CNET takes an inside look at Apple’s new CarPlay system in a Hyundai. Credit: CNET on Youtube.
Your car is about to get a lot smarter.
Apple’s integrated dashboard operating system, CarPlay, will be available on select new cars this year (to go with your new iPhone 6, perhaps?), but you can get an early taste of this new tech in action at the New York International Auto Show, which runs through this weekend.
CarPlay is essentially a light Apple operating system that integrates messages, calls, and audio features of the iPhone directly into your car dashboard. To bridge the adaptation to driving, the tech establishes a more prominent leading role for Siri to help keep your eyes off the screen and on the road. According to reports from Popular Science and The Verge, the new system is familiar if you’re already versed in an iPhone.
According to Apple’s website, “CarPlay takes the things you want to do with your iPhone while driving and puts them right on your car’s built-in display. You can get directions, make calls, send and receive messages, and listen to music, all in a way that allows you to stay focused on the road.”
To get a full look at CarPlay’s features in action in a Hyundai, watch the seven-minute CNET sneak peek above.
Models from Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, and Hyundai have CarPlay systems available for test drive at the NY Auto Show, although Apple’s website says that CarPlay also will be available in 2014 models from makers Ferarri and Honda.
Future models from BMW, Chevy, Ford, Jaguar, Kia, Land Rover, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Opel, Peugeot/Citröen, Subaru, Suzuki, and Toyota are also expected to eventually get a smart upgrade with CarPlay. And, if you’re not yet in the market for a new car, Apple is teaming with Alpine and Pioneer to integrate CarPlay into aftermarket audio systems.
Apple’s not the only company that is allowing us to cram more into our commutes, or in this case, our cars—Nissan also debuted a “Smart Rear-View Mirror” system at the NY Auto Show that can see through piled up cargo, kids, or pets blocking your rear view mirror view.
What’s next—a car that drives itself?
Feature image credit: Apple.