Wireless Connectivity: Will Toyota Follow Honda's Lead?

miracles can happen

 

My 2018 Prime doesn’t even have CarPlay. I got my 2021 Venza’s CarPlay to work wirelessly for $75 several years ago.

 

Can someone who uses Android Auto tell me why you would want to use it? I've tried it and all it does is limit what I can use on my phone. I find zero value in it and wondering if others agree or can let me know what it's good for?

 

maps are one of the big uses

 

Aside from everything you've been able to do on your phone while connected through Bluetooth, you should still be able to do now, plus:

-Your phone screen is now superimposed on the car's screen, so then you can...
-Make calls, send and receive messages without stumbling around with your phone, one of the biggest contributing factors to automobile accidents
-Navigation is a bit easier to see and control.
-Music gets a bit easier to control when you use one of the compatible apps, Spotify, Youtube Music, Deezer, ect...(Not Youtube)
-If you're a google assistant user like I am, then things go one step further: summon the assistant by voice, or long press on the Toyota voice assist (that exists on Gen 4 right?) then the world is pretty much your oyster! (calls, txt, smart home, routines, ects..)

Those are only a few that I could think of, and that I use on a daily basis. I'm sure there are much more.

 

There actually is a chance the 2020+ models have the right hardware to do this with a software upgrade.

No hope for the 2017-2019.

 

Is this good? Seems like cell phone use in cars was universally condemned, as a dangerous distraction. And here we are, lol.

 

...and then somebody invented a way to use a cell phone in a car that didn't require holding or looking at the phone.

If you haven't worked with it, I couldn't expect you to understand its value.

 

Yeah just seems to me that hands-free does not mean distraction-free.

this movie comes to mind, good one:

 

There's no such thing as distraction-free driving. Connected driver assistance like CarPlay is an attempt to manage and limit the information it relays and restrict the interaction it permits.

Using a system like CarPlay or Android Auto gives you access to realtime navigation, entertainment (audio playback) or safe transcriptions of texts and emails to and from speech.

Each of those activities presents their own distractions- just like reading a map, following a printed trip-tik, operating an AM radio, answering (or ignoring) calls and texts directly on a mobile phone or even operating a dictation recorder.

Drivers have already adopted these distractions and worse. Apple and Google have done a heck of a lot to make their systems work nicely, providing a lot of utility for drivers in unfamiliar areas- again without having to hold or look at the phone.

I'll be sure to watch it next time I'm in traffic, thanks!

 

The irony of course is first time users of carplay will be highly distracted because the simplified version is not organized in the way their normal phone is. Maybe once you learn how to use it, then it's less distracting? But that transition wasn't worth my time to learn the few times I've tried it.

 

I like CarPlay for the realtime traffic on Google maps along with offline use when needed, all commanded from the steering wheel voice button in a far more accurate manner than Toyota’s built in systems.

Plus the maps are large and offer Garmin style lane and interchange directions.

Podcasts are a great way to learn when you spend 30 minutes or longer behind the wheel. When the phone does ring it’s another press of a steering wheel button. If the caller is in your contacts they are announced by name prior to your decision to pick up or not.

The reality is it restricts the driver quite well. It is not a mirror of the phone screen. No videos or news sites. No Priuschat. That is a good thing!

 

What car do you have, why do you have to use a dongle?

 

Well said!

It's all about managing those risks--that you're going to do no matter what-- in whatever ways they can, while ensuring you're firmly planted in their ecosystem.

Another perk about these driver assistance software is, if your vehicle is equipped with it, you are futureproof for the foreseeable timeframe. You'll have the latest maps, real-time traffic, music, and features so long as your phone is up to date. Those of you who have had to download, or pay for a map update know what I'm talking about.

 

I drive the 2024 Prius and I connect directly via BlueTooth to a Samsung Galaxy 22. Android Auto is built into the phone's software.

I frequently have to wait till I'm out of the range of my home wifi before I click on the icon.

 

Yeah, because the navigation on my 2017 Prius Prime sucks. Good thing I bought a map update from Amazon as the stealership exorbitant price for such an "update" is ridiculous. At least the new roads are there now but without traffic, it's useless.