Apple’s forthcoming CarPlay standard for in-vehicle dashboards won’t be limited to new cars anymore. Pioneer recently announced that it will be bringing five aftermarket options for customers to install in their existing vehicles this summer. CarPlay support will be brought via a firmware update to five of Pioneer’s new NEX in-dash multimedia receivers, featuring a large in-dash LCD displays that can be installed in most existing vehicles. CarPlay support means that users will have Siri voice control for making and receiving calls, reading and responding to text messages, using Apple Maps for navigation, and listening to music, podcasts and iTunes Radio.
Vice President of Marketing for the Car Electronics Division of Pioneer Electronics Inc, Ted Cardenas, had the following to say regarding the matter:
Pioneer's years of expertise integrating smartphone connectivity into the automotive environment has provided us the opportunity to be among the first to offer CarPlay to drivers. By providing an aftermarket option, Pioneer's 2014 in-dash multimedia systems give many iPhone owners the ability to add CarPlay to their current vehicles.
The entry-level option will be the AV-4000NEX model, which starts at $700. Other, more fully featured models will be priced at $750, $900, $1,200 and $1,400. Beyond CarPlay support, Pioneer has also promised that its lineup of NEX dashboard installations will have a more responsive user interface than previous models. The company also says that sound quality, convenience and safety have all been enhanced as well. This particular announcement comes after another report that indicated that Alpine will also be bringing its own CarPlay options to the market. Alpine hasn’t confirmed the rumors but it’s been said the units will cost between $500 and $700 with a fall debut.
The recent announcement from Pioneer stands in contrast to comments made by Kenwood, when the company said that CarPlay wouldn’t be in any of its 2014 products. At the time, it was suggested that Apple might be reserving CarPlay as an OEM option for automakers, something which is obviously not the case.
For those of you who didn’t know, CarPlay was officially announced by Apple at the Geneva Motor Show. A rebranding of the “iOS in the Car” functionality unveiled by the company last year, CarPlay will debut in select vehicles this year from partners such as Volvo, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, Hyundai and Ferrari. Future partners include Ford, Chevrolet, BMW, Kia, Toyota, Nissan, Mitsubishi and more.
Now all we need to know is what model would be iMID compatible
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