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Chip shortage: BMW temporarily waives CarPlay for new cars

Corona may be slowly but surely sinking into the looming summer slump, but the semiconductor shortage is far from over. Quite the contrary. It is not only fueled by the Ukraine war and interrupted supply chains. Moreover, since the corona crisis in China is far from over and is currently threatening to boil over, the chip crisis should be far from over. The consequence is that factories are closing down in rows. Not only the usual suspects like graphics cards and game consoles are affected.

The problem has also long since reached strata of the population that have nothing to do with gaming or Bitcoin mining. So it is currently also extremely complicated to get so-called “white goods” like dishwashers or washing machines. The automotive industry also makes it clear how much chip technology is used in our everyday lives. In order to meet delivery deadlines, some companies are forced to omit essential components and deliver them later. This is also the case with BMW. Now the popular Bavarian automaker wants to ban Android Auto and Apple CarPlay from its new vehicles – at least for now.

Change of chip supplier

Anyone who has once used Apple CarPlay or Android Auto in their car will no longer want to do without it. After all, the link between smartphone and on-board display represents every convenience. Not only can calls be controlled here, but the Spotify favorite playlist can also be played quite conveniently. However, soon-to-be owners of a new BMW will probably not be able to enjoy this convenient control option for the time being. The reason for this is that the Bavarian Motor Works want to rely on another supplier of semiconductor technology as a result of the ever worsening chip crisis. However, this new chip does not yet have the ability to play Android Auto or Apple CarPlay.

Update coming in June

But of course, as a premium brand, BMW is also aware that it can’t fob off its customers like this. Accordingly, the company has announced that they are currently already working on a suitable update, which should also enable the two smartphone interfaces with the new chip. According to BMW, it will be possible to download and install this via over-the-air from the cars at the end of June. Following this, Apple Car Play and Android Auto should work again. It is not yet known which vehicles will be affected by the temporary problem. What is certain is that feedback on the lack of CarPlay and Android Auto has already come in from countries like France, the USA and the UK. Of course, this is not good news for customers. Nevertheless, you have to think in the medium to long term here. With the change of supplier, BMW should hopefully ensure a more secure supply chain that no longer threatens to hinder the construction of future models.

Simon Lüthje

I am co-founder of this blog and am very interested in everything that has to do with technology, but I also like to play games. I was born in Hamburg, but now I live in Bad Segeberg.

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