{"id":84805,"date":"2021-04-14T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-04-14T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/routenote.com\/blog\/?p=84805"},"modified":"2021-04-14T13:48:43","modified_gmt":"2021-04-14T12:48:43","slug":"spotify-officially-launch-car-thing-their-in-car-music-and-podcast-player","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/routenote.com\/blog\/spotify-officially-launch-car-thing-their-in-car-music-and-podcast-player\/","title":{"rendered":"Spotify officially launch Car Thing, their in-car music and podcast player"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Image Credit: Spotify<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After years of prototyping and leaks, Spotify finally announce Car Thing, the streaming company’s smart player for the car, and it’s free… sort of.<\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Last week, we reported on leaked renders of Spotify’s Car Thing found in the code of the Spotify app.<\/a> Spotify confirmed they were working on the device over two years ago.<\/a> After years of development, prototypes, design changes and FCC filings<\/a>, yesterday Spotify officially launched Car Thing – yep, they’re sticking with that name for now. This is the first hardware device from the streaming company. You may even be able to get your hands on one, free of charge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Car Thing comes at the perfect time, just as many business around the world are reopening their doors and many are back on the daily commute. Streaming services have changed the way we access music everywhere, including the car. Spotify say there are over 70 million user-generated driving-related playlists, plus almost 10 million followers on their curated Songs to Sing in the Car<\/a> playlist, and have seen success with Daily Drive, their personalised playlist with music and news.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/em>Video Credit: Spotify<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

With Spotify’s full catalogue of music and podcasts, the smart player gives users fast and easy access to music, new, entertainment, talk and more. Car Thing can be controlled via voice, touch or physical control. Four microphones along the top of the device are listening out for the “Hey Spotify” wake word. Spotify will understand all the usual commands such as “Hey Spotify, shuffle my discover weekly”, “Hey Spotify, show similar artists” and so on. Spotify say it’ll hear you even with the music up and windows down. The touch screen works in a similar way to the mobile app, with swipes to browse or skip, and tap to play. The large dial can help you browse, select, play, pause and discover music without touching the screen. Four physical buttons across the top are customisable shortcuts for quick access to your favourites, whether that’s the latest podcast episode or up-to-date news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spotify states their focus is still “on becoming the world\u2019s number one audio platform\u2014not on creating hardware”. They built Car Thing to provide a seamless and personalised in-car listening experience for all verhicles, that is intended to work alongside existing in-car infotainment systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Video Credit: Spotify<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Here’s how it works (from Spotify):<\/p>\n\n\n\n