CarPlay Connect can use apple maps or app maps of an iphone via PCM? without navigation module and connect plus, will it use maps?

 

Yes you can use the iPhone Apple Maps on the PCM screen, using the data from your phone.

 

the new PCM has Google Maps in the built in Sat Nav anyway, so you don't need the poor Apple Maps. the Carplay piece just gives you better integration and control with your iphone. If you're a spotify user, great, beyond that, can't really see that much to get excited over.

The new PCM with the google traffic and maps is the bits to get excited about

AG

 

1. Porsche said they are not supporting Android auto because it requires too much diagnostic data to be recorded by Google and they don't want to share. I have no issues with Porsche; it is with Google requiring diagnostic data. They are all about big analytics

2. The new PCM has Google Maps and Street view built in so I don't understand the concerns. Google maps is better and the new Navigation system in the Macan uses it without data so you get Appple Car play AND Google Maps integrated.

 

There seams to be a lot of exuberant idealism here and in other post on the wonders of the new PCM.


Embedded street view? 20,000 Terabyte hard drive? I guess you could get away with a 10th for one continent. Not sure what is built in (no data service required) but its not street view as known today.


Apple and Google collaborating? Maybe in transferring key clicks.


Yes no Waze (Google).

 

Is Waze supported by CarPlay? Can you have Waze on the screen of the new PCM?

 

Nope, no Waze only Apple Maps.

 

How can the integrated Google Maps work without using data? I am confused. Can someone point me to an article discussing this? Thanks!

 

The best things about CarPlay from the above review seem to be less dangerous use of:

1. Text
2. Spotify

...and improved Siri voice recognition

The worst obviously is no Google Maps. Many of us (even with PCM Navy) can't be bothered to input addresses into the car so we use Google Maps navy from our phones and it streams via bluetooth. If CarPlay displayed the Google maps route on the 7" screen everyone would order it. Nobody likes Apple Maps.

The new PCM is improved with better traffic info and Google Earth so you get more bang for your buck now for the 3K price tag (PCM navy+CarPlay). The previous version of PCM for 3K was an embarrassment but the new version is not exactly a bargain. Many people can do without it still and just use Google Maps from their phone.

 

The apple car play and google maps are different functions. There is no collaboration across companies?

Google Maps is in the PCM navigation module. It uses data but not your phone's data unless you want it to . If not you will need a separate SIM after free period of 6 months or a year. Not sure on free period length. You can always stream Google Maps directly now using bluetooth interface (That is What I Do) you just will not see maps on PCM.

Apple Car Play is separate front end interface supported by the PCM to your phone and if you are in the car play environment apple maps is available but this will use your phone data, although this data usage is small compared to streaming music and video.

Porsche Connect Plus - Porsche Cars North America

 

The apple car play and google maps are different functions. There is no collaboration across companies?

Google Maps is in the PCM navigation module. It uses data but not your phone's data unless you want it to . If not you will need a separate SIM after free period of 6 months or a year. Not sure on free period length. You can always tream Google Maps direction now using bluetooth interface (That is What I Do) you just want see maps on PCM.

Apple Car Play is separate front end interface supported by the PCM to your phone and if you are in the car play environment apple maps is available but this will use your phone data, although this data usage is small compared to streaming music and video.

Porsche Connect Plus - Porsche Cars North America

Just to be clear, the new Nav in PCM is not Google Maps with the Google Maps user interface. It's is Porsche's own Nav system. It just uses Google Earth and Google Street View to give you 3D pictures of the locations/area.

 

Before everyone starts to bash on CarPlay per the review, keep in mind the system is relatively new so there is still a lot of room for improvements. To me, it's purely OTA SW update similar to iOS update. Perhaps 6 months or a year there will be an update to integrate more application support which I think will make CarPlay a much stronger platform. I believe the review is helpful for folks, like me, who is on the fence of getting the Connect/Connect Plus options for their MY17 or GTS built at this time, whether the money is worth investing. The decision is on its own.

As many other's concern around Google Map support, I believe it will be coming on CarPlay. While Apple seems to encourage consumers to use Apple Maps but Apple can't deny the fact there are just so many Google Map users. Part of the reason why when Google Map was pulled out of App Store a year ago, then re-introduced later on. Imagine when CarPlay starts to support Google Map, I think it would definitely make CarPlay a much more appealing investments.

 

New PCM

Hi I have had my lovely Macan Diesel now for 6months. I cherish every day it is with me. Great great car.


I wonder if anyone can let me know if there is the facility to upgrade the PCM t be able to get Google maps and or Appleplay on my own PCM. Are there any fixes possible?


Thanks all

 

I just tried to spec PCM inc. Navigation module ($1730) with Connect ($830) on a '17 GTS. It's not compatible. You can option Connect by itself (to get CarPlay) but you are forced to delete the PCM with navigation module option. PCM including Navigation Module can only be optioned by itself (no CarPlay) or with Connect Plus ($1300) - which gives you CarPlay, WiFi hotspot, Google Earth, Google street view, LTE phone module etc. The total of this combo is $3030.

Very confusing but I'm starting to wonder if just ordering Connect with no navigation is the best way to go. For only $830 you can use Apple Maps through CarPlay for visual navigation or just use Google maps voice like in current non-navigation models. You also get improved Siri recognition and all the benefits of CarPlay. Down the road as another member mentioned Google Maps may indeed work with CarPlay. Considering the hassle of inputting addresses into a car based Navigation is it worth $3030 for PCM navigation + Connect Plus as opposed to just the $830 for Connect that will give you Apple CarPlay?

 

I think it also came with Porsche car tracking on Car Connect which if I am not mistaken is another subscription based service...

 

The way I interpret it is that Connect Plus replaces the PCM.
It gives you the old PCM functionality, but you get Google earth etc. added onto the original Porsche mapping. And at a lower price also.

 

If this were the case then Connect Plus would be available as a stand-alone option. It is not. To order Connect Plus the configurator forces to you to add PCM inc navigation ($1730) to get the actual in-car navigation module. Connect Plus enhances the "old style" PCM navigation by giving you 3D imagery, Google earth and street view, CarPlay, On-board Wifi etc...

 

If this were the case then Connect Plus would be available as a stand-alone option. It is not. To order Connect Plus the configurator forces to you to add PCM inc navigation ($1730) to get the actual in-car navigation module. Connect Plus enhances the "old style" PCM navigation by giving you 3D imagery, Google earth and street view, CarPlay, On-board Wifi etc...

Sorry; I didn't think this through - our Macans here have Nav fitted as standard, so I haven't been able to play around with the same options.

What you've written here sounds spot on, Porsche makes you pay, then pay some more... Sounds like the stand alone Connect might be quite a good cost effective option.

 

From someone who has CarPlay
Don't bother Apple maps looses signal and took me up dirt track on Ferrari !!
Tunes play better from iPod
Other than voice texts not much else on offer

 

Yes well... the Ferrari implementation has come in for a bit of criticism.
I'm very much hoping Porsche does a much better job.

As for Apple maps losing signal - that's a function of your data connection, maybe look at changing your service provider?

 

I hate this thread... Makes me sad... Ordered a macan few months ago, will go in production end of the month... But no CarPlay / updated PCM and LED for me

Kinda makes me feel like I ordered a new but already outdated car

I know te car will drive as good but you know, just feel left out

Anyways I hope Some of you can re-order?

Also I wonder when the SA knew about these developments. Because when the news with the 911 came out I went to my SA and he said not to worry that it would not reach the macan before end of 2016.

Now it appears as soon as 01.16 ?

 

Cancel your order and reorder a 2017 if that's what you really want. Call your SA and tell him what you want to do. It might cost you a little more with the price increase, but at least you'll get what you want.

 

I repeat RJMcInns in that Apple maps had issues but it is worlds better now and gets better every month. They are putting a massive effort into improving it while others coast and cut in areas they shouldn't. My business relies on both Apple and Google maps so I deal with it all day long. Google has been handicapping their maps for the past year or two, taking things out, while Apple and Bing are improving, so I would not want to rely on Google forever. Or any one company if possible. If I had a choice, it would be to just mirror a phone of any kind instead of something running connected to the car. And I am actually using Bing Maps on computers now because it is much faster.

Apple and Google are competitors so they don't want it to be easy to use the other. I would prefer Waze over anything but that is Google so it probably won't happen. Google makes all their revenue tracking you, collecting and selling data and/or serving ads around it. From a tech security standpoint, I don't want Android anywhere near my car. Android phones can be penetrated in about 9 seconds. A unsecured iPhone is about 40-45 seconds. I saw cars being hacked this summer first hand. Watched Tesla get hacked and it get fixed in less than a day. They are responsive. Jeep just puts masking tape over their logo so you can't read their name. I tested some common tactics and was successful. If it uses wifi, Bluetooth or a radio signal, it's vulnerable. Only with all signals off, are you mostly safe. You can fake a LTE signal and get a cell to connect but that is a little harder. That is getting off track but it is why I wish I had control and choice.

Apple Car Play will be the smoothest thing right now but who knows in a few years. I can just see the days when something from a third party is "updated" and then it doesn't work. Apple keeps more control of the whole line and provides updates for years while Android is more wild and likely to leave you in the dust before a lease is up so to speak. Android has so many different hands in the pot and that can make it both cool and a hot mess. If they can't get updates to phones, they won't be able to do it with cars.

I always liked a idea of just having a spot built in for your own tablet and a connection for audio to hear from the device. Then maybe a app that interprets info from the ODB/car computer. Then it isn't dated as you can replace both hardware and get app updates. And maybe not have something dated and useless in 10 years. A 20 year old 911 is still functional now. But what if in 2030, your 2016 911 just has a blank screen and a worthless connection prompt.

 

The great thing about Car Play is that Apple will continue to improve it and I won't have to pay for incremental upgrades. Hopefully more 3rd party apps will become available.

 

Btw for those of you praising Waze and bashing Google....guess who now owns Waze?

Hint: G__gle

 

I *just* put in an order for a 2016 MY.. I was planning on holding out for 2017, but I called every porsche dealer in SoCal many times over and all of them said the same thing "Late Summer - Fall 2016, no earlier than July or August". Decided it wasn't worth it just for carplay, since i would be using Waze anyhow and I would probably get an aftermarket HUD like Navdi or something, and ordered a MY 2016 for delivery in February.

 

Has anyone used Carplay before? I am not sure if it works with other languages. Many of my contacts are in asian fonts and do not know if it works. I couldn't find much online...

 

@Doconefall I hope you are not referring to me? Because otherwise, it's not 2013, so of course I know that Google owns Waze. And over the last 2 years, Google has integrated Waze userbase traffic, and provided Waze with access to Google mapping data, which they partially use. I haven't bashed Google at all. Although, based on their privacy policies, it would be easy to do. I like Waze best due to the user community provided live updates. That is what makes it best of breed.

 

Personally, I don't care about missing out on CarPlay for now with my 2015 Macan, but an upgrade to the new PCM sofware with better traffic coverage would be nice.

 

Since you can't spec PCM w/ Nav if you select Connect, do you lose everything else listed under PCM (High-resolution 7-inch color TFT display (touchscreen) including radio with RDS double-tuner and single CD/DVD drive with audio playback of MP3 music and audio/video DVDs. Storage and playback of up to 5,000 MP3 files on internal 40 GB hard drive.), or is just the Navigation deleted. Very confusing.

 

Connect Plus goes with PCM/Nav, Connect is without PCM/Nav

 

I've got to smile reading all the chatter about "what if"... After driving Porsches for thirty plus years the Porsche playbook, since the 993 has been simple: Upgrade some part of the experience every two to four years. The GTS is a prime example. Their product roadmap is usually established over ten years. The incremental HP upgrades are standard operating procedure and they're always a generation behind on electronics. I remember getting some grief from a dealer when I ordered the then new 996... no cup holders ? The response (with a smile)"you should be focused driving the car"
My iPhone 6s integrates perfectly with my standard no frills hi-fi... Waze, maps, music etc...

I'm sticking to the advice I got sixteen years ago... driving the car.

 

Ok, now I see under Standard Equipment they list: Porsche Communication Management (PCM) without navigation module, Sound Package Plus with 8 speakers and 150 watts, 7-inch TFT display, RDS double tuner radio, and MP3 compatible single disc CD/DVD player, SiriusXM® Satellite Radio and HD Radio™ Receiver, so I guess you still get pretty much everything except Porsche Nav and maybe the internal hard drive (which I never use anyway) if you choose Connect. So seems like you are trading the Porsche navigation module at $1700 for Connect with CarPlay for only $830. Seems like a pretty good deal unless I'm missing something.

 

So seems like you are trading the Porsche navigation module at $1700 for Connect with CarPlay for only $830. Seems like a pretty good deal unless I'm missing something.

The only drag is that if you want Sport Chrono and CarPlay, you have to get Connect Plus and PCM w/ Nav - an expensive set of options.

 

Went to Porsche Centre Brisbane yesterday for the release of the 911 Series 2 to specifically have a play with CarPlay; it's standard on Australian 911's, $1090 Connect Plus option on Macans and 718s. Here's my thoughts.

TL DR
If you have an iPhone and want the extra level of integration I think it's worth the money.

First up it requires a Lightning/USB cable connection, which is under the centre armrest. Plug your iPhone in and the PCM asks if you want to use it in iPod or CarPlay mode. Chose CarPlay and the CarPlay button appears bottom right on the PCM screen (http://steeringnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/2016-Porsche-911-Carrera-PCM-7-inch-screen.jpg). Touch it and you then see the standard Apple CarPlay interface. The car didn't lock my iPhone screen like some other manufactures do.

The new PCM. It has a frameless glass screen with an anti-reflective coating and thus capacitive, but it's no bigger than the previous PCM screen. The graphics and fonts look cleaner, and just like the previous PCM you don't have to use the touch screen; you can operate it 100% with the buttons and knobs, this also applies to CarPlay.

Now CarPlay. First thing I noticed was the sidebar was on the right. In this screenshot it's on the left (http://cdn.macrumors.com/article-new/2014/03/carplay_3.jpg?retina); I guess this is because all the screenshots on the web are from lefthand drive cars. The sidebar displays, from top to bottom: time, signal strength, cell connection type, Home button.

If you chose to flip your signal strength from dots to numbers (http://cdn.redmondpie.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/iPhone-Signal-Strength.png) then you'll see the numbers in the sidebar also. If you don't have a cell connection then nothing will be displayed in this spot in the sidebar.

In this screenshot (http://c.mobilegeeks.de/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/porsche-911-carplay.jpg) you can see the Porsche icon. Tapping it, or using the right knob to trigger it, will return you to the PCM menu (http://steeringnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/2016-Porsche-911-Carrera-PCM-7-inch-screen.jpg).

On my iPhone I had four third party apps show up on the second screen; Downcast, Overcast, Spotify, and Pandora. All these, and the standard Apple apps performed flawlessly, and navigating any app was easier, for me, using the rotary knob than touching the screen - I'm of the opinion that without tactile feedback you aren't as accurate when you are meant to be concentrating on driving. It is easy to tap and swipe; scrolling is smooth and response is instant. The only downside is you can't pinch to zoom in Maps, I guess Porsche haven't implemented multitouch or Apple haven't enabled it in the specification, but there are + & - buttons to zoom in and out. Maps also has 3D and locate me buttons.

The best way to think of CarPlay is it's a projected display of your iPhone. Things are bigger, and theoretically, easier to use by removing complexity. An example, trigger the Phone app and Siri is activated, if you have an Internet connection, otherwise Siri lets you know you don't. Without Siri you can still navigate your favourites, recents, and contacts lists as well as the keypad and voicemail (http://b.cdnbrm.com/images/prm/home...TouchClarity/images/articles/mobile-electronics/carplay/apple-carplay-phone.jpg).

I love my music so I have about 5000 songs on my iPhone; I've also filled my Macan's Jukebox (seriously, who thinks 40GB is enough space!); and I also have a 2006 80GB iPod (7000 odd songs) plugged in pretty well permanently. The CarPlay Music app is easier to use than my Macan's PCM, except music wouldn't restart after something else needed to make sound, like Siri. I didn't test any of my three podcast, or the other two music apps, for this issue but I assume they would have the same failure to restart issue. This is Apple's problem.

I'm sure it would take me many hours of use to actually find more niggles, like it did with my Macan's PCM, but it is an improvement and if Apple puts more effort into CarPlay them we get those changes for free.

Those who complain about what apps are/aren't available, well that's on Apple and third party developers. At this point in time I give Porsche five stars for its implementation.

Used in the above review was a 2014 iPhone 6 64GB running iOS 9.2.1 and a non-Apple Ligthning/USB cable.

 

The only downside is you can't pinch to zoom in Maps, I guess Porsche haven't implemented multitouch or Apple haven't enabled it in the specification, but there are + & - buttons to zoom in and out. Maps also has 3D and locate me buttons.

Great review @kermit .

One question. You mention that multitouch was not implemented for maps. This is a feature I was looking forward to

Have a look at this video around 1:10, also appears at a later point.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgkRPCaq4vA&feature=youtu.be

This was shot by @MrSam with a new Euro 911 in mid Jan. It clearly shows him pinch-zooming a map. I think here he was using the PCM mapping app, not Carplay. Could it be that multitouch only works with the PCM and not Carplay? Did you try with both or only Apple?

I know several of the Connect+ options have been omitted for Aus, sure hoping they haven't dumbed down the maps etc.

 

Kermit thank ya much for the detailed & nicely stated post, well done IMO.

 

Excellent review, thank you for removing some of the mystery for us!