Spotify Announces the 'Car Thing' as its First Hardware Device

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Spotify has today announced its first hardware device, the "Car Thing," which is an in-car dash-mounted music and podcast player (via TechCrunch).

spotify car thing 1
Spotify is looking to provide a product for customers who want a "more seamless" and personalized in-car listening experience, especially in the large number of cars that do not support modern in-car infotainment systems.

The Car Thing is aimed at Spotify Premium subscribers with these needs and features a touchscreen, a knob for navigation, voice control features, and four user-configurable buttons for fast access to areas such as favorite music, podcasts, or playlists.

The user interface takes cues from the Spotify mobile app so that it is familiar to users, and there is the choice of touch controls, "Hey Spotify" voice commands, or physical navigation via the knob. The Car Thing works over Bluetooth, or via an AUX or USB cable, and there are a variety of mounts that come with the device to ensure that it fits to the dashboard correctly.

spotify car thing 2 1
The device comes with three different types of dash and vent mounts to choose from, a car charger, and a USB-C cable.

Initially, the Car Thing will be made available for free for a limited period, with selected users only needing to pay for the cost of shipping. This is apparently because Spotify still sees the Car Thing as somewhat experimental.

When it reaches its full public release, the Car Thing will be available for $79.99, but it is as yet unclear when the retail release will take place.

Car Thing is now being offered on an invite-only basis via its website to U.S. Spotify Premium subscribers with a smartphone, where interested users can sign up to the waiting list.

Tag: Spotify

Top Rated Comments

genovelle Avatar
genovelle
8 months ago
This must be for the 7 people still young enough to drive, but still have a flip phone.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hlfway2anywhere Avatar
hlfway2anywhere
8 months ago

This must be for the 7 people still young enough to drive, but still have a flip phone.
The funny thing is that this device requires a smartphone with internet and the latest Spotify version. So this is literally aimed at people who could just mount their phone.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sw1tcher Avatar
sw1tcher
8 months ago

I wish all of these TECH companies would come up with their own ideas and stop copying Apple! No thanks, I use my iPhone for that!
Copying Apple? Where's this Apple branded in-car dash-mounted device for listing to music and podcasts that connects via Bluetooth or an AUX or USB cable?

Next, you're going to tell me SiriusXM is copying Apple with their in-car devices ('https://shop.siriusxm.com/radios/vehicle/') :rolleyes:
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
reubs Avatar
reubs
8 months ago
This seems very much like an April Fool's gag that got posted too late.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rudy69 Avatar
Rudy69
8 months ago
Yet we still don't have offline playback on Apple Watch.....guys come on!
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sw1tcher Avatar
sw1tcher
8 months ago

This must be for the 7 people still young enough to drive, but still have a flip phone.

As much as I enjoy Spotify, I cannot see the target market for it. If somebody already has a smartphone, Spotify is already on it and most probably already integrated in the car in some form. ??‍♂️
How does one listen to Spotify if they're driving an older car with an old radio/no infotainment system?

2nd sentence of this post...

Spotify is looking to provide a product for customers who want a "more seamless" and personalized in-car listening experience, especially in the large number of cars that do not support modern in-car infotainment systems.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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