When Ford announced it was scrapping its cumbersome Microsoft-based MyFord Touch touch-screen infotainment platform and starting over with a new Blackberry QNX-based Sync 3 architecture, in the words of Monty Python, there was much rejoicing. Having already sampled Sync 3 at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, we can say it is much improved—and now we've learned that Ford is working to integrate phone-mirroring solutions Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with the system.
Given how nearly every other carmaker out there is at least considering adding CarPlay or Android Auto (or both) functionality to their infotainment systems, Ford getting in on the game is hardly surprising. What is surprising is Ford's digital altruism: Sync 3's eventual inclusion of CarPlay and Android Auto won't spell the end of the automaker's own AppLink setup, which enables the control of certain approved apps on a paired mobile device via the car's voice and dashboard controls.
As explained to us by a Ford rep: "It's not about AppLink versus CarPlay versus Android Auto; it's about ensuring that our customers around the world are able to simply access the apps that they want." There's also the matter of AppLink's non-reliance on a touch screen, meaning it can be integrated on lower-spec Fords that don't have Sync 3; CarPlay and Android Auto both require a dashboard-mounted touch screen to display users' phone apps.
- First Touch: We Sample Ford's Sync 3 Interface and It Doesn't Suck
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So when will we see CarPlay and Android Auto in Sync 3–equipped Fords? According to a New York Times report on the emerging battle between Apple and Google over consumers' dashboards, Ford will begin offering CarPlay and Android Auto with Sync 3 later this year. When we asked a Ford representative for confirmation, we were told that the company has not yet announced timing for the Apple and Google device integrations, but that Sync 3 will be either standard or optional on every U.S.-market Ford vehicle by the end of 2016.
from Car and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/nSHy27
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