Future CarPlay support (iOS 9 and up)

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Level 1

10 points

Future CarPlay support (iOS 9 and up)

hello,

having just just purchased a pioneer Appradio 4 head unit, I am quite worried about what is going to happen to CarPlay come iOS 9.

I understand that CarPlay relies on the attached iPhone to do most of the computing but I am unsure how iOS updates are going to affect functionality of current CarPlay units, seeing as the aftermarket (pioneer and alpine) are horrendous at providing softeare updates.

is apple going to guarantee compatibility with current head units or are all of us early adopters going to be left in the dark? Will current CarPlay units be compatible by design Or are we going to have to upgrade our car stereos every year? Obviously, wireless CarPlay will require supported hardware, but I'm mostly concerned about the software side of things and continued support of my iPhone 6, regardless of what version of iOS it runs.

any thoughts on how this may or may not turn out a would be welcome. I would really appreciate any input from users who are familiar with the CarPlay integration at a software level.

thanks so much

Mac mini, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.3)

Posted on Jun 9, 2015 11:34 PM

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Answer 1

ZikzakCorp

Level 4

1,089 points

Jun 10, 2015 11:41 AM in response to Majicmeow

Apple hasn't released any public information about iOS 9 and CarPlay, so no one here can say if or how it will change in the new version.

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Answer 2

Majicmeow Author

Level 1

10 points

Jun 10, 2015 11:49 AM in response to Majicmeow

while I appreciate the fact that iOS 9 info is limited, there must be some info on how car play works at a software level. Does the headunit firmware matter in the grand scheme of things? As I understand it, the hardware all has to meet minimum specifications in order to get the CarPlay certification. My concern, again, is that all current CarPlay radios are going to be left in the dark because Pioneer/Alpine/OEMs are going to continue to be lazy about releasing software updates.

Can anyone confirm that the manufactures firmware on any given CarPlay radio does/does not affect Carplay functionality? Is CarPlay programmed in a way that the headunit is simply a display for the iPhone and that the iPhone handles all the real processing?

Thanks

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Answer 3

Rysz

Level 8

44,391 points

Jun 10, 2015 11:54 AM in response to Majicmeow

Wait and see. There's nothing you can do about it either way.

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Answer 4

Majicmeow Author

Level 1

10 points

Jun 10, 2015 11:59 AM in response to Rysz

Thanks, but that doesn't do anything to help answer my question.

CarPlay, even in its current form, has to be understood by someone or nobody would be able to write apps for it.

Its less about iOS 9 and more about the ability of CarPlay to grow without constant hardware changes. If the radio headunit is the processing and brains behind the operation and the iPhone simply supplies the data to display, then of course the firmware of the radio is very important. If the radio is simply a touchscreen interface and display, then the firmware doesnt matter and CarPlay can likely grow and be used even on first gen hardware.

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Answer 5

SergZak

Level 6

10,326 points

Jun 10, 2015 12:09 PM in response to Majicmeow

You're better off contacting the hardware manufacturers themselves. I really doubt you'll get an answer here that will satisfy you.

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Answer 6

ZikzakCorp

Level 4

1,089 points

Jun 10, 2015 12:13 PM in response to Majicmeow

The compatibility of CarPlay is up to the car manufacturer, not Apple. As CarPlay is updated, the car would need to update to meet it. Here is Apple's official statement on compatibility:

Contact the manufacturer or refer to your car stereo's user guide to see if your device is compatible. Some accessories might have limited compatibility. Update software and firmware if necessary: Verify that both your car stereo and your device have the latest software versions. Contact the manufacturer to see if any updates are available.

As far as future compatibility with iOS 9, anyone who is familiar with it and its CarPlay requirements signed a non-disclosure agreement that would prevent them from talking about it here, anyway. So you will just to have to wait.

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Answer 7

Rysz

Level 8

44,391 points

Jun 10, 2015 2:09 PM in response to Majicmeow

Majicmeow wrote:

Thanks, but that doesn't do anything to help answer my question.

You're asking an unanswerable question.

Even Apple doesn't know if future (post iOS 9) CarPlay functionality will or will not affect how it's interfaced with current hardware. So far, no hardware was left behind during the many updates that CarPlay went thru.

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Answer 8

Majicmeow Author

Level 1

10 points

Jun 10, 2015 2:13 PM in response to Rysz

Actually, what you just mentioned does help. No where online can I find info regarding CarPlay updates in iOS 8. I had no idea that CarPlay functionality had been updated as there is no easy way to check. If Apple had the CarPlay functionality as a built in app that was accessible by users, it'd be a different story.

Its not an unanswerable question, it just requires a bit of knowledge about the CarPlay interface/software.

thanks though.

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Answer 9

BRUREN

Level 1

8 points

Sep 17, 2015 2:19 AM in response to Majicmeow

I Have just bought a volkswagen polo that has CarPlay but no steerig wheel control, all controls are on the head unit.

Prior to IOS9 CarPlay would only work wired. Apple announced that CarPlay would work wirelessly with IOS9.

After installing iso9 today, CarPlay will not work wirelessly and after contacting Apple, they informed me Bluetooth would work wirelessly (which it did before IOS9) and that CarPlay needed steering wheel control.

THe instructions on the iPhone tell you to push the voice button on the steering wheel. My head unit has a physical voice button, so the question for Apple is why does it not work?

I am very annoyed as had I known that I needed steering wheel control, I would have bought a car with the required functionality.

Surly a software upgrade to the software can correct this issue Apple?

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Answer 10

shakysco

Level 1

8 points

Sep 17, 2015 5:41 AM in response to Majicmeow

i updated to ios9 yesterday and the carplay function still works,with some little changes which looked good..

yes wireless would be good but at the same time at least the phone gets charged when connected with a cable so not something im personnaly that fussed about.

if anything the phone works better with the carplay than the phone its self now works...

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