4 Apple CarPlay points drivers cannot stand anymore

Image this: You are driving by someplace like West Texas. The closest gasoline station is round 40 miles away. Cell service is spotty, however since you pre-mapped your route, you are probably not sweating it. Then, swiftly, Apple CarPlay decides that it is time to take a look at for the following 20 minutes of your drive. You look over within the passenger seat, and your companion is visibly involved. You even begin to sweat slightly, too, while you notice that your gasoline gauge is hovering properly round 1/4 tank.

That is no fiction, pricey reader. As an alternative, it is the truth of the newest trip my fiancé determined to undertake. We made it to our vacation spot nice, however that wasn’t the one time CarPlay determined that its job was accomplished mid-drive, solely to clock again in later after I had moved a number of miles, shut my automotive off, and rebooted the connectivity. In actual fact, it is a fairly widespread incidence, and one most individuals can sympathize with. The massive query I’ve now, although, is that in 2026, what different points will nonetheless plague some of the widespread infotainment platforms available on the market?

The king of mid-drive disconnections

Increase your hand for those who’ve been victimized by Apple CarPlay connectivity

The largest gripe of all of them stays connectivity points, particularly with wi-fi CarPlay, which I depend on in my 2025 VW Atlas. Do not get me mistaken, I do nonetheless love my Atlas infotainment alternatives, however the random disconnections appear to be a typical thread, irrespective of the automobile. It occurred once more just some days in the past, as we tried to succeed in an unfamiliar location for engagement pictures.

Wired connections are actually extra secure, however cords appear to fail extra rapidly than ever. If a automobile presents wi-fi connectivity, it ought to no less than be dependable normally. That is the largest problem dealing with Apple CarPlay, however let’s not act prefer it’s the one one.

Siri is an extremely weak hyperlink

Apple places an excessive amount of religion in considered one of its greatest promoting factors

It is no secret that Siri has been behind the remainder of its rivals for fairly a while now, however that is extra evident in CarPlay than anything. CarPlay leans closely on Siri’s skill to listen to you and perceive instructions, and when Siri does not just do that (or simply decides that it might’t work at that second), your entire CarPlay expertise falls aside.

Voice dictation errors abound, instructions nonetheless get missed, and when Siri does hear you accurately, typically the lag in between the command and the precise motion is way too prolonged. If your entire level of CarPlay is to be as hands-free as attainable, the mark is persistently missed with Siri, as a result of I’d reasonably enter the instructions myself than hear to what’s supposedly the savior of CarPlay fumble by my voice instructions. We thought iOS 26 would repair CarPlay, however in actuality, it simply put the previous points in some liquid-glass clothes.

App performance stays a sticking level

Android Auto has CarPlay beat on this class, and never by slightly

Many apps lately supply Apple CarPlay compatibility, however simply because one thing is appropriate does not imply it is any good. Apple retains a decent leash on what builders can accomplish throughout the CarPlay interface, and in consequence, apps are usually watered down, with far fewer options than their cellular counterparts. Even when parked, there aren’t any video apps, and messaging management is extremely restricted, forcing utilization of Siri (see earlier level for a way that is going).

Third-party apps undergo from this greater than anything, although. There are even apps developed solely for CarPlay and Android Auto, and in practically each one, the Android Auto model presents a lot better performance than its counterpart. The sticking level is obvious, and it is a main purpose some automakers are moving away from CarPlay totally in favor of an Android-powered OS.

No two CarPlays are made the identical

Automobile integration plagues the platform’s UI

Some automobiles deal with the CarPlay UI nicely, and a few don’t. For example, my mom drove a 2021 Nissan Armada for a number of years, and that was the only most hideous CarPlay adaptation I’ve ever seen. CarPlay solely took up about 2/3 of the display, and the remainder was a Nissan interface that appeared nice by itself however appeared horrible when stacked up subsequent to the CarPlay UI.

Why not simply make it stretch your entire display? It will get worse, although, like within the new Mazda CX-70 and CX-90s, the place your entire display capabilities through a wheel by the motive force, apart from when CarPlay is engaged. Then it turns into a touchscreen, and a display designed to be used from a distance forces drivers to crane their necks ahead to alter any setting. It is the only purpose I did not simply purchase one, actually.

You would possibly have a look at these and say that they are all minor inconveniences, however the problem is that we have all handled them, and we’re all utilizing the identical platform. With points like these, it is no marvel CarPlay is preventing for its life with big-time producers within the automotive house.