Apple CarPlay just got a welcome upgrade in iOS 18.4 — what you need to know – Tom’s Guide

Two big changes come to your car
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Earlier this week saw Apple release iOS 18.4, complete with a bunch of cool new features and upgrades for you to try. What Apple didn’t tell you was that the update also made some changes to CarPlay, and it could improve your overall driving experience — provided you have the right car.As spotted by MacRumors, iOS 18.4 now offers an extra row of icons for certain types of car. That way you get three rows instead of the usual two, and means you have access to even more of your apps on a single screen.Driving and screens are not a good mix, especially if you have to navigate through different screens and menus. So the fact that this lets you access more at a glance, there’s less chance that you’ll be distracted from the road ahead.The downside here is that this change is not universal. In fact it only seems to have affected cars with larger infotainment screens. One MacRumors forum member got it working on a Toyota Tundra, which has a 14-inch display, but the site itself didn’t see the same change on a Honda Civic’s 9-inch display.Similarly, my car’s 8-inch infotainment display had the same two rows of CarPlay icons as always.Still, you could argue that larger screens needed that extra icon row the most. The last thing you want is for CarPlay to not make the most of a larger screen, or worse blow up the app icons to absurd sizes.The other change to come with iOS 18.4 is the fact Apple Maps electric vehicle routing now supports the North American Charging System (NACS) — aka the Tesla charger.Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips.Electric Vehicle Routing is a system that links Apple Maps navigation to an electric car’s battery level. Based on the route you’re taking, Apple Maps can then figure out when you’ll need to recharge and add pit-stops to EV chargers at the most appropriate time. This change means that Apple can now send you to Tesla Superchargers as well.Electric Vehicle Routing is currently limited in scope. Apple points out that features vary by country, and as best I can tell the only compatible cars on sale are Ford’s F150 Lighting and Mustang Mach-E. So its usefulness is going to be limited.Neither of these features are the long-awaited CarPlay upgrade, which would see Apple’s in-car software take over your car. That’s still missing in action, and we have no idea when it might actually arrive.These are much smaller upgrades in comparison — but potentially still incredibly useful. Just as long as you have the right kind of car.Tom is the Tom’s Guide’s UK Phones Editor, tackling the latest smartphone news and vocally expressing his opinions about upcoming features or changes. It’s long way from his days as editor of Gizmodo UK, when pretty much everything was on the table. He’s usually found trying to squeeze another giant Lego set onto the shelf, draining very large cups of coffee, or complaining about how terrible his Smart TV is.Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.iPhone 17 Ultra just tipped to replace Pro Max in new leak — with these key upgrades Forget green bubbles — iPhones will soon get encrypted RCS messaging to AndroidsChelsea Manning-backed NymVPN launches in bid to win the “censorship arms race”
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Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/phones/iphones/apple-carplay-just-got-a-welcome-upgrade-in-ios-18-4