Volvo multimedia thingy - apps

Volvo multimedia thingy - apps

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Discussion

Jambo85

Original Poster:

3,402 posts

95 months

Tuesday 15th February 2022
quotequote all
Hi all, new owner of a 2018 XC90 here.

I'm enjoying the multimedia interface and the fact that it has Spotify built in. I'm wondering though if anyone knows why there doesn't seem to be many other apps available. For example, Apple podcasts would be nice, as would BBC Sounds.

Clearly Apple Car Play is the solution for now, but I would quite enjoy it all being native and without having to plug the phone in. Anyone know the background to this?

Cheers.


gl20

1,150 posts

156 months

Saturday 19th February 2022
quotequote all
I had exactly the same feeling when I picked mine up last month. Installed Spotify immediately for journey home then figured I’d see what else was available to find pretty much nothing.

I did ask the dealer about this and it seems Volvo takes the view that only apps that could never impede safety are allowed. So they’ve further reduced what’s already a fairly small list of Google apps. I hope they sort this as I currently have an app home page that is largely empty.

Jambo85

Original Poster:

3,402 posts

95 months

Saturday 19th February 2022
quotequote all
Thanks for the reply.

The safety angle makes sense and we’d expect no less I suppose. I’m sure they can do better than Spotify + the weather though smile

Also good to have it confirmed it’s not just an issue with my car!

gl20

1,150 posts

156 months

Sunday 20th February 2022
quotequote all
Spotify + weather + an app that makes car sounds (I only know this as I was desperate to download something different when I got the car)

What I was surprised at is there’s no internet browser app. Would be handy when in an unfamiliar place and could always make it inaccessible when car is moving.

Jambo85

Original Poster:

3,402 posts

95 months

Tuesday 10th May 2022
quotequote all
I contacted customer service asking about various apps, and in particular BBC sounds, I received the following reply:

"All the currently available apps go through our development team for approval as to if they are suitable for our infotainment systems. As we continue to improve and update these systems then new apps may be added to the current lineup. Unfortunately, I do not have any information as to if the BBC sounds app is to be added but I can, of course, feed this back to the relevant teams."

Fairly non-committal. I expect in reality this is all just at the very bottom of someone's to-do list!