[maxiedaniels]

Assuming I get a 2017 M240i with CarPlay+Wireless Charging+Wifi Hotspot, would I be able to use CarPlay wirelessly eventually or is that going to be a hardware upgrade?

[Cars]

Originally Posted by maxiedaniels

Assuming I get a 2017 M240i with CarPlay+Wireless Charging+Wifi Hotspot, would I be able to use CarPlay wirelessly eventually or is that going to be a hardware upgrade?

Your question is slightly confusing. Are you under the impression you have to plug your phone into the car to use CarPlay? Because you don't if that's what you're thinking. CarPlay automatically links up when your phone is bluetoothed to the car. I may be misunderstanding your question though.

[Viffermike]

Originally Posted by maxiedaniels

Assuming I get a 2017 M240i with CarPlay+Wireless Charging+Wifi Hotspot, would I be able to use CarPlay wirelessly eventually or is that going to be a hardware upgrade?

The EVO HUs in mid-2015-present 2 Series have Wi-Fi connectivity; BMW simply chose not to activate it until the 2017 model year.

That said, wireless CarPlay in the 5 Series is based around a totally different system that likely won't make it to the 2 Series until 2019 at the earliest. That, combined with the fact that BMW almost never offers firmware updates for pre-existing iDrive/Infotainment functions (except updated Nav maps) unless a warranty/safety issue is involved, tells me that it will not be retrofittable if it does not exist now.

[maxiedaniels]

Originally Posted by Cars

Your question is slightly confusing. Are you under the impression you have to plug your phone into the car to use CarPlay? Because you don't if that's what you're thinking. CarPlay automatically links up when your phone is bluetoothed to the car. I may be misunderstanding your question though.

Oh - now I'm confused haha... I was told by the dealer that to use CarPlay, you need to have your phone plugged in. That's not true?

[Cars]

Originally Posted by maxiedaniels

Oh - now I'm confused haha... I was told by the dealer that to use CarPlay, you need to have your phone plugged in. That's not true?

Yea deff not true. Dealer needs to do some training on CarPlay usage I guess lol. I keep my Bluetooth on at all times. Within 5 seconds of starting the car, CarPlay takes over. Real simple.

[xantdieselx]

Originally Posted by Cars

Yea deff not true. Dealer needs to do some training on CarPlay usage I guess lol. I keep my Bluetooth on at all times. Within 5 seconds of starting the car, CarPlay takes over. Real simple.

I think on some cars it is required. I rented a 16' Santa Fe on business trip that had Carplay anf it required the phone to be plugged in - which btw I thought was total BS.

[Cars]

Originally Posted by xantdieselx

I think on some cars it is required. I rented a 16' Santa Fe on business trip that had Carplay anf it required the phone to be plugged in - which btw I thought was total BS.

Must just be different cars I guess. My gf has a brand new Honda Civic touring with it, and does not need to plug in so who knows. All I know is the 240 doesn't need to be plugged in

[Viffermike]

Originally Posted by xantdieselx

I think on some cars it is required. I rented a 16' Santa Fe on business trip that had Carplay anf it required the phone to be plugged in - which btw I thought was total BS.

No, it's a matter of the manufacturer allowing it to happen.

CarPlay's had wireless functionality ever since iOS 8; the 2017 BMW 5 Series was the first car to come to market with complete and integrated wireless CarPlay functionality via Wi-Fi in February. That was only two months ago.

Thing is, full and true CarPlay wireless functionality occurs over Wi-Fi, not Bluetooth; the software only uses Bluetooth to initialize a Wi-Fi connection every time CarPlay is enabled.

Cars: Is your car less than two months old? If not, your car does not have true CarPlay wireless. You're simply able to stream some content to iDrive's CarPlay interface via Bluetooth.

[maxiedaniels]

Originally Posted by Viffermike

No, it's a matter of the manufacturer allowing it to happen.

CarPlay's had wireless functionality ever since iOS 8; the 2017 BMW 5 Series was the first car to come to market with complete and integrated wireless CarPlay functionality via Wi-Fi in February. That was only two months ago.

Thing is, full and true CarPlay wireless functionality occurs over Wi-Fi, not Bluetooth; the software only uses Bluetooth to initialize a Wi-Fi connection every time CarPlay is enabled.

Cars: Is your car less than two months old? If not, your car does not have true CarPlay wireless. You're simply able to stream some content to iDrive's CarPlay interface via Bluetooth.

Viffermike - what functionality would I be missing? Can I still get texts? Or are you saying a new m240i right now *would* have full wireless capability? Would I need to get the wifi hotspot feature?

[Viffermike]

Originally Posted by maxiedaniels

Viffermike - what functionality would I be missing? Can I still get texts? Or are you saying a new m240i right now *would* have full wireless capability? Would I need to get the wifi hotspot feature?

You need to ask your dealer about that; I can't answer definitively.

Don't just settle for a sales associate, however. Seek out a BMW Genius -- I'd ask two or three at different dealerships since they are not all trained at the same time, and this level of CarPlay is very new to market, not just in BMWs. The first aftermarket solution with full wireles CarPlay functionality, the Alpine iLX-107, hit the market at about the same time.

If you can't get a definitive answer from them, I'd contact BMW NA.

[xantdieselx]

Viffermike - It's not so much the manufacturer "allowing it to happen" as it is the technology available at the time the vehicle was manufactured. You could also make the argument that for some manufacturers cost might play the biggest role in the system they choose to offer.

You are correct that BMW was the first automaker to offer wireless Carplay support in the 2017' 5 series, however as I mentioned in my post the vehicle was a 16' Santa Fe. The wireless technology just wasn't available from Hyundai's supplier at the time the vehicle was built.

Harman is one of the main suppliers of telematics systems for manufacturers. They now support it so manufacturers that they supply will be able to offer it on new vehicles.

[Viffermike]

Originally Posted by xantdieselx

Viffermike - It's not so much the manufacturer "allowing it to happen" as it is the technology available at the time the vehicle was manufactured.

It is in terms of Wi-Fi. As I stated previously, the EVO head units that have been in our cars since spring 2015 are Wi-Fi-capable. What that means is that 2 Series cars have had the basic hardware to enable Wi-Fi functionality for nearly two years. It just chose not to enable it in our cars until this model year -- and, I suspect, it did this to align with wireless CarPlay availability.

On top of that, iOS 8 was released in the fall of 2014. So if BMW had wanted, it could have enabled a form of wireless CarPlay in 2015 models. It chose not to -- and claimed it was not interested in CarPlay at all at the time. Instead, Hyundai was the first mass manufacturer to feature integrated CarPlay in 2015 -- and it really only appeared in multiple makes in the 2016 model year.

Originally Posted by xantdieselx

You could also make the argument that for some manufacturers cost might play the biggest role in the system they choose to offer.

Not in BMW's case. Evidence: It charges $300 for the option.

Originally Posted by xantdieselx

You are correct that BMW was the first automaker to offer wireless Carplay support in the 2017' 5 series, however as I mentioned in my post the vehicle was a 16' Santa Fe. The wireless technology just wasn't available from Hyundai's supplier at the time the vehicle was built.

More evidence: The flip-flop on CarPlay alluded to above. BMW fell behind because of that. The wireless CarPlay debut in the 5 Series was likely Apple's way of helping to re-establish BMW's iOS-related market position after that gaff.

Originally Posted by xantdieselx

Harman is one of the main suppliers of telematics systems for manufacturers. They now support it so manufacturers that they supply will be able to offer it on new vehicles.

And IIRC, Harman International supplies BMW's EVO head units. So I've got to think that's BS on Harman's part -- either that, or it institutionally got seriously behind the 8 ball with mobile Wi-Fi hotspot hardware. That won't happen again now that Samsung owns it.

[FunkyPete]

At least mine does. I checked the box for regular carplay when I ordered it, and it worked wirelessly from day 1. That was end of January, about when they were promoting the new 5 series as the only one that was wireless.

[Viffermike]

Originally Posted by FunkyPete

At least mine does. I checked the box for regular carplay when I ordered it, and it worked wirelessly from day 1. That was end of January, about when they were promoting the new 5 series as the only one that was wireless.

See Post #8 above. That is likely over Bluetooth. The 5 Series system works over Wi-Fi, with only initialization via Bluetooth.

The big difference between the two is one of bandwidth. Wi-Fi can carry far, far more data -- basically, hi-res audio is possible at iOS' full 24bit/96Khz capability via Wi-Fi. Also, Wi-Fi will work instantly and far more reliably.

[maxiedaniels]

Well, it's definitely wireless. Wifi has to be enabled for it to work, so I'm assuming it must be using a wifi hotspot. I'm in a m240i 2017.

[Viffermike]

Originally Posted by maxiedaniels

Well, it's definitely wireless. Wifi has to be enabled for it to work, so I'm assuming it must be using a wifi hotspot. I'm in a m240i 2017.

FunkyPete : This is really interesting. If it is, indeed, happening over the car's Wi-Fi hotspot, then I'm somewhat perplexed as to what the whole 5 Series-debut thing was in February. It's possible that the 5 Series has some CarPlay-iDrive functionality -- hence the 'first fully integrated' catch phrase/marketingspeak used in the press material for it -- that is the distinction vs. other 2017 BMW models with an available Wi-Fi hotspot. Only BMW and Apple can say for sure. But hey: If it works, it works!

[Cars]

Originally Posted by Viffermike

No, it's a matter of the manufacturer allowing it to happen.

CarPlay's had wireless functionality ever since iOS 8; the 2017 BMW 5 Series was the first car to come to market with complete and integrated wireless CarPlay functionality via Wi-Fi in February. That was only two months ago.

Thing is, full and true CarPlay wireless functionality occurs over Wi-Fi, not Bluetooth; the software only uses Bluetooth to initialize a Wi-Fi connection every time CarPlay is enabled.

Cars: Is your car less than two months old? If not, your car does not have true CarPlay wireless. You're simply able to stream some content to iDrive's CarPlay interface via Bluetooth.

Yea I'd have to double check but I'm about 99% sure my Wifi has to be on for it to fully work properly. Mine was built in January so I'm not sure about the specifics. Next time I'm at the dealer maybe i'll ask around. Doubt I'll get anything new out of anyone though

[Zoomigo]

Originally Posted by maxiedaniels

Assuming I get a 2017 M240i with CarPlay+Wireless Charging+Wifi Hotspot, would I be able to use CarPlay wirelessly eventually or is that going to be a hardware upgrade?

Even tho it isn't advertised, my M240 came with wireless CarPlay. Even before it was announced for the 5 series. I don't know if it's a misbuild, or an unadvertised feature, but I like it.

To add, it only works properly if I have both Bluetooth and wireless enabled on my phone (iPhone 6). My car has the wireless charger and wifi hotspot, plus my phone connects with wifi to the car. Picked this up October 2016. So like I said, dunno if misbuild or unadvertised feature.

[Gabrola]

Indeed CarPlay works wirelessly on cars with it. Initial connection setup happens over bluetooth and the rest of the communication happens over WiFi.