Common Myths About CarPlay

[tate16t]

Rivian is much more than an automaker and I think people do not understand this. Their whole premise of creating their own systems is not for only Rivian use. This was first brought to light with the VW pairing and the use by VW of the Rivian stacks. Rivian is diversifying a bit here and trying to make a product that will be advantageous for other automakers to onboard. Most automakers do one thing well, build cars (well some don't get that part right either), but when it comes to software, they lack the experience and backgrounds to make it happen in a great user experience- so they tend to throw Carplay and/or Andriod Auto in to make up for some of their lackings.

And they are fairly new at making autos and developing software. The latter needs more work. Testing seems to be lacking. They shouldn’t release software products to gain input. If they wish to lead in this area they’ll need a much more robust operating model.

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[Zorg]

The AI based texting is pretty good. Carplay is really for GM/Ford vehicles.

 

[therealcmj]

Carplay/AA are band aids to bad infotainment from legacy automakers.

No. They're not.

There are things you can do with Carplay that you will literally never be able to do with a car's built in infotainment. And 1,000s of “apps” that will never be available on the Rivian infotainment.

And even if Rivian’s ai assistant were absolutely perfect and the market leader it’s still terrible because it’s stuck in the car. So anything you do on it is only there, in the car.

 

[Zorg]

No. They're not.

There are things you can do with Carplay that you will literally never be able to do with a car's built in infotainment. And 1,000s of “apps” that will never be available on the Rivian infotainment.

And even if Rivian’s ai assistant were absolutely perfect and the market leader it’s still terrible because it’s stuck in the car. So anything you do on it is only there, in the car.

Car has all the apps one needs while driving. And even if it didn't, Carplay isn't happening. So none of this matters. This obsession with Carplay is just silly.

 

[therealcmj]

Car has all the apps one needs while driving. And even if it didn't, Carplay isn't happening. So none of this matters. This obsession with Carplay is just silly.

It demonstrably doesn’t.

It has the most common music services but that’s only a fractionof the services actually available in the US. It has one audio book service, which happens to not be the one I use. It has no podcast app, and even if it did it wouldn’t sync status with the one I normally use. It has its own database of chargers, but that’s limited and while it covers the majority of chargers it’s nowhere near complete. It has only one mapping service, and that doesn’t include speed trap and red light camera info. It also has no food ordering, tele/web conferencing, messaging, parking, weather, and on and on.

I get that it does what you think you need. But it doesn’t do what i and many, many people want. And Rivian’s refusal to acknowledge that and tell the truth about why they aren’t doing CarPlay is frustrating. And it means they are cutting off a good chunk of potential buyers. Without CarPlay I won’t be replacing my R1S with another Rivian, so that includes me. And I’m also annoyed because in addition to all of the above it’s also impacting my vehicle’s resale value.

 

[TheMac]

I think you’ll find Rivian is ok with folks choosing not to purchase a Rivian due to lack of CP/AA just as other manufacturers who also don’t and won’t off them on future models. You’re fully entitled to make a decision based on your preferences just as Rivian is. But you’re in the significant minority who want CP/AA on a Rivian. Personally I am in favour of less CP/AA and more manufactures following Rivian’s path of vertical integration and AI. I think you’ll find AI Agents will completely bridge the lack of CP/AA in the next 1-2 years and communicate just fine with the AI on your phone etc. Apple is so late to this game that Apple users have no true understanding of current AI capabilities, this is an Apple issue not a Rivian one! So Agents will allow the multitude of Apps on the mobile platform to function but under the direction of the on board AI. CP/AA are antiquated technologies! Even Apple realised this and created CP Ultra which I never want on any vehicle I own! But again each to their own. Best of luck with your new vehicle whatever that may be.

 

[Dark-Fx]

LOL. Everyone in the many threads about infotainment problems is a non-owner. Gotcha. The videos showing all the problems are...AI?

Or...someone who has actually driven a Rivian would never defend the infotainment system.

Either you're willing to acknowledge that the ownership experience can be different for different folks, Or... you're an anti-Rivian moron. Which is it?

Rivian assistant is far from perfect, but most of the complaints about it are incredibly shallow, and unwilling to admit that Rivian is capable of, and actively, fixing issues that people experience.

They are even doing this without people explicitly filing complaints about it, since that function is AI driven too.

The bigger their user base, the faster the improvements will happen. If someone has an issue with the response, that fact is getting logged somehow and somewhere, without anyone having to go out of their way to report it, nor on the other side of people looking into it.

 

[tbinmd]

The AI based texting is pretty good. Carplay is really for GM/Ford vehicles.

and Porsche/Audi/VW, it nice when I drive one of my other vehicles and have carplay. The one thing that will give me pause when my R1T lease is up. The AI texting still doesn’t support group texting and the phone integration is weak overall.

It will be interesting what happens with the stack Rivian is developing for VW.

 

[mellowthecat]

Car has all the apps one needs while driving. And even if it didn't, Carplay isn't happening. So none of this matters. This obsession with Carplay is just silly.

It’s silly yet you keep posting and fighting with people about something that “isn’t happening” only to waste your own time. Yet we are the obsessed ones that want a useful feature in a car that every other car has.

This is how customers demand change.

 

[Zorg]

and Porsche/Audi/VW, it nice when I drive one of my other vehicles and have carplay. The one thing that will give me pause when my R1T lease is up. The AI texting still doesn’t support group texting and the phone integration is weak overall.

It will be interesting what happens with the stack Rivian is developing for VW.

Buy a Porsche. VW UI is crap, so Carplay is really needed there.

 

[timgradywy]

I agree that Rivian Assistant has made EVPlay even better. I can use EVPlay / CarPlay to put Waze on the big screen for traffic alerts, use Rivian navigation on the drivers screen, and use Rivian Assistant to do mode changes, texting, etc. Integrated CarPlay would be better, but EVPlay is good enough IMO. I don't mess with it for local 5 minute drives, but for longer 30 minute + drives, CarPlay in invaluable. In spite of that, I actually prefer Rivian Assistant's texting capabilities to what's built into CarPlay.

Ditto Comma4 in the Gen1. It's good enough.

Lack of real Sirius or USB-C based audio playback is pretty stupid in an adventure vehicle that's often operated off-road. I live in Silicon Valley and I can't even get cellular service for most of my drive, so the audio routinely cuts in and out or changes quality (dramatically) on the fly. I know they can do USB-C playback since they can play back videos and audio stored from a local GearGuard SSD...

 

[KBabione]

Without CarPlay I won’t be replacing my R1S with another Rivian, so that includes me.

I may regret this, but...Why aren't you taking advantage of the opportunities to add Carplay to your Rivian? I was more tolerant of this attitude in 2023 when there weren't any options, but I now own two different CP solutions for my Rivian:

• EVSportline Smart Dash Screen - This solution comes with a custom bracket to mount it above the infotainment screen.
• EVPlay - This gives you a completely integrated CP/AA solution with a toggle button to switch back and forth between CP/AA and the native Rivian screen

The Rivian is an amazing vehicle to drive - I just can't comprehend the statement I quoted above when there are options to give you exactly what you're missing. If you're not comfortable doing the install there are still plenty of custom car audio installers everywhere who will do it for you.

 

[Thebandit]

Either way, this sure seems like barking up the wrong tree. Carplay/AA are band aids to bad infotainment from legacy automakers. Rivian has made clear that they plan on owning the screen space and keep developing the software. If that's an issue, one can always buy from another brand.

Hard disagree. They are ways to prevent every one of dozens of automakers from having to roll their own custom system that users have to log into and manage separately. I can pop into any car that has Android Auto and have all my stuff there, ready to go, looking and feeling like they do everywhere else. I don't need to log into Spotify in the rental car. I don't need to program a list of waypoints like home and work and school and daycare into my new car. It's all in my phone already. Our lives, for better or worse, are already curated with our phones, and there's no need to make us replicate that into a car infotainment.

 

[JM.]

Nice strawman. Go astroturf public opinion to benefit your stock portfolio on some other forum.

My partner and I together hold $1.6M in RIVN. You?

 

[Thebandit]

Car has all the apps one needs while driving. And even if it didn't, Carplay isn't happening. So none of this matters. This obsession with Carplay is just silly.

The podcast and audiobook apps I've been using for years don't exist for Rivian. Or probably any automaker. So now I need to.... what? Swap apps to one that does exist for Rivian? Is there one? Use my phone over Bluetooth?

And for what? There's no good argument for Rivian to have to manage an app store that includes audiobook players.

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