Chromecast vs AirPlay

[RJM77]

Hmm. hypocritical? ??‍Lots of SAMSUNG and LG TVs, and other Roid based, Windows, and many other non-Apple OS based devices support AirPlay.

I think the point is that you need an apple device to begin the casting.
Apple doesn't even make Android apps for Apple TV. Apple is way too locked down to be worth focusing on right now imo.

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[Supratachophobia]

Wonder why they went with Alexa vs Google then for the interface? My wife's Volvo has Google and it works WAY better than Alexa on the Rivian.

I can think of a 100k reasons, of which, 20k have been delivered.

 

[CharonPDX]

While I would prefer that all my vehicles have CarPlay, once Rivian adds full text messaging support, Rivian's infotainment will be "good enough".

What I would really like though is Miracast and AirPlay receiver modes, not just ChromeCast that requires you connect to the hotspot, which therefore requires Connect+.

Airplay only works with Apple devices. Hypocritical decision by Apple for sure.

AirPlay *receivers* don't have to be Apple. Even Android-based devices can be AirPlay receivers. My TV runs "Google TV" OS and can receive AirPlay.

Heck, Rivian has Apple Music, so they're not specifically anti-Apple.

And, heck, the EU is pushing to make Apple make AirPlay and AirDrop open to other devices. (So Android phones could stream to AirPlay receivers, and participate in AirDrop.) Both technologies are already based on industry standards, just with a wrapper of Apple-custom.

 

[Riviaenz]

I think the point is that you need an apple device to begin the casting.
Apple doesn't even make Android apps for Apple TV. Apple is way too locked down to be worth focusing on right now imo.

Apple offers Apple Music/iTunes on Android and Windows. You can also initiate AirPlay video from Windows devices to Apple devices (Apple TV as an example).

The point is Rivian chose to appease only half of their customer base (assuming 50/50 Android to Apple split of Rivian owners - Volvo and many premium brands are actually >50% iOS) for the few times they might be parked and sitting in their cars while continuing to dodge CarPlay.

Hypocritical in deed, of those blindly ignoring a customer base that is larger than simply those that have an iPhone; iOS and macOS and its ecosystem is far greater user base.

 

[Fmc]

For what it is worth, I rented a VW with CarPlay last week and missed the Rivian interface. a week later I do not miss CarPlay

 

[Donald Stanfield]

Totally agree. Seems utterly asinine to create & now maintain such an issue. A simple Google search suggests that over 57% of us Americans own an iPhone, which given that Rivian has sold about 100K vehicles, equates to 57,000 of us owners unable to watch any of the 1000’s of Movies & TV shows available through Apple TV, or any broadcasters & studio’s apps that many of us have on our iPhones at this minute. As someone who works in the media & entertainment industry, it is particularly galling that my livelihood is being undermined by their support for YouTube & lack of provision for any official media. YouTube is synonymous with extremely badly ripped off copyrighted media, with very little original & high quality entertainment. Would they be happy if someone badly cloned their vehicle & sold it on YouTube?

There are plenty of streaming services supported outside of YouTube. You should dial the drama down a bit.

 

[Riviaenz]

Wonder why they went with Alexa vs Google then for the interface? My wife's Volvo has Google and it works WAY better than Alexa on the Rivian.

$700M investment from Amazon (from vans and now excess Amazon Gray they sell for $3000/ea).

 

[AZMurph]

Apple offers Apple Music/iTunes on Android and Windows. You can also initiate AirPlay video from Windows devices to Apple devices (Apple TV as an example).

The point is Rivian chose to appease only half of their customer base (assuming 50/50 Android to Apple split of Rivian owners - Volvo and many premium brands are actually >50% iOS) for the few times they might be parked and sitting in their cars while continuing to dodge CarPlay.

Hypocritical in deed, of those blindly ignoring a customer base that is larger than simply those that have an iPhone; iOS and macOS and its ecosystem is far greater user base.

How did they appease half of owners? I’m all Apple at home and casting from iPhone works just fine. Other than the name of it, it’s exactly the same while using it. The only things not working are Netflix (which I’m assuming is temporary or a Netflix restriction) and AppleTV+. Sure it would be nice to have AppleTV+ working but I also didn’t have that on Tesla since it was only the built in apps they chose to give you. So this seems better to me. I don’t understand what is anti Apple about it when it works just fine on Apple devices. On the other hand, had they gone with AirPlay, Android owners would be out of luck.

 

[Riviaenz]

The anti Apple stance many automakers are taking isn't due to some grand conspiracy it is all a result of Apple's closed ecosystem, usage policies and licensing terms. It's Apple's own doing so if anything you should be complaining to Apple to making barriers to entry so difficult.

It isn’t a conspiracy, and it is disingenuous since it’s not about Apple’s closed ecosystem. It’s about creating their own closed one to monetize rather than creating additional value for their customers. It’s about a desire to create their own closed app and subscription market. GM’s is the most self evident example in that they have clear ambition to create a GM App Store for their vehicles. Subscription isn’t enough or perhaps they recognize most customers don’t want to subscribe to a vehicle they’ve already purchased. It didn’t go well for BMW when they attempted to go the extreme route of even trying to monetize features their cars already included (heated seats was the straw that broke that camel’s back).

Rivian, rather than create a more comprehensive set of features that entice more customers to sign up for the Connect+ has decided to wall off and block features that other car companies include for free. That reduces the value rather than adds. Most customers will BUY into new features or even a subscription if there’s a compelling reason to. Heck even though our XC90 T8 included lots of great built in functionality, I still opted for the Volvo App because of the extras beyond remote control including journaling, efficiency tracking and other helpful features that helped me best use the powertrain. The coolest feature is that in the journaling and breadcrumbs feature you could replay your drive and see how you drove it (speed, time, miles, power, mpg and kWhr usage, drive mode, and regen) at any point during a drive. It was super insightful addition to being able to download any and all of it to do my own offline analysis. Stuff I would have imagined Rivian would be in an even better position to do. They sort of can via ABRP and guess what? It requires ANOTHER subscription. I’ve decided to sign up for it. It has the potential to add additional value to me and I’m trying it out for a month, and I’ve paid the monthly sub for it. You know what it also offers? CarPlay support for ABRP… only Rivian is denying that feature for Rivian owners while given non core customers more.

 

[Riviaenz]

How did they appease half of owners? I’m all Apple at home and casting from iPhone works just fine. Other than the name of it, it’s exactly the same while using it. The only things not working are Netflix (which I’m assuming is temporary or a Netflix restriction) and AppleTV+. Sure it would be nice to have AppleTV+ working but I also didn’t have that on Tesla since it was only the built in apps they chose to give you. So this seems better to me. I don’t understand what is anti Apple about it when it works just fine on Apple devices. On the other hand, had they gone with AirPlay, Android owners would be out of luck.

How are you using it from your iPhone? GoogleCasting doesn’t work with AirPlay and I’ve not found a way to GoogleCast from any app.

 

[AZMurph]

How are you using it from your iPhone? GoogleCasting doesn’t work with AirPlay and I’ve not found a way to GoogleCast from any app.

The cast button is in the app for Disney, Hulu, Paramount, Max, Amazon, etc. it’s also in Netflix but that currently doesn’t work (for anybody). Just follow the Rivian directions to open the casting in the new video app, connect to the hotspot, go in a supported app, and click the button. So, somebody with Android can show their own pictures or mirror the web but it’s otherwise the same. And there are apps on the App Store to do that from an iPhone (though I haven’t tried one).

 

[Riviaenz]

While I would prefer that all my vehicles have CarPlay, once Rivian adds full text messaging support, Rivian's infotainment will be "good enough".

What I would really like though is Miracast and AirPlay receiver modes, not just ChromeCast that requires you connect to the hotspot, which therefore requires Connect+.



AirPlay *receivers* don't have to be Apple. Even Android-based devices can be AirPlay receivers. My TV runs "Google TV" OS and can receive AirPlay.

Heck, Rivian has Apple Music, so they're not specifically anti-Apple.

And, heck, the EU is pushing to make Apple make AirPlay and AirDrop open to other devices. (So Android phones could stream to AirPlay receivers, and participate in AirDrop.) Both technologies are already based on industry standards, just with a wrapper of Apple-custom.

Heck, Android phones can already AirPlay from Android (iTunes is in the Googs PlayStore)

 

[SpiredQuasar]

The cast button is in the app for Disney, Hulu, Paramount, Max, Amazon, etc. it’s also in Netflix but that currently doesn’t work (for anybody). Just follow the Rivian directions to open the casting in the new video app, connect to the hotspot, go in a supported app, and click the button. So, somebody with Android can show their own pictures or mirror the web but it’s otherwise the same. And there are apps on the App Store to do that from an iPhone (though I haven’t tried one).

Are you actually doing this from an Apple device? All of the apps you listed only have an AirPlay option not a cast option. So the Rivian isn’t listed as an output option for any of them if you are using an Apple device. Casting basically only works for YouTube on any Apple device as far as I can tell.

 

[Riviaenz]

The cast button is in the app for Disney, Hulu, Paramount, Max, Amazon, etc. it’s also in Netflix but that currently doesn’t work (for anybody). Just follow the Rivian directions to open the casting in the new video app, connect to the hotspot, go in a supported app, and click the button. So, somebody with Android can show their own pictures or mirror the web but it’s otherwise the same. And there are apps on the App Store to do that from an iPhone (though I haven’t tried one).

Yeah that’s the problem, non of those are services I subscribe to and don’t have their apps. I dropped Amazon Prime a couple of years ago, after the last time they jacked the price and reduced the benefits completely tanking the value of Prime. Ads, slow delivery, and worse service than even during the pandemic.

Oh well, I was hopeful it would provide native support but it’s only for owners with Roids.

 

[SpiredQuasar]

Yeah that’s the problem, non of those are services I subscribe to and don’t have their apps. I dropped Amazon Prime a couple of years ago, after the last time they jacked the price and reduced the benefits completely tanking the value of Prime. Ads, slow delivery, and worse service than even during the pandemic.

Oh well, I was hopeful it would provide native support but it’s only for owners with Roids.

Well you aren’t missing anything. I subscribe to a number of them and none work from an Apple device.

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