A new J.D. Power survey indicates that drivers who use Apple’s CarPlay infotainment feature report a higher satisfaction rate than those using Android Auto in their vehicles.
It was a close race, but on J.D. Power’s 1,000 point satisfaction scale, Apple’s CarPlay earned a satisfaction score of 777, compared to Android Auto’s score of 748.
While drivers are better satisfied overall with CarPlay, Google scores better when it comes to navigation. Among drivers who use their own navigation system, 56% chose Google Maps most often, while 16% opted for Waze most often.
A mere 23% of respondents indicated that they preferred to use Apple Maps, with even iPhone owners being more likely to use Google Maps.
Google Maps and Waze could both see an improvement in numbers this fall among iPhone owners, as both will gain CarPlay compatibility with the release of iOS 12.
J.D. Power says that overall, most consumers prefer phone systems like CarPlay and Android Audio over the systems already installed in cars.
“Most consumers consider phone systems better for navigation and voice recognition–and they’re free. ‘Better and free’ are hard to compete with, so automakers will inevitably have to cede this territory and will be much better served by focusing on areas where they are the exclusive provider–like driver assistance and collision avoidance–and continue to hone those systems.”
19% of respondents says they don’t use the factory-installed navigation system in their vehicle, 70% of those drivers use another device, which is “almost always” a smartphone.
J.D. Power’s data came from a survey of nearly 20,000 vehicle owners and lessees.
(Via MacRumors)