New iPhone Connector May Be Incompatible With Cars

The new iphone was already going to be incompatible with something like that anyways. It's physically larger than the old phone, anything that has 0 room to fit a new phone was going to be screwed. I'm guessing Apple put some thought into it (mind you, I don't particularly love Apple, but bash where bashing is approved). The real gripe I have is: why the hell haven't you just moved to usb like the entire rest of the smartphone world??????
 
Steve said:
It looks like that rumored 19-pin iPhone connector could be a pain in the rear end for automakers. Even with an adapter, snug fit docks like the one used by BMW (below) would become useless.
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I'm currently car shopping, and I would automatically cross any car with a built in iphone/pod dock off my list.
 
This is not a new problem. Cars typically last longer than tech. I remember thinking in 1999 when some cars here came with phones in them that they would be dated quickly.
 
It already was fucking useless since it connects to a crap apple product and not real phones and Mp3 players.
 
This is why you don't make a 'dock' or something as stupid.

The past few cars that i've owned just have an input that takes any number of cables for each different type of device. So you have a USB to USB, and a USB to iPod interface. Then you just stick the phone in the cupholder or whatever.
 
Also, it's worth noting that with any modern car that has integrated bluetooth with the stereo system you don't even need the dock. You just connect the iPhone and you can play music over bluetooth, and it will automatically pause the music when you receive a call.
 
I've had different phones every few years but I have had the same iPod in my truck for almost 6 years. WHy would a connector change mean anything to anyone? You do it right the phone connects with bluetooth and music with multiple devices: iPod or SD card, USB, aux in (and I have all of that shit etc... on mine).
 
I think changing this connector is an incredibly bad move by Apple. They are basically stabbing all of their auto partners square in the back.

But you know the peripheral vendors LOVE it ! They get to re-sell everything all over again !

And since Apple gets a royalty for avery device sold, well, it's not hard to see why they would make a change.


LITFA Apple.
 
cbutters said:
Why can't we just standardize some freaking bluetooth protocols around here?
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We already have standardized connections.

It's called Mini USB.

Apple decided to make a mockery of the USB standard by making it USB on one end, and proprietary bullshit on the other because they are assholes.

This is what happens when companies are assholes.

At least some manufacturers had enough foresight to just make the connection a standard USB plug and let the user do as they please with it.

There should be some sort of law forcing companies to use a compatible open standard connector if one is available that meets the functional design needs.
 
What makes this silly is that it's basically apple just changing connections to change connections... (ADC to vga to dvi to DP to TB DP comes to mind...) It's actually surprising that they even decided to standardize something this long IMO. The connector itself was actually a good thing as it included a few nice features like forward / reverse control so car makers were able to tie it into to control radios. That said, I really hope if this connector is getting changed that someone else steps up and makes a decent standard for USB audio streaming with audio text and controls. (DLNA+ or something)

If they do change it I actually don't see them getting as many people onboard with the new connection. The usage of ipods has surely gone down now that everyone carries a smartphone, so adding a connector for a small number of phones that it would work with doesn't make a lot of sense.
 
My car has a USB port and an Aux-in, as well as 2 12v outlets. That's enough to handle anything you might need to plug in. My wife plugs her ipood in via USB, and I can control it via the car's radio.
 
Built in connectors in Hyundai and Kia? Hmm, not sure what they mean by that, but every newer Hyundai and Kia I've looked at has a USB plug with an 3.5mm audio jack right next to it that you can plug audio devices in either one, then you have the option to buy a special cable that plugs into both simultaneously and has the Apple connector on the opposite end for your iPod, iPhone, iPad, iEtc...

Pic of inputs

Pic of iCrap cable

Anyway, whatever...Apple has proven time and time again they don't really give a crap about industry standards, so they make their own up. No different than just about any other company that is looking for a proprietary "padlock", so to speak.
 
Obi_Kwiet said:
That's why you don't design a vehicle that's going to last for 20 years around a piece of electronics that will only be relevant for 2. These horrible resistive touch screens they are putting in everything are going age very poorly as well.
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This was pretty much my thought as well when I first heard about touch screens in cars. I guess since I've always driven old cars (my daily drive is a 33 year old Aussie car) I tend to look at new cars with the though "what is this gonna look like in 10, 20, 30 or 40 years time" and a lot of the design choices baffle me, as if they're only designing cars to last as long as your next smartphone or mp3 player.
 
Make sure you find a car that only has one seat, too. Don't want to waste space for items you'll never use, right?
 
Your phone call can wait until after you are done driving. Putting in these insipid adapters only encourages distracted driving. It's as bad as Ford trying to integrate Facebook into their cars.

If your call is so important that you cannot wait to take it, then pull over to the side of the road or pull into a parking lot and make the call. You are not so important that you have the right to put everyone at risk because you cannot wait however long it takes to get to your destination to make a phone call. No, you cannot talk on the cell phone and drive safely at the same time, no matter how good at multitasking you think you are. A hands free device does not get rid of the core distraction.
 
While I feel bad for new car buyers, I don't want the progress train to stop. Anyway, isn't wireless the new kewl way to airplay everything?
 
Zarathustra[H];1038979567 said:
We already have standardized connections.

It's called Mini USB.

Apple decided to make a mockery of the USB standard by making it USB on one end, and proprietary bullshit on the other because they are assholes.

This is what happens when companies are assholes.

At least some manufacturers had enough foresight to just make the connection a standard USB plug and let the user do as they please with it.

There should be some sort of law forcing companies to use a compatible open standard connector if one is available that meets the functional design needs.
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If I'm not mistaken most manufactures would still be using something proprietary if not for EU regulations requiring standardized connection. Personally I think it would be best if all cars just had a usb plug and you provide your own cable for the device. But something says that would still be a terrible mess. Apple doesn't really support "mass storage device" and some android implementation is rather bad with that as well. My thunderbolt worked well that way, however my galaxy nexus seems to have taken a step backwards in that regard.
 
I bought a Kenwood with built in iPod functionality via USB port. Bring your own cord. Sure, it's not as elegant as other options, but it works great. Plus, I can plug in a 32 GB flash drive and listen to some tunes for quite a while and not do any repeats.
 
Obi_Kwiet said:
That's why you don't design a vehicle that's going to last for 20 years around a piece of electronics that will only be relevant for 2. These horrible resistive touch screens they are putting in everything are going age very poorly as well.
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Like 8-tracks and cassette tapes and CD's? iPhone docks are just one more update to bringing music from an outside source to your car's speakers. Everything advances and everything in your car is upgrade-able with aftermarket parts. It's not a new phenomenon.
 
Wow.. I really expected to see more discussion of the problem with APPLE, not of car manufacturers and bluetooth, since none of this is their fault anyway.

As ALWAYS the problem is APPLE being proprietary. God forbid they should use a simple, available, and open standard like USB that lets customers use the same cable for all their devices, and purchase said cable for $1. Nope, they have to make a proprietary piece-o-crap cable that costs three times as much to make, doesn't work with anything else, does the same thing as USB already does, comes in two variations so you have to buy another one if you get the charge-only version by mistake, and (most importantly), lets them make more per cable sold in licensing fees than the retail price of a USB cable.
 
450 said:
Why?
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i would do the same for the fact is i can buy required accessories from third party for dirt cheap (less than $10) which will last me longer than i'll use the specific phone (or longer if compatible with newer phone/electronics i'll get) on the other hand car makers/dealers will charge you anywhere from $50-200 for it.

i'm not trying to be cheap or anything, it's just common sense that money will be wasted as if something new is incompatible the addon feature won't have use for it and you'll miss having something else on that place.
 
arentol said:
Wow.. I really expected to see more discussion of the problem with APPLE, not of car manufacturers and bluetooth, since none of this is their fault anyway.

As ALWAYS the problem is APPLE being proprietary. God forbid they should use a simple, available, and open standard like USB that lets customers use the same cable for all their devices, and purchase said cable for $1. Nope, they have to make a proprietary piece-o-crap cable that costs three times as much to make, doesn't work with anything else, does the same thing as USB already does, comes in two variations so you have to buy another one if you get the charge-only version by mistake, and (most importantly), lets them make more per cable sold in licensing fees than the retail price of a USB cable.
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Did Apple hold a gun to car manufacturers' heads and say they must install iPhone docks to their cars?

Tell me again how this is Apple's fault? :rolleyes:
 
Monkey34 said:
MY adapter works just fine.;)

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Unfortunately (fortunately?) most new cars dot have tape decks, and if you life in an urban setting with cluttered airwaves, the radio adapters are mostly useless (and they both sound like crap even when they work, anyway)
 
Azhar said:
Did Apple hold a gun to car manufacturers' heads and say they must install iPhone docks to their cars?

Tell me again how this is Apple's fault? :rolleyes:
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By designing a device with a proprietary cable where a standard USB cable would have been fine (so they can get cable royalties in addition to selling the device) and not making their devices USB Mass storage compatible instead of some messed up XML garbage whose sole purpose is to discourage 3rd party interoperability without licensing with apple on the worlds most popular audio player...

If Apple had been a decent, respectable company that played nice with open standards te iPod would have been a USB Mass storage device and had a standard mini-USB connector on it instead of the retarded sync cables, cars would have been able to use a standard design rather than having to cater to Apples idiocy...
 
Zarathustra[H];1038980481 said:
By designing a device with a proprietary cable where a standard USB cable would have been fine (so they can get cable royalties in addition to selling the device) and not making their devices USB Mass storage compatible instead of some messed up XML garbage whose sole purpose is to discourage 3rd party interoperability without licensing with apple on the worlds most popular audio player...

If Apple had been a decent, respectable company that played nice with open standards te iPod would have been a USB Mass storage device and had a standard mini-USB connector on it instead of the retarded sync cables, cars would have been able to use a standard design rather than having to cater to Apples idiocy...
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Android's been around awhile with their mini-USB. Why aren't their more popular interface in cars? Could it be because they can't stick with putting the port in one location, so the auto manufacturers said fuck it, lets just do Apple's?

Again, despite Apple's decision to use the interface they're using, they're not holding a gun to car manufacturers' heads and telling them to put their docking interfaces in cars. Car manufacturers chose to do so. You can chide Apple all you want for being proprietary, but you can't blame Apple for THIS.
 
Azhar said:
Android's been around awhile with their mini-USB. Why aren't their more popular interface in cars? Could it be because they can't stick with putting the port in one location, so the auto manufacturers said fuck it, lets just do Apple's?

Again, despite Apple's decision to use the interface they're using, they're not holding a gun to car manufacturers' heads and telling them to put their docking interfaces in cars. Car manufacturers chose to do so. You can chide Apple all you want for being proprietary, but you can't blame Apple for THIS.
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Uhh, the automakers have to make systems for the players that people own.

Apple owns that market by some ridiculous overwhelming margin with their iPods.

I don't see how the automakers had much of a choice in the matter.

Customers demand compatibility with the devices they own. if one automaker doesn't deliver, the customers go to another one.

Apple is the sole party to blame here. They established the proprietary format, and once their products became dominant, accessory manufacturers had little choice but to manufacture accessories compatible with it.
 
john doe 182 said:
These integrated electronics in car are going to become a huge problem. When the average person gets a new phone every 2 years and a car every 5 years or longer wwe will see more an more problems of cars not keeping up. It's already happening. 2012 Mazdas can interface at all via blue tooth with iPhones with avrcp 1.4. One little phone update and a huge feature of the car is lost.
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What the heck is AVRCP? My 2011 Mazda talks with my iPhone perfectly fine. From their website, it doesn't appear that the stereo in the 2012 model is any different.
 
My care uses a little cable that goes from the iPod to the stereo, so I'd imagine I'll just buy a new cable...or just use whatever adapter Apple provides with the iPhone 5.
At this point it's just easier for me to have 2 devices anyway. I have an old 40GB iPod classic in my car and my phone. I can swap 'em around if I have new songs on one or the other, but it's just easier for me to keep the old on in the car as long as it isn't dead.
 
Ur_Mom said:
I bought a Kenwood with built in iPod functionality via USB port. Bring your own cord. Sure, it's not as elegant as other options, but it works great. Plus, I can plug in a 32 GB flash drive and listen to some tunes for quite a while and not do any repeats.
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You know...as with mine, it says "iPod" connector. It does not say iPad or iPhone.

People should stop their bitching...the fact that ipad and iphone devices even work on it is probably not a 'planned in' design but a lucky benefit of a standardized adaptor cable to reduce costs.
 
xIronCrossx said:
I've always wondered how that works...my friend has one as well and I still don't understand it :p
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It was using magic before that well-known fruit named company was using magic. Someone should sue someone else over the obvious infringement since it's rectangular in shape and makes sound.
 
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