ownership is going to decline and people will rent a car as and when they need one.

The main problem with manufacturer built-in car tech is that it is developed and integrated at the same time as the cars are developed, which is usually a few years ahead of quickly developing tech world - one advantage of your phone providing the tech is that it is always upgraded in line with current technology and if you buy a new, more powerful phone, you end up with a more powerful in car experience.

I suspect that the reason this vision has stalled is due to the car manufacturers now seeing Google and Apple as competitors and a threat as they attempt to develop their own vehicles.

Tech very rarely delivers 100% on its promise, it has to be built to a cost and usually comes with a slice of frustration to disappoint us - the cynic in me suspects many modern consumer technology developments are there to make the huge tech companies even richer rather than being an essential development for humankind - 3DTV anyone?