Wireless CarPlay Upgrade

Call me late, but I now have wireless CarPlay in my 2005 Subaru. It is as convenient and seamless as car-phone integration can be.

It started way back in 2016 when (after driving for 9 years a civilian version of the Forester II / SG) I fell in love with the Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) STI-version of it. And during multiple upgrades I installed the Pioneer AVIC head unit equipped with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay technologies. The radio has ton of features (including its own GPS/mapping subsystems and SD-card based music library) but really the bright spot is the large capacitive touch display. And the phone interfaces of course.

While the cable versions of Android Auto and CarPlay have of course been great (a single cable to connect/integrate the phone and charge it), they are not that super convenient during short city / commuting trips. I made a small upgrade by installing the magnetic cable, but it still required removing the phone from a pocket.

Until I finally decided to pull the trigger on the Ottocast U2AirPro wireless CarPlay adapter. The concept is simple: plug the adapter to the CarPlay - capable head unit's USB port and pair it over Bluetooth with your iPhone. Done. CarPlay uses Bluetooth to discover the connection and create a dedicated WiFi link. WIth the Ottocast box this is quite fast - takes a couple of seconds but the phone connects even before the silly legal agreement disappears from the Pioneer's head unit screen.

(BTW who on Earth came up with the idea to display a legal user agreement each time you start the engine? I highly doubt this is legally binding at all.)

Nevertheless, jump in the car, start the engine, your phone is now on your dashboard display, audible continues playing the audiobook from the point it previously paused, Google maps show the traffic situation and last but not least - you can make and accept phone calls via the car's speakerphone.

Also - a tiny detail - when connected wirelessly, the display has a battery gauge. It makes sense as definitely the phone will be discharging faster when actively serving the car. I still keep the magnetic mount and the charging cable for longer trips, but they are no longer necessary for short distance drives.