Quote:
Originally Posted by golovko
I have CarPlay on our 2017 X5 40e, here are my thoughts:
If you use Spotify:
Since Spotify can't ever seem to auto-resume when you get back in the car and always requires restarting the app from your phone, CarPlay allows you to do this from the iDrive interface without having to take the phone out of your pocket
The BMW Spotify integration over USB has far more features than Spotify through CarPlay but requires you to plugin
The iDrive 5.0 navigation is far better than Apple Maps through CarPlay. I don't mean accuracy but this is really an uneven fight. iDrive navigation is offline and fully integrated into the car. Apple Maps requires internet connectivity and even then can be slow to load maps and zoom levels.
Siri integration is no different than previous iDrive versions that supported hands-free Siri. It is just as useful, the only difference is you now see the Siri prompt screen through iDrive instead of just the audio prompt as before
Overall, I would recommend Apple CarPlay for the simple fact that you can switch between audio apps through iDrive without having to pull your phone out and switch sources. For example: if you switch between Apple Music and Spotify, or on road trips want to switch between something like Audible and Spotify.
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You don't have to plug in to use Spotify in iDrive 5.0. It should be accessible in Media. If it's not there check the Connected Drive section and it should be listed.
The BMW Connected NA app can also be used as a source, but it's better to stream it imo.