Spotify announced a new feature to Car Thing, which launched in the U.S. in February 2022.
New features enable users to control media outside of Spotify, answer phone calls, and more. Next, let’s take a look at the following update.
Spotify has added new features to Car Thing
Until now, Spotify Car Thing is considered a remote music player made specifically for your car, working only with Spotify. However, the latest updates put Car Thing’s capabilities far beyond the original marketing scope, turning it into a sophisticated tool that can help you while driving. As Spotify’s head of hardware, Andreas Cedborg, told MUO in a recent interview, this is especially useful for those driving old cars without updates at the entertainment center.
In most of these operations, you don’t even need your hands because you can say “Hey Spotify” before issuing a voice command, which makes things simpler and safer.
All of these features added by Spotify are sure to come in handy, and users are already complimenting the update. Features that allow users to answer calls and control other media apps are rolling out to iOS devices, and Android users will get them later. This is what you can now do with Spotify Car Thing.
1. Answer the phone
The software update enables users to see incoming calls directly on their phones on Spotify Car Thing. As soon as your phone connects to your Car Thing via Bluetooth, the call you receive will appear on the screen. In addition to the name and number, two huge buttons appear on the screen that let you accept or reject incoming calls.
2. Control other media
One of the biggest elements included in this update is the ability to control other media applications, effectively extending the purpose of Car Thing beyond Spotify.
Car Thing acts as audio output as long as the media plays on your connected phone and allows you to play, pause, and skip tracks.
3. Add Songs to Queue
One of the most commonly requested features by Car Thing users is the ability to add songs or podcasts to a queue from the device. Sure, it will be super easy to do this from your phone, but the whole point of this device is to bypass it.
Adding new content to a queue can be done in several different ways. The first method is to tap on the “Add to Queue” icon next to the song that appears in the list. Another way is to use the watch face. While you’ll usually press the turntable once to play a song, you can also press and hold the turntable to add it to the queue when the track is highlighted.
Since you probably should focus more on the road, fiddling with Car Thing with your hand isn’t always possible, and you can also use voice commands. “Hey Spotify, queue up [song name]” is what you’re going to say.
Plus, you can use your voice to have Car Thing show your queue. “Hey Spotify, Open My Queue” will show you all the tracks in your list. Also, in Playing, you can hold down the dial key.
4. Voice Request Playlists
Since Spotify is full of playlists that serve certain moods or activities, it makes sense to have the possibility to also request such tracks on the Car Thing. You just have to ask for any genre of music you feel like listening to. For instance, you could say, “Hey Spotify, play lazy Sunday music,” or “Hey Spotify, play 90s rock.” Spotify’s Car Thing has you covered when you don’t have a specific artist in mind.
Spotify’s Car Thing has become a powerful weapon in the market competition
While newer car models often come with their own entertainment systems, they’re not always what you want to use. Thankfully, with the increase in the number of old cars on the roads today, there is still a market for devices like Car Thing. Recent updates have brought a huge boost to the device’s capabilities, making it more attractive to existing users and potential buyers.
