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How Apple's CarPlay Could Shore Up the Car Stereo Industry
Velcroman1 writes: "Car stereo salesmen and installers around the country are hoping Apple's CarPlay in-car infotainment system will have a big presence in the aftermarket car stereo industry. The Nikkei Asian Review reports that Alpine is making car stereo head units for between $500 – $700 that will run the iOS-like system Apple unveiled last month, and Macrumors added Clarion to the list of CarPlay supporters. Pioneer is also getting into the game, with support said to be coming to existing car stereo models in its NEX line ($700 – $1400) via firmware update, according to Twice. Given Apple's wildly supportive fan base, its likely that a lot of aftermarket CarPlay units are about to fly off stereo shop shelves. Indeed, CarPlay coming to aftermarket stereo units could bring back what Apple indirectly stole from the industry going back as far as 2006."
What I really want is someone to design a micro USB car dock and app so that I can plug my android phone in and have it replace the Stereo and GPS, charge, and allow me to display performance data (a la Torque) at the same time. All I really need mounted in the dash is an AMP and speakers. P.S. make it compatible with tablets as well..
"I myself am made entirely of flaws, stitched together with good intentions."
I can't easily replace the navigation system in my car, because it controls the air-con.
The whole system is integrated in to the dash, the steering wheel controls, the trip computer and air conditioning.
This article is a load of toss. The problem is right here. Even before apple/android devices were around, automakers did their best to frustrate after-market installers by using odd dash shapes, surrounds, and separate control panels. With the advent of Nav and touchscreen controls(and the various iDrive systems on some makes), the problem is swiftly getting worse.
Nearly all new Ford, Chrysler, and GM products have some sort of touchscreen "radio" that also contains the environmental controls, adjustable seat settings, Nav (if equipped), and various other things that no longer have separate dash controls. Foreign makes have been going this way for several years in higher end vehicles. The only way to get a radio that can be removed without affecting other equipment is to buy a base, fleet-trim vehicle that doesn't have any other options to begin with.
CarPlay is too late; it is no longer possible to install aftermarket head units in more than 90% of new cars on the market.
The car electronics companies gave away the market. I was in car audio for years while in college. I sold and installed almost every brand you can stick into a dashboard - that was in the 90s.
Mobile electronics interfaces are still stuck in the 90s. The mobile industry has completely ignored the user interface advancements of the last 10 years. Take a look at the average aftermarket radio - buttons and dot-matrix LED displays that should have been replaced years ago.
Don't even get me started about bluetooth in car - absolutely no mobile manufacturer makes a stable bluetooth implementation. They all universally suck.
The best thing I put into my car was a bracket to hold my smartphone. After trying 5 different headunits, I finally gave up trying to find one that approaches the functionality and usability of my Nexus and iOS devices.
The mobile electronics companies screwed this up - apple stole nothing from them.