CarPlay Apple CarPlay.. Why does it suck so bad?

[BarracksSi]

I just purchased a 2018 Honda Accord and am experiencing something similar. However, I can't find a way to change artist or album on my vehicles main screen, at all. There is a "browse" button, but it is always grayed out, even if I am in park. The only way I can change artist or album is through my phone or by using Siri. I can only change the volume or move between tracks using my vehicle's controls.

Your ‘18 Accord might be different from my ‘17 Civic, but here’s my guess anyway —

The music you’ll see in CarPlay reflects what you can see in the Music app. That’s the first thing.

Me, I don’t want to use cellular data to download my iTunes-based music while on the road, so I scroll down to Downloaded Music and tap it. Then I can use only the music that I’ve loaded onto the phone, thereby treating it like an iPod.

My guess about your issue is, you’re seeing tracks that you own but aren’t on your phone, and you also have the settings for downloading music turned Off.

Does that make sense? I can take some screenshots later. (another cool thing about CarPlay is, when the phone is connected and CarPlay is active, doing a screenshot on the phone also creates a screenshot of the car’s display)

 

[Julien]

....doing a screenshot on the phone also creates a screenshot of the car’s display)

 

[Tinmania]

I just DONT understand how Apple just cant COPY the competitor. How hard is it. Their stuff works, FOLLOW THEM.

You complained about not being able to use your phone to its fullest when CarPlay is active.... Guess what? Android Auto is much worse in that regard. You can't do anything with your phone.

I have both and like CarPlay a lot more than Android Auto. I really prefer how CarPlay looks on the head unit vs AA as well.

I also use Siri eyes free if I am just running to the store or whatnot, without plugging in my phone. This works via either hey siri or pressing the voice button on the steering wheel. For some reason the Android equivalent never worked.


Mike

 

[MyAppleWorld]

Just to throw a spanner in the works...

I use Android Auto. I have every Apple product and I still chose to hook up my Pixel XL and use AA as it has better maps; more features and I can ask Google things carplay can't even comprehend.

Is it possible to use AA with a spare phone for google maps but still use iPhone connected via Bluetooth to play Apple Music simultaneously?

 

[AFEPPL]

Not used AA, but CarPlay is sooooo poor, it's complete garbage and I'm struggling to see any positives from using it.

 

[MuGeN PoWeR]

Not used AA, but CarPlay is sooooo poor, it's complete garbage and I'm struggling to see any positives from using it.

i disagree. i am in market for another car and the cars which doesnt have CarPlay are not in my list! i would not buy a car without CarPlay!
[doublepost=1514673489][/doublepost]

Is it possible to use AA with a spare phone for google maps but still use iPhone connected via Bluetooth to play Apple Music simultaneously?

yes it is possible atleast in my civic!

 

[AFEPPL]

i disagree. i am in market for another car and the cars which doesnt have CarPlay are not in my list! i would not buy a car without CarPlay!
[doublepost=1514673489][/doublepost]

yes it is possible atleast in my civic!

Well you must be looking at really poor cars then.
Most the latest mass market and pretty much all upper cars have much better informatics than CarPlay offer. First thing i do is disable siri when walking to the car so CarPlay wont come on when i connect. Nothing works well and the interface is so dated, it has 0 positives.

 

[MuGeN PoWeR]

Well you must be looking at really poor cars then.
Most the latest mass market and pretty much all upper cars have much better informatics than CarPlay offer. First thing i do is disable siri when walking to the car so CarPlay wont come on when i connect. Nothing works well and the interface is so dated, it has 0 positives.

lol no idea which upper car you are talking about. Audi/BMW both supports carplay. Disabling Siri and walking to the carplay? you are not making any sense. Which car do you have and you think its informatics is much better than CarPlay/AA??

i just connect my iPhone to my car and it shows Carplay and music starts playing. if i get a message i ask siri to reply. it works like charm. Looks like whatever car you own needs to update their software so that Carplay can work flawlessly!

 

[Julien]

Well you must be looking at really poor cars then.
Most the latest mass market and pretty much all upper cars have much better informatics than CarPlay offer. First thing i do is disable siri when walking to the car so CarPlay wont come on when i connect. Nothing works well and the interface is so dated, it has 0 positives.

Only Tesla has a better infotainment system UI. Most OEMs UI's are a collation of disjointed and overly complex menus and commands that are slow to respond and unintuitive to use (each element designed by a committee). Also CarPlay doesn't 'auto' connect to an unknown car when you walk up. You MUST setup/pair your iPhone to the car's CarPlay menu and the iPhone's Settings>General>CarPlay menu for CarPlay to work.

 

[AFEPPL]

Disable SIRI when walking to the CAR so CarPlay doesn't work.... I clearly wrote that, maybe this is a reading issue?

What cars? I have a few super cars, i8, R8 PLUS, a few run around RR vogue, tesla and an S5 sport back.
ALL WORK 100 times better with the built in systems. Indeed connecting CarPlay downgrades the services as it can't support multiple phones or streaming to other devices.
[doublepost=1514723478][/doublepost]

Only Tesla has a better infotainment system UI. Most OEMs UI's are a collation of disjointed and overly complex menus and commands that are slow to respond and unintuitive to use (each element designed by a committee). Also CarPlay doesn't 'auto' connect to an unknown car when you walk up. You MUST setup/pair your iPhone to the car's CarPlay menu and the iPhone's Settings>General>CarPlay menu for CarPlay to work.

Not true, on every point. Plug in to USB agree and go.
Audi and BMW, Porsche LR ARE ALL YEARS AHEAD OF CARPLAY.

CarPlay does nothing, I'm still waiting for a use case or benefit for it.. unless you have a base car and want some really basic nav functions.

 

[CTHarrryH]

Gives me "free" navigation and worth for just that if nothing else

 

[Tinmania]

Not true, on every point. Plug in to USB agree and go.
Audi and BMW, Porsche LR ARE ALL YEARS AHEAD OF CARPLAY.

CarPlay does nothing, I'm still waiting for a use case or benefit for it.. unless you have a base car and want some really basic nav functions.

After this post I find it hard to believe you used any of those systems, and makes me leery of everything you wrote. My BMW's iDrive is most definitely not "years ahead of Carplay." Don't take my word for it. How about a BMW tech site:

BMW has worked hard to improve the iDrive since it was first introduced, but there is still a long way to go to match the expertise of the likes of Apple and Google. These companies are able to draw on their vast experience creating the user interfaces that we interact with every day on our cellphones. The ubiquitousness of iOS and Android also means that CarPlay and Android Auto have the third-party support (be that hardware compatibility or app availablility) that we as smartphone users now take for granted.

https://www.bimmer-tech.net/blog/item/21-idrive-carplay-android-auto-best-bmw


Mike

 

[MuGeN PoWeR]

After this post I find it hard to believe you used any of those systems, and makes me leery of everything you wrote. My BMW's iDrive is most definitely not "years ahead of Carplay." Don't take my word for it. How about a BMW tech site:


https://www.bimmer-tech.net/blog/item/21-idrive-carplay-android-auto-best-bmw


Mike

yeah i stopped arguing to that guy after reading his post LOL and i LOLed at the way he bragged about his cars! as if others dont have nice cars!

 

[AFEPPL]

Strange since i posted both my previous and current R8 as well as i8 on here before... but we'll dismiss that.
Regardless, you have still failed to provide 1 single advantage or use case for CarPlay because it just doesn't have any.. just fanboy comments.

Both BMW and Audi have txt to voice, both have better interfaces, both have better Nav - in fact the Audi is 30 steps ahead with google maps/earth and ability to send direct to the cars (not one, all) routes or destinations. How do you connect 2 phones to an Audi allowing you to answer either with CarPlay? so both have better phone support than CarPlay, How do you change the radio settings with CarPlay?

Waze support on CarPlay yet?
Someones also confusing a UI for a phone, with a UI for a car... completely different use cases.

 

[iLog.Genius]

I've said it when CarPlay was first announced and I still stand by it: CarPlay is mainly for those who have cars that didn't originally come with an infotainment system (and went aftermarket headunit) or those that have a car with an infotainment but a poor one. With so many infotainment systems out there, some good, a lot of bad, almost everyone I know that has a car that has one of these infotainment systems (Chrysler UConnect, Audi MMI, Mercedes COMAND, BMW iDrive) that have CarPlay support, all of them tried CarPlay but all went back to their cars native infotainment system.

I never saw CarPlay as something to replace a native infotainment system because it lacks car integration, it was only good if you wanted to have your phone easily accessible while driving but all of those infotainment systems does what CarPlay can do but in their own way. I think BMW iDrive has the best setup of all manufacturers ever since the introduction of iDrive 5 and 6. You take the tile UI and add the shortcut buttons surrounding the iDrive knob and navigating and using iDrive is a breeze.

 

[BarracksSi]

I've said it when CarPlay was first announced and I still stand by it: CarPlay is mainly for those who have cars that didn't originally come with an infotainment system (and went aftermarket headunit) or those that have a car with an infotainment but a poor one. With so many infotainment systems out there, some good, a lot of bad, almost everyone I know that has a car that has one of these infotainment systems (Chrysler UConnect, Audi MMI, Mercedes COMAND, BMW iDrive) that have CarPlay support, all of them tried CarPlay but all went back to their cars native infotainment system.

I never saw CarPlay as something to replace a native infotainment system because it lacks car integration, it was only good if you wanted to have your phone easily accessible while driving but all of those infotainment systems does what CarPlay can do but in their own way. I think BMW iDrive has the best setup of all manufacturers ever since the introduction of iDrive 5 and 6. You take the tile UI and add the shortcut buttons surrounding the iDrive knob and navigating and using iDrive is a breeze.

You can add me to the list of people you know (even tenuously!) and I'll say that I would not shed a tear if the UI of my Honda's infotainment system completely disappeared. It's a piece of ****.

There isn't even a PAUSE button in the music player. WTF.

I use CarPlay all the time, and only mess with the stock system to change a setting on the car itself (which is getting more and more rare as time goes on).

 

[CTHarrryH]

To me the value of CarPlay is having a navigation system without paying the fortune that car manufactures charge. I also use to do do voice replies to messages. It works well for these - that is all I care about

 

[MuGeN PoWeR]

To me the value of CarPlay is having a navigation system without paying the fortune that car manufactures charge. I also use to do do voice replies to messages. It works well for these - that is all I care about

exactly. that is for me as well. and if Audi etc have so much good infotainment then why are they offering CarPlay/AA!

 

[Boyd01]

Just got a new VW with Carplay. Used it on the way home from the dealer but not since then. It just seems really limited to me, but my main issue is that I don't like Siri and don't want to enable it on my phone. And CarPlay doesn't work unless Siri is turned on.

 

[MuGeN PoWeR]

Just got a new VW with Carplay. Used it on the way home from the dealer but not since then. It just seems really limited to me, but my main issue is that I don't like Siri and don't want to enable it on my phone. And CarPlay doesn't work unless Siri is turned on.

can i know what you found is limited?

 

[Boyd01]

can i know what you found is limited?

1. I don't want to be forced to use Siri (cannot connect unless Siri is enabled)
2. I use several other map/navigation apps such as Garmin StreetPilot and Galileo and would like to use them instead of Apple Maps
3. The media player doesn't seem to offer anything beyond what I can already get with bluetooth and the VW software
4. Don't like having to switch between Carplay and Satellite radio, which is primarily what I listen to in the car
5. Not that impressed with the screen on the VW, I prefer using my iPhone 6s Plus in my own custom mount in the instrument cluster.

Aside from that, it's great! LOL

 

[MuGeN PoWeR]

1. I don't want to be forced to use Siri (cannot connect unless Siri is enabled)
2. I use several other map/navigation apps such as Garmin StreetPilot and Galileo and would like to use them instead of Apple Maps
3. The media player doesn't seem to offer anything beyond what I can already get with bluetooth and the VW software
4. Don't like having to switch between Carplay and Satellite radio, which is primarily what I listen to in the car
5. Not that impressed with the screen on the VW, I prefer using my iPhone 6s Plus in my own custom mount in the instrument cluster.

Aside from that, it's great! LOL

okay sounds good.

 

[BarracksSi]

New trick I discovered today with CarPlay:

- Have Apple Maps running
- Push Siri button and hear the *ding*
- Say, "Zoom out"
- Siri replies, "Zooming out"
- Maps view returns, zoomed-out by one step

 

[wba1990]

I love CarPlay
I wish there were more apps, but I use what I’ve got every day - Maps, Messages, Phone, Music and podcast

 

[jettie1767]

How do you delete messages on CarPlay? I just noticed that it displays all messages including the ones I already deleted from my iPhone.