From there, I navigated the Car section of the Settings menu in the Spotify app to proceed. The next step is to plug Car Thing into a power source. I didn’t have any issues with Car Thing not hearing my commands - even if I had air blowing right at it. The device will also recommend trying another location or a different mount.
When the device detects air blowing near its microphones, both a spoken and visual prompt let me know that I might have trouble using voice features. If you opt for a location that’s near an air vent, Car Thing will alert you to potential interference. In the end, I decided easily glanceable and reachable was better than having to reach around the wheel to get to a vent or using adhesive to stick something on the dash. It also looks a bit cumbersome having a secondary device mounted in front of your built-in stereo. I went with the CD slot since it put Car Thing closer than the other two options, and situated it in clear view.Īs you can see from my images, this nearly blocks the small display in my 2006 Honda Element - most notably the clock.
The choice will depend on your preference and the design of your car’s interior. Spotify includes three options in the box for the dash, air vent and the CD slot. First, I had to select which mount to use. There are a few steps to get Car Thing up and running, but the entire process takes less than five minutes. One handy tool it does offer is the ability to disable the microphones. There's also a Settings button on the far right of the top that gives you access to a very limited menu.
#Spotify car thing windows#
Four microphones are positioned beside the preset buttons to hear those commands when the music is blasting or you have the windows rolled down.
When you save a podcast, Car Thing will automatically play the most recent episode when you tap the preset button or ask for it to be played. You can either press the appropriate button or make the request with your voice. Ditto for playing one of the saved slots. “Hey Spotify, save this to preset (1-4)” does the trick. These can be set with a press and hold or by asking the on-board voice assistant to do it for you. Just below the dial is a back button that takes you back to the Now Playing interface, returns to the Home screen or closes the audio player - depending on where you’re starting.įour preset buttons line the top edge for quick access to playlists, albums and podcasts. Pressing the large round button shows tracks in an album, playlist or podcast. The dial serves as an alternative to navigating the touch screen, allowing you to scroll through menus by rotating it. It’s a thin display with a sizable dial on the front. An image of Spotify's Car Thing the company released in 2019.Ĭar Thing is a device that’s slightly smaller than an iPhone 11, in almost every dimension. Around the same time, the company began adding Car View to its apps: a feature that switches to a simplified player interface when it detects your phone is connected to your vehicle over Bluetooth.
#Spotify car thing Bluetooth#
The Financial Times report mentioned voice control features, but added new info about preset buttons for playlists and Bluetooth connectivity. All the details from those rumblings turned out to be an accurate description of the Car Thing released this month. In 2019, reports indicated Spotify was ready to ship an in-car player. The company didn’t comment at the time, and it’s unclear if any units of this first circular device ever made it out into the wild. It offered a few Reddit users the opportunity to try a compact device that reportedly featured voice control and 4G connectivity. Spotify first tipped its hand on an in-car music player in 2018. I’ve spent two weeks with Car Thing in my car (obviously), and can tell you one thing - this dedicated Spotify player is really more of a controller for the app on your phone.
#Spotify car thing full#
Even though the company revealed the full details on Car Thing earlier this month, it’s only a “limited release” right now. After years of rumors, confirmation and vague descriptions, Spotify has finally made its first piece of hardware available to select users.
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