In-vehicle Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are a paid-for must-have
Access to smartphone apps through in-car human machine interface (HMI) is increasingly important to consumers’ purchase decisions, new research showed. Mobile apps are preferred for many navigation tasks, especially more advanced ones, said Strategy Analytics.
A new report from the In-vehicle UX (IVX) group at Strategy Analytics surveying consumers in the US, Western Europe and China, has found that an increasing number of consumers feel that smartphone mirroring systems such as Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Baidu CarLife will be a “must-have” when purchasing their next vehicle and moreover, are willing to pay for them at almost any reasonable price point.
Interest for mirroring systems is robust across all regions with preference shown for Android Auto in the US and Apple CarPlay in Western Europe and China. Moreover, Strategy Analytics has found that once consumers have mirroring solutions, they are often used to the exclusion of embedded systems.
Furthermore, for a recently introduced infotainment feature, smartphone mirroring systems are a very strong pull for consumers.
Derek Viita, report author and senior analyst, commented: “All of our research suggests that consumers will soon be ready to adopt CarPlay and Android Auto for their infotainment needs, which is another round of bad news for embedded navigation suppliers and OEMs that want to sell upgraded navigation systems.”
Continued Viita: “It also shows a missed opportunity; OEMs have been including these systems ‘as standard,’ when our research suggests that consumers would actually be willing to pay for them, even to the price of traditional navigation options.”
Added Chris Schreiner, director, syndicated research UXIP: “Consumers are increasingly relying on connected apps for a variety of purposes in the car due to frustrations with the user experience of embedded systems. It almost seems to be the case that the last remaining obstacle for the advance of smartphone mirroring is simply exposure.”
