chronopc
Active Member
Google Music integrates my music and it's free. I don't really want to use Android Auto since I actually really enjoy the on board GPS, but it would be nice if I could somehow access google music on my car.
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Slacker radio
- Thread starter 10splayer
- Start date
I try to avoid anything and everything Google wherever I can. TBH I can manage with things the way they are as far as music is concerned. But I really miss the ability to easily and safely text that CarPlay gave me, and I miss MLB baseball.
chronopc
Active Member
Funny cause I avoid anything and everything Apple whenever I can. I guess we all have our preferences. Tesla's preference is to have us use a 3rd option, their stuff. I think what's native in a the Model 3 works pretty well, people just don't like change.
BrandonLive
MS LR (refresh) Blue/Black/21s/FSD
The lack of CarPlay is really disappointing, and I agree that without it, they should have their own implementation of the capabilities where possible (e.g. text notifications and such, supporting through accessory API).
It does help that the navigation system is decent and has built-in traffic. If they truly add Spotify that will be a very nice improvement, as that and Google Maps are really my top uses for CarPlay when I’m in a car that has it (like the cheap Hyundai rental I had last weekend...).
It does help that the navigation system is decent and has built-in traffic. If they truly add Spotify that will be a very nice improvement, as that and Google Maps are really my top uses for CarPlay when I’m in a car that has it (like the cheap Hyundai rental I had last weekend...).
devilmountain
Member
Yes, I have a specific song written down that makes this crackling noise every time. I will look for it in a bit.
I ended up paying for slacker and it appears I get a bigger catalog of muisc. I maybe wrong. I just wish the 15 thumbs down to Morrisey and The Smiths would drive the message home I do not like them. I do wish we had additional options.
It's not change I mind. If I minded change I would have never bought a Tesla. It's losing utility that I mind. The utility I had in a car a decade ago is lost in the Model 3's infotainment system.
Don't get me wrong. I love my Tesla. Best car I've ever owned. But the infotainment system is a joke. An embarrassing joke.
Pretty much every manufacturer's native infotainment system is hobbled by shortsightedness, proprietary BS, and just downright crappy UI engineering. Even and especially the 2017 BMW iDrive system I just got sold. But at least BMW gave me the ability for CarPlay, so I could use the well designed, intuitive and familiar interface I use in the rest of my life whenever I get into my car.
And to be sure it's not really Tesla's UI design that's at fault for the poor performance of the infotainment system. They did a halfway decent job there. But the engines behind it are the problem. Slacker is just a piss poor choice for a music streaming system. Period. And reliance pure streaming is ridiculous. There are far too many areas in the US where cell service is not adequate to support reliable music streaming. And the idea that I need to load my music on a USB drive and access it like I would a file on a computer is lubricous. And not good ludicrous.
I agree 100% about avoiding anything related to Apple. But the bottom line is that everyone has their own preferences of which none will be likely in the Tesla. I believe Tesla built their own infrastructure due to security concerns, so I don't see them opening this up anytime soon. The only hope is that they integrate other popular features that give us access to things we like, but we'll have to live with the fact that it won't be exactly what we want.
Let's just all agree that the driving characteristics of the car are absolutely fantastic.
But isn't it more important that they focus on driving dynamics and advanced driver-assistance systems? Obviously, we'd like to have it all but I'm sure their focus was not on the infotainment. Perhaps once they sustain profitability, they can create and hire a separate infotainment group to catch up with the rest of the industry. But for now, they've clearly focused on the other aspects.
chronopc
Active Member
It just sounds like you just really want to use CarPlay and I can understand that. But Tesla's decision to not support CarPlay doesn't automatically make the infotainment system bad. You don't have to load your music on a USB drive to play it in the car, you can use whatever music service you want on your phone and stream it via Bluetooth. While I agree that Slacker isn't the best streaming service out there, I at least appreciate that Tesla gave it to me for free.
chronopc
Active Member
It's possible to walk and chew gum at the same time. Fact is they've had years to get this right, and they're still flailing. Fine, if you don't have the resources to do it right then just put the API in for CarPlay and Android Auto and move along. But don't be pigheaded and stubborn. This is not about "focusing on other aspects." This is about them being stubborn, and flat out refusing to either do it right or get out of the way.
Looks like there are some others depending on region. But not sure if this is up-to-date. In particular, it talks about increasing the bitrate of slacker which as far as I know is not possible. Moreover, I heard slacker is only streaming at 64kbps. Is that true?
Streaming Audio | TeslaTap
Streaming Audio | TeslaTap
It's hard to speculate as to why they are not doing that. But stubbornness doesn't make a lot of business sense.
I've heard it too- couldn't tell if it was a particular frequency (an issue with the speakers) or an issue with the connection.
You're right. It doesn't automatically make it bad. It's the other dozen decisions they made that help it along. Like Slacker. Like not giving us at least a basically decent interface for connecting our smartphones for eyes free driving, as most every other car manufacturer did 4-5 years ago.
Streaming via bluetooth does not solve the UI issue. Picking up your phone and scrolling through music choices while you're driving down the highway at 70 MPH is not exactly safe or smart. Free garbage is still garbage. I don't want their free streaming, because I already have unlimited streaming on my phone. I just want a decent interface to use it while I'm driving. The point is that most every other car manufacturer solved big chunks of these issues long ago. And Tesla's "car of the future" is embarrassingly in the past in this area.
As I said, my Tesla is great in almost all other aspects. But I am not willing to give them a pass on what should have been basic blocking and tackling, and I am sure not going to apologize for them.
getting back to the OP, unfortunately the tunein decades channels are hot garbage, but the slacker ones seem decent. there are also multiple slacker decades channels (for example, i have 90s a-z, 90s hits and 90s #1 hits all saved in my favorites). a lot of the time though i will stream some of the satellite stuff (such as howard and some of the shows i listen to, like mark mcgrath's 120) from the app and it works pretty well.
as soon as echo auto is available, i'll install that and use it pretty much exclusively probably, at least until someone figures out how to add an aux input (and as such add a true satellite radio option)...
chronopc
Active Member
I actually really like the Model 3's UI. I think it's by far the best out of all the cars I've ever been in.
It sounds like it's not the UI that you have a problem with but rather it's the way the Model 3 interacts with your phone that you have a problem with and also you really don't like Slacker. I actually think Slacker is a pretty decent music streaming service.
