Spotifys Car Thing is the streaming device your 2005 Chevy desperately needs

Date:
Tue, 22 Feb 2022 23:42:20 +0000

Description:
Spotify's Car Thing streaming music player is now available to anyone with
$90 and a Spotify Premium subscription.

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Spotify has announced that its opening up sales of its Car Thing music streaming device to anyone in the US who wants one.

The device, which made its debut in April last year , offers a cheap way to bring streaming audio to older cars that dont have built-in smart platforms like CarPlay or Android Auto .

Car Thing works by syncing up with your cars stereo system, either via Bluetooth or with an included 3.5mm aux cable, but it does require a connection to your phone for signal.

When its synced, Car Thing displays your favorite music, podcasts, playlists and trending content on Spotify, which can then be selected using touch controls, the dial, four quick select buttons or the built-in voice assistant that can be summoned by saying Hey Spotify.

For now the device will remain open only to US residents for $89.99 via CarThing.Spotify.com but there's always a chance that it could be made available to the wider world at some point. Analysis: Not quite CarPlay, but well take it

Admittedly, the device is kind of niche and doesn't have many wider functions like a proper smart platform inside newer vehicles, but Car Thing does offer
a pretty elegant solution for those of us still rocking wheels from the early aughts.

According to the post on Spotify's website where it announced today's news, the device will be getting smarter as time goes on namely, a Night Mode that dims screen brightness in the evening and an Add To Queue command that allows you to queue up your favorite music.

Both those features sound supremely helpful and wouldnt have come about without the time Car Thing spent in beta testing.

Like that beat-up, hand-me-down car from your parents, good things come to those who wait... Best Apple CarPlay apps: what are the best in-car iPhone choices?



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/spotifys-car-thing-is-the-streaming-device-your -2005-chevy-desperately-needs/


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