Real-world unbiased test of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Started by GoCougs, August 29, 2015, 07:33:22 AM

GoCougs

Quote from: giant_mtb on August 30, 2015, 06:43:21 PM
If. And what about the other functionality people want. Music, phone calls, etc.  Gotta interact.

When Siri works well (say 30% of the time) I need no physical interaction to answer, call, play, nav, text but even then iOS sucks for Siri integration as some apps (I can't end a call by voice, and some other cock blocking) and iOS is finicky about when it will sleep even when plugged into power.

Thing is, it should be easy to made to work well but that's Apple, churning out lots of stuff that works well, but also lots of stuff that doesn't then for years not doing a goddamned thing about it despite it being obvious to everyone.

AutobahnSHO

Quote from: giant_mtb on August 30, 2015, 03:20:28 PM
Connecting your phone to a screen in your dash via HDMI is pointless.  Still have to use the phone itself to navigate anything.  Nobody wants to use a fricken wireless mouse and keyboard while they're driving...?

Not saying you'd want to do that, but the control mechanisms are already built in.

The automaker releases a screen and cable to plug in your phone. You install an app for that particular model. Then you just use the touchscreen built into the car to access all of the hardware in the phone already.   
-GPS
-music
-text
-email
-whatever
Will

Cookie Monster

All this looks too complicated. Screen mirroring also seems pointless considering you're not supposed to be fiddling with your phone. Why is it OK to fiddle with a screen that mirrors your phone?

I like my current setup: I just load up a playlist on my phone, drop it in my center console, turn the car and wait for the phone to pair with the headunit via Bluetooth, press play and off I go. I also just put my destination in my phone and just listen to the audio turn by turn instructions that play through the car stereo and turn the phone's screen off. Google maps is so good that you don't even need to look at the screen to get good directions. Hell it's how I use the GPS on the motorcycle (phone in pocket connected via Bluetooth to helmet headset) and it works perfectly.
RWD > FWD
President of the "I survived the Volvo S80 Thread" Club
2007 Mazda MX-5 | 1999 Honda Nighthawk 750 | 1989 Volvo 240 | 1991 Toyota 4Runner | 2006 Honda CBR600F4i | 2015 Yamaha FJ-09 | 1999 Honda CBR600F4 | 2009 Yamaha WR250X | 1985 Mazda RX-7 | 2000 Yamaha YZ426F | 2006 Yamaha FZ1 | 2002 Honda CBR954RR | 1996 Subaru Outback | 2018 Subaru Crosstrek | 1986 Toyota MR2
Quote from: 68_427 on November 27, 2016, 07:43:14 AM
Or order from fortune auto and when lyft rider asks why your car feels bumpy you can show them the dyno curve
1 3 5
├┼┤
2 4 R

12,000 RPM

Quote from: thecarnut on August 31, 2015, 01:18:54 PM
All this looks too complicated. Screen mirroring also seems pointless considering you're not supposed to be fiddling with your phone. Why is it OK to fiddle with a screen that mirrors your phone?
Why is it OK to fiddle with navigation or Yelp or w/e other apps these systems have?

I'd rather fiddle with an app that is designed better on my phone than a neutered one in my car.
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

Tave

Quote from: GoCougs on August 30, 2015, 05:31:18 PM
Once automakers however put CD players into dashboards it was easy and worked like a dream - still only physical buttons and a simple LED or LCD display.

IMO the path to failure was joysticks - JOYSTICKS for Christ's sake.

The newer systems that are touch only have teething issues which maybe could be forgiven (though it's hilarious it was stuff that was solved almost 10 years ago, like laggy touch, stuttering graphics, stability) but then they added all sorts of useless graphics, plus many cars now have THREE graphical displays - dash, infotainment, car settings.

Like a dream? Please...scratched discs, errors in the burn writing, dust in the receiver slot, overheating, vague labels, complicated setup processes--CD players gave people problems on a daily basis. And even when they worked as designed, they still took longer to load a CD than any lag on a touchscreen. Hell, even the physical buttons could be laggy.
As I write, highly civilized human beings are flying overhead, trying to kill me.

Quote from: thecarnut on March 16, 2008, 10:33:43 AM
Depending on price, that could be a good deal.

12,000 RPM

Not to mention all the breakins. People would lose thousands of dollars in CDs in one swipe :lol:

Getting off the bike has thrown Cougs internetry way out of calibration
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

GoCougs

CDs simply worked better than any of today's in-car infotainment. Today's CD analog - smart device or USB w/out infotainment as in the G - is better than both.

Soup DeVille

This whole thread seems like a series of complaints that I would have to try really hard to care one way or the other about: though I wonder what the complicated setup on CDs was.
Maybe we need to start off small. I mean, they don't let you fuck the glumpers at Glumpees without a level 4 FuckPass, do they?

1975 Honda CB750, 1986 Rebel Rascal (sailing dinghy), 2015 Mini Cooper, 2020 Winnebago 31H (E450), 2021 Toyota 4Runner, 2022 Lincoln Aviator

AutobahnSHO

Will

Laconian

I would love to have Android Auto on our Outback. If I'm going to pay the big-screen-in-the-dash tax, I'd rather have an MMI that isn't crap (Subaru's).
Kia EV6 GT-Line / MX-5 RF 6MT

GoCougs

Quote from: Soup DeVille on September 03, 2015, 04:24:08 PM
This whole thread seems like a series of complaints that I would have to try really hard to care one way or the other about: though I wonder what the complicated setup on CDs was.

Have you spent time in a car with such a system? Sure, there are worse things in the world but these systems are awful WRT How Things Used To Be.

CALL_911

Has A2DP quality gotten any better lately? My  car's BT audio (its a 2010) is awful. So bad that I burn albums I listen to a lot to CD. I have a billion burned CDs floating around the car as a result


2004 S2000
2016 340xi

Laconian

Kia EV6 GT-Line / MX-5 RF 6MT

Tave

Quote from: Soup DeVille on September 03, 2015, 04:24:08 PM
This whole thread seems like a series of complaints that I would have to try really hard to care one way or the other about: though I wonder what the complicated setup on CDs was.

Programming your radio presets, clock, equalizer, etc...
As I write, highly civilized human beings are flying overhead, trying to kill me.

Quote from: thecarnut on March 16, 2008, 10:33:43 AM
Depending on price, that could be a good deal.

Soup DeVille

Maybe we need to start off small. I mean, they don't let you fuck the glumpers at Glumpees without a level 4 FuckPass, do they?

1975 Honda CB750, 1986 Rebel Rascal (sailing dinghy), 2015 Mini Cooper, 2020 Winnebago 31H (E450), 2021 Toyota 4Runner, 2022 Lincoln Aviator

Soup DeVille

Quote from: GoCougs on September 03, 2015, 08:19:05 PM
Have you spent time in a car with such a system? Sure, there are worse things in the world but these systems are awful WRT How Things Used To Be.

Yes, quite a bit. For the most part they work reasonably well. Granted, i barely ever use any sort of nav, and I only want the radio to play music or tell me news, so Im not really delving into the full extent of what most of these systems can do, but I don't really care to either.

Maybe we need to start off small. I mean, they don't let you fuck the glumpers at Glumpees without a level 4 FuckPass, do they?

1975 Honda CB750, 1986 Rebel Rascal (sailing dinghy), 2015 Mini Cooper, 2020 Winnebago 31H (E450), 2021 Toyota 4Runner, 2022 Lincoln Aviator

giant_mtb

Quote from: Tave on September 04, 2015, 06:36:01 AM
Programming your radio presets, clock, equalizer, etc...

Yeah, holding down that button so 98.3 becomes a preset surrrrre is complicated. :lol:

Tave

Quote from: Soup DeVille on September 04, 2015, 06:43:56 AM
You're kidding, right?

No, any aftermarket headunit with a decent amount of features will have at least a couple of mortal-combat-fatality-like sequences that you always have to look up in the manual.
As I write, highly civilized human beings are flying overhead, trying to kill me.

Quote from: thecarnut on March 16, 2008, 10:33:43 AM
Depending on price, that could be a good deal.

GoCougs

Quote from: Soup DeVille on September 04, 2015, 06:46:55 AM
Yes, quite a bit. For the most part they work reasonably well. Granted, i barely ever use any sort of nav, and I only want the radio to play music or tell me news, so Im not really delving into the full extent of what most of these systems can do, but I don't really care to either.



The/my point is, even if/when they work well or as designed, they're still awful. They're just too complicated and too distracting.

MrH

The problem is cell phones evolve and move much much faster than the auto industry. Hardware and software design for MMI can't keep up. Android Auto and CarPlay are designed to take control of it and put it on your phone.

I think it's a great solution, but the slow rollout shows just how hard it is to get this stuff standardized across OEMs and out the door. I feel like we've been waiting on both systems forever. Only a handful of cars have it at this point.
2023 Ford Lightning Lariat ER
2019 Acura RDX SH-AWD
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12,000 RPM

It's only taking so long because manufacturers have fleed so far away from the standard double DIN headunit. The aftermarket makes solutions that trounce every OEM solution for like $300-500. I'm guessing the roadblock is integrating the phone with approved apps but even still.
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

AutobahnSHO

The roadblock is just wanting to do it. Demand isn't strong enough.
Will

GoCougs

I was all about this but I'm gonna pass for now considering the (surprise to me) constriction of hardware in not being able to mirror. My bet is CarPlay users at some point will find themselves with a dead MMI owing to an iOS update or major change is iOS platform or simply by Apple continuing its trend of never fixing its problems. Really, have many new phone platforms and iOS versions have there been in say the last five years, and for how long have Siri, iCloud and Maps been crappy? Plenty of people own their new cars for 5+ years. lol it's a disaster in the making. No thanks. Current smartphone integration is the best for now.

12,000 RPM

Quote from: AutobahnSHO on September 04, 2015, 10:35:19 AM
The roadblock is just wanting to do it. Demand isn't strong enough.
Demand for some kind of smartphone integration seems strong.... these half way efforts would not have come to be without them.

But manufacturers have all but eliminated the standard headunit, and even simple touchscreen interfaces, making mirroring pretty much impossible. They have made a real mess.
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

MX793

Maybe it's because I spend relatively little time in my car, but I have little interest in integrating my phone with my car.  I had linked my old phone up with the Mustang, but usually had the bluetooth turned off (tended to drain the battery faster) so really seldom utilized it.  If I was going on a longer drive (hour+) I'd sometimes turn it back on if I remembered, but I only take trip that long maybe twice a month.  Also, call quality through the car speakers wasn't all that great and I don't like talking on the phone while driving even if hands-free means are being used.  Didn't even bother linking up my current phone.  I don't keep music on my phone, so the only reason to link it with the car is so that I can make/take calls while driving.  Most of my driving is short trips (<15 minutes), so if I miss a call or get a text, it's no big deal to check messages or call/text back when I get wherever I'm going.
Needs more Jiggawatts

2016 Ford Mustang GTPP / 2011 Toyota Rav4 Base AWD / 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 ABS
1992 Nissan 240SX Fastback / 2004 Mazda Mazda3s / 2011 Ford Mustang V6 Premium / 2007 Suzuki GSF1250SA Bandit / 2006 VW Jetta 2.5

AutobahnSHO

Yeah I don't use phone in car at all except phone calls but for long trips- then GPS and playing music are awesome
Will

GoCougs

Wow, these days I'd die without integrating my phone into the car - music, podcasts, calls, nav and every so often, texts.

12,000 RPM

I spend about 8 hours a week commuting but I mainly listen to NPR in the car. Still though, Waze in my dash would be invaluable to me and Google Maps in general would be good on the weekends. Wifey does a lot of garage sales on the weekend so her being able to follow her route (which I doubt these programs would allow) would be good too. Also would be nice to listen to Youtube vids in traffic. Theres def practical value in it.
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

MX793

I have a thumb drive loaded with music and playlists that I keep in the Mustang.  The Jetta, like the Mazda3 it replaced, has no aux input or bluetooth capability.  I burned a bunch of MP3s to CD and listen to that, or just good-old-fashioned FM radio.

I have a 10 minute commute.  I live 10 minutes from 2 major supermarkets.  15 minutes from 2 different shopping malls (one is a borderline mega-mall), plus two commercial district boulevards lined with all manner of shops and restaurants within 10 minutes.  I'm just never in the car long enough for the ability to sync a phone and make/take calls to matter.

If I go for a long, fair-weather joy-ride, I almost always take the bike (put more miles on the bike this summer than my daily-driven car), so I'm plenty used to driving for hours with nothing but the sounds of the wind and engine in my ears.  I just don't feel the need to have music (or audiobooks or whatever) playing in my ears at all times when I'm not otherwise engaged in conversation.  Never have.
Needs more Jiggawatts

2016 Ford Mustang GTPP / 2011 Toyota Rav4 Base AWD / 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 ABS
1992 Nissan 240SX Fastback / 2004 Mazda Mazda3s / 2011 Ford Mustang V6 Premium / 2007 Suzuki GSF1250SA Bandit / 2006 VW Jetta 2.5

GoCougs

These last number of months I haven't driven a ton either, but nonetheless, whenever I'm in my car, having access to those functions is now critical for me.