Now Drivers Can Engage Siri in Safe CarPlay

Apple on Monday unwrapped its CarPlay auto initiative at the Geneva International Motor Show. The announcement comes less than a month after Google announced its grand plans to bring Android into automobiles with its Open Automotive Alliance. CarPlay will enable iPhone users to make calls, consult maps, play music and receive messages either through the vehicle's native interface or through voice commands activated by pressing a button on the steering wheel. Carplay Honda Homescreen Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo will be introducing their drivers to CarPlay this week, with BMW, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Jaguar Land Rover, Kia, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Peugeot Citroën, Subaru, Suzuki and Toyota expected to join the fold in the future. "CarPlay has been designed from the ground up to provide drivers with an incredible experience using their iPhone in the car," said Greg Joswiak, Apple's vice president of iPhone and iOS product marketing. "iPhone users always want their content at their fingertips, and CarPlay lets drivers use their iPhone in the car with minimized distraction," he added. Siri at Your Service Linking an iPhone via a Lightning connector to a vehicle with CarPlay lets users direct Siri to access contacts, make calls, return missed calls or listen to voice mails. Siri allows drivers to keep their hands on the wheel while listening to messages, and using voice commands to respond to requests -- making calls or turning speech into text. CarPlay also works with Apple Maps to anticipate a driver's moves by guessing at destinations based on recent trips and information gleaned from contacts, emails or texts, as well as providing routing instructions, traffic conditions and time-of- arrival estimates. When you ask Siri for turn-by-turn directions to a location, Maps information will be displayed on the car's in-cabin display, which is typically larger than the iPhone's and more suitable for that kind of navigation. Similar hands-free actions can access music, podcasts, audiobooks and iTunes Radio -- or the car's built-in controls can be used to access that material on an iPhone. CarPlay also will support some third-party audio apps, including Spotify and iHeartRadio, for a driver's listening pleasure.