Fresh Pressed! Apple's New CarPlay Ultra Tested

If you’re like me, you love Apple CarPlay. Not because you’re an Apple freak, or because you love messing around with technology, but because you’re lazy in the best possible way. You want things to work and work simply so you don’t have to use any of your precious brain power to think about it. Now, Apple is rolling out its first significant upgrade to CarPlay, dubbed CarPlay Ultra. To experience this firsthand, I had to spend an afternoon in the dreaded Aston Martin DBX707. Your thoughts and prayers are appreciated.

What Was Annoying About CarPlay

As much as I appreciate CarPlay, three things always made me nuts:

No customization
No radio
No visibility on dash

Current CarPlay in use before the event. I dare you to judge the Moana soundtrack.

Enter CarPlay Ultra

European version shown. photo courtesy: Apple Media

CarPlay Ultra addresses all of these issues.

You Can Customize: Add a theme, choose a color, or set a wallpaper – it’s all possible in this new system.
You’ve Got Radio: Press the Radio icon to toggle between FM, Satellite, and AM.
You Can Add It To The Dash: CarPlay is no longer stuck in the infotainment box, my friends! It’s been unleashed to the driver display as well.

Why Now? Why Aston?

I was thinking the same thing. So I asked! The Aston rep told me that while they did not have the upgrade in mind when they developed the new infotainment system, first available in the DB12, they did approach Apple about this collaboration.

If you think about the Aston brand, it makes sense. They’re all about customization (they’ve even got a flagship store in Manhattan where you can configure all elements of your ride). Because owners are high-net-worth individuals, they’ll likely have more than one car; thus, ease of use between vehicles is key. I like the fact that Aston’s staying in its lane (sorry, the pun was right there) and leaving the interface up to the company that knows a thing or two about it.

What About The Other Automakers?

Of course, CarPlay is enjoyed across the majority of other automakers. When Ultra will be rolled into the less exclusive lanes isn’t quite available yet.