armadillo

Take a look here:

http://9to5mac.com/2013/12/13/ios-7-...e-car-feature/

TechNut

The Apple IPhone will always win the popularity contest but it sounds like you are keeping an open mind about the best phone for your requirements. It is too bad more people don't treat their decisions with the same care. There would be far less buyer's remorse and whining.

In my experience, Siri is at best a novelty. It isn't something you can depend on, at least not in my region. Don't get me wrong, when Siri works, it is fabulous. The voice recognition is very good, probably in the mid 90% recognition success rate. Is this good enough for you? Depends on your needs and expectations. I try to use it often and tried to call my wife last night to let her know I was on my way home and to have dinner waiting for me (just kidding - in reality she was home sick and I was checking to see if I could pick up anything for her on my way home). Anyway, when I used Siri, I got the message "Siri is not available right now. Please try back later." I get this message about 20% of the time when I attempt to use Siri. It is from these experiences that I don't feel Siri is Dependable", but it will be incredible when they get all the kinks worked out. I would be careful letting the Siri service be the determining factor in your decision because it isn't quite there yet.

I have had both Apple phones and Android phones (and Blackberry) and I can't say I have a huge preference between those two main platforms. I use them mostly for phone calls a reading e-mail and both are fairly equal in that respect. They both have some gimmicky features that are probably best defined as "works in progress" but showing promise. The Android is more geeky (which I like), but my wife finds the Apple phone to be more intuitive and easier to use. If you enjoy the tech, definitely go with the Android, if you just want a working phone and e-mail, you might be happier with the Apple phone.

Just my opinion. The department I manage supports about 45 iPhones and 25 iPads so my Siri observations are based both work and personal experience. I also share this "opinion" because I hate seeing people fall victim to the "popularity contest" syndrome. That is exactly how my organization ended up with the iPhones rather than the Blackberry, which actually met our business requirements better.

Doug

desmo907

I am an Android guy with the S3 and probably an S5 later this summer :-) I may contact VAIS too.

Seeker4

I just loaded a bunch of music on my Nexus 7 (2013) Android tablet. This table runs the latest version of Andriod, KitKat. The tablet is paired to the car via bluetooth.

I had to use BT Audio media selection of course. However, I was surprised to see that I could not do any music selection via the car. All I could do was move to the next or previous track. I could not see a track list or list of albums/artists, etc.

Will this be typical of any android phone?

Would making a USB connection make any difference?

With an iPhone, which I have seen display track lists, is the iPhone media operated through the car's iPod tab? I.e., is the iPhone looking like an iPod to the car?

P.S., the sound quality is quite satisfactory to me.

viperdoc

I have an iPhone 5. I have been very impressed with how well the bluetooth connection works with the RX. I haven't noticed any issues with sound quality (unlike others have said), and the phone connects and uploads all the music/phonebook contacts within seconds of starting the car. I chalk this up to Lexus' better interface system rather than due to the iPhone, though, and am sure that an Android device would hookup fast as well. When I use Siri, I have to access it right from the phone, but it still goes through the car's micrphone and speakers. I have found it be accurate like others have said- about 90% of the time. But when it's wrong it isn't because it's hooked up to the car (I have tested it without being connected and the success rate is about the same).

The iPhone was an easy decision for me because I have an iMac and Macbook pro, as well as an iPad. So it was a no brainer to get another iOs device for easier integration with all my household stuff.

Frankly, I think you should pick a phone without considering how it integrates with the car. I say this because Lexus' interface is so good, that you will likely never have to take ANY phone out of your pocket to play music or access your phonebook/make calls. If you hate the phone when you are outside your car, what good is it?

armadillo

Unless you constantly change your music on your phone, I think that using the USB flash drive option may be the better solution for playing music. I have bought a 16GB flash drive (http://goo.gl/av5dpo ; also available in 32GB) an created folders with my car tunes. The folders are like playlists and are listed on the Lexus nav screen.

Unfortunately, the USB handling isn't very sophisticated, as it is not possible to have one music folder and use symlinks to songs in folders/playlists. So each playlist must contain a copy of genuine mp3. But it's not a big deal.

UCSB

Think about how you want to use the phone and don't worry about integration with the RX ... pick a phone based on your planned usage and apps. For example, I use my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 extensively. It has a large screen which matches my usage. It has a pen so I can take notes and annotate everything else. A phone like the Note 3 will leave everything on the RX far behind. The voice interaction with the Note 3 (will be same with S5) is very advanced and you can ask questions and get answers while driving. I only use my NAV system in the RX for very long trips, everything else I do on the phone. I'm not taking about simple inquiries. I dropped my daughter off at SFO for a flight to Stockholm the other day. After leaving the airport my wife wanted to know if her departure was still on time. I just asked my phone if the the flight from SFO to Stockholm was departing on time ... and it came back with an answer immediately (I did not supply flight info, the phone figured it all out). On the way to the airport, I just asked for directions to the international terminal at SFO (I was at a business park near the airport and wanted a direct back roads route, which it supplied). Countless amazing examples like that. The tech in the car will age fast the phone will always be on the leading edge. The Samsung will integrate with bluetooth in the RX ... I wouldn't worry about anymore than that.

I would go crazy if I had to select a phone from the one or two iPhone models and be limited to the dinky screens offered. Others might find the small phones convenient, but not for how I use the phone. My point is focus on the phone and not the phone/RX integration.

Since this is your first smartphone, I'm guessing that you may not be that young. The larger Android phones are much easier to use because the screens are easier to read and the keyboards are larger and that makes typing easy. I have an iPhone sized phone that my wife or I can switch to if we feel our Notes are to large to carry or there may be the possibility of damage ... after my wife used the phone for a day as an experiment she told me she was not going to be using it anyone. I played around with it, but have never used it yet (but, hope to on some adventure in the future). Focus on the phone because they can do incredible things and transform many aspects of your life.

armadillo

With all due respect, but "doing everything on the phone" while driving is a dangerous proposition. I hope no one takes your advice. We have too many accidents due to handling of mobile devices in the car. Just my 2 cents.

UCSB

To be clear, I was not advocating distracted driving. My point is that after buying a high-end phone, it may be likely that an owner will use the functions on the phone rather than the awkward in-car functions. There is nothing inherently more unsafe about using the phone vs the in-car RX features to accomplish a task that you are trying to perform. You still have to apply the same rules, logic and judgement to your actions while driving.

I will point out that the Samsung Note 3 has an advanced driving mode that can be enabled and will work in a manner that is similar to the in-car lockout functions in the RX (it will sense when the car is moving). It will handle in-coming text messages for example, by sending a reply that you are driving and will answer when it is safe to do so.

Personally, some of my worst distracted driving moments of all time have occurred when using the mouse and recessed screen on the RX.

Seeker4

Thanks for the suggestion; a USB drive may be a good solution. I just loaded up a 8 GB drive and it works fine. I especially like the drive you mentioned because its small size means it won't be projecting out from the USB port, inviting being hit and something breaking.

I lose the folder/subfolder arrangement that I like to arrange my audio files in, but the RX is hardly the only device not to support the way I like to organize files!

Seeker4

I agree completely, but one of my uses of the phone is integrated with the RX. That's why I am trying to understand what I would get, and what the tradeoffs are, before purchasing a phone. I'd rather know going in what the features will really be, rather than discovering after the purchase.

Other apps haven't helped me in deciding between phones, as equivalent apps for what I need are available for both Android and iOS. Android will certain interface more easily with my Windows/Google universe, so that may end up being the most important factor.

I've seen the Note 3 and it is a nice device. For larger screen needs, I have a Nexus 7 (2013) and do find that very useful. But the Nexus 7 or the Note 3 are too large to carry around in my pocket regularly. I actually can fit the Nexus in my pocket, but cannot really live with it there as I am fairly rough on pocket contents. And it's not a phone of course.

Seeker4

While that appears to be true for the iPhone, it appears not to be true for my Nexus 7 tablet. With the Nexus, I have to select the music to be played on the device; the interface does not allow me to select an album other than the current one. I will try integrating with a friend's Galaxy S3(?) and see whether it is the same.

armadillo

I cannot stress enough that the only acceptable use of of a phone in the car has to be hands-free. Sorry, but any other solution puts you at risk causing damage to others and/or yourself and you will never forgive yourself for having been distracted manipulating your iPad, your phone, or your tablet. Even the Lexus mouse is dangerous. For this reason, I advocate to use Siri or some Android-based voice recognition system that allows you to issue voice commands without taking your eyes off the road. Tragedies abound to testify to this...

UCSB

Galaxy S5 has been introduced; so you can check it out.

desmo907

While this can be dangerous there is scientific evidence that hands-free offer no advantage with regard to cognitive interference (i.e., whether hands free or not, driving can be affected by phone use).