Spotify pulls the plug on its Car Thing accessory

Streaming music service Spotify was widely known as one of the first companies to create an internet-connected device designed specifically to be used in vehicles. However, the Car Thing accessory company has decided to discontinue its Car Thing device after three years on the market, according to a report from The Verge. The decision comes just a week after wireless audio specialist Anker announced its version of the product, which will start shipping later this year.

What was it?

Spotify’s Car Thing dashboard accessory allowed drivers to use Car Thing accessory their iPhone as a media player when they didn’t have any other connection or phone in the car. When paired with a Spotify Premium account, it offered the chance to play music without having to reach for the smartphone while driving. The device connected over Bluetooth and had a simple interface that displayed current songs,

artists, and podcasts. However, Spotify recently announced that Car Thing is officially discontinued and has pulled the plug on its Car Thing accessory altogether.

Why did it happen?

It’s not yet known why the company is no longer manufacturing the device. It could be because of the lack of interest in it, or it could be to do with new business priorities, like making a larger and more ambitious push into automotive audio streaming services. Whatever the reason, Car Thing will no longer be available for sale or on any device that includes it pre-installed.

Spotify has pulled the plug on its Car Thing dashboard accessory, according to an email from a company representative sent to some customer support representatives and reported by tech blog Android Police this week. We are ending production on our Spotify Car Thing to focus on new products and go all-in on our hardware development, a quote from the email reads.

What happened next?

Today, Spotify announced that its Car Thing dashboard accessory Car Thing accessory is being phased out and won’t be receiving any more updates. We launched Car Thing to extend the listening experience to people who had little time to listen to music and at the same time keep their eyes on the road, said Petri Järvilehto, Vice President of Product at Spotify. After a few years, we’ve found that the challenges we were solving are less relevant.

Interesting facts about the car thing

Launched in 2016, the Car Thing accessory allowed drivers to access the music service’s offline mode and control it through their car dashboards. It also sported a plug that allowed other cars’ dashboard systems to stream audio from the car’s speakers while driving. The Car Thing was discontinued on October 1st and customers can buy a three-month trial of Spotify’s Family Plan before they stop working.

The streaming service is looking at its expanding opportunities with apps and other sticky products in what appears to be a plan to stay afloat as its main revenue source, ads, gets more difficult with user behavior migrating towards private data apps such as TikTok.

How much did it cost?

Spotify pulled the plug on its Car Thing accessory on March 1st, 2018 after the accessory was only in development for a year. Car Thing allowed users to interact with their Spotify accounts and stream music in the car through an OBD2 dongle connected to their vehicle’s onboard diagnostic port.

Car Thing launched in March 2017 as an officially branded Spotify device to help you enjoy music from your Car Thing accessory. For $99, users received a Bluetooth dongle that connects to their vehicle’s onboard diagnostic port, known as OBD2, with an accompanying app for Android and iPhone devices.

The device provides physical control buttons for important functions, like volume and skipping tracks. Car Thing accessory Users can also get directions displayed on-screen when using navigation apps like Waze or Google Maps and even stream Spotify through a connected car’s speakers. Users can also monitor their fuel efficiency while driving.

Where can I buy one?

This is not good news if you’re the owner of a BMW i3 or Tesla Model S and have been enjoying the luxury of playing your favorite tunes through Spotify. The company has announced that it will no longer be producing its Car Thing accessory, which connects to your car dashboard and allows you to play music without being on your phone.

With this new development, there’s only one way to get Spotify in the car: Connecting an iPhone with the Premium version of the app and plugging it into any available aux input.

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