What Apps do you guys use the most?

[dandiggz]

Had the Appradio for almost a month now and was just wondering what apps or what functions do you guys commonly use? The 3 apps that have been in heavy use in my car are MYPV, WAZE and EC TOUCH. But honestly my favorite is MYPV, its so cool how I can setup a youtube music video playlist on my phone and access them on the appradio. The playlist will sync to the radio and allow u to play videos back to back like a mix. You can setup multiple playlists and the videos start to play right away as if they were stored on the device, no buffering crap. Its awesome!!! Waze is great because its a nav app fully touch compatible and most importantly FREE.I can setup my destination on my phone and when i get into my car I’m ready to go without wasting time. I like how i can get notifications from other drivers too!! EC touch is just an all in one app that allows you to take full advantage of what the app radio can do. It has tons of potential and provides me with all my needs in one place. Ec touch is ideal for those passengers that just need an easy interface to work with.

 

 

 

 

 

I would like to get the opinion of others on what cool apps are out there and what you guys use more often.

 

[VBLUE42]

CarMedia Player, iGo, Car Browser, CommuteWX and Dashcommand

[djchad72]

Here are my top favorites and why: 

1. iGo may seem costly; however it is awesomely powerful.  When I got home to my parents there is a good hour I am void of any 3G or 4G coverage.  iGo has provisions to keep maps available for 'Offline" use.  Which means it just your GPS and the screen.  Works wonderfully and is so accurate it is almost scary!  I just did the $24.99 version from the AppStore and then bought the AppRadio add on for $35.  That purchase also gets you a year of 2 of the other service add-ons.  So its best to go that route.  
2. iHeart is getting better and better as they work through bugs.  It is like night and day now from the first time I tried to use it almost a month ago.  It is unbelievable how quickly they are working on it.  It will not connect quickly and efficiently.  It will stream almost instantly.  The audio is now persistent as you switch apps.  
3. CarMedia Player - Awesome way to play music off your iPhone.  I subscriber to 15-20 of my favorite DJs podcasts in iTunes and sync their latest 10 episodes to my iPhone.  Between those and my new albums/songs I put into playlist, my iPhone is always ready for the party. 
4. CommuteWX - I was driving home to my parents in what would seem to be a midwest monsoon.  It was awesome for my passenger to be able to open this app for me on my AppRadio 2 and hit the "radar" button and see how long we would be in the storm.  I kept my eyes on the road while we monitored the radar.  It felt like we were in the digital age.  Every car needs this feature for this occasion.  
5. MixTraxx - It works pretty great if your music on your iPhone has the right labels for their genre.  Otherwise your beat mix will have a few "nose" dives.  The app on the iPhone itself is far more powerful than the AR2 limited features.  When they offer the ability for you to select a specific playlist to mix instead of just their pre-defined modes... I will be back all over this app.  Simply put, its probably the neatest app on the entire unit.  But its also the most vulnerable if your music collection is eclectic and mis-labled.
6. SiriusXM - Yes it does not "work" with the AppRadio 2 via the touch screen; however you can playback the audio.  If you are using iPhone 5 + HDMI, it will even mirror the app on the AR2.  You just will have to control it from the App.  Which is okay, typically I only tune in for live DJ shows on the Electronic dance stations.  
7. Siri + AppRadio Bluetooth Phone - 90& of the time it does me miracles.  The other 10% requires patience, especially if it is a strange proper name of a business that is obscure: Bob's Plumbing.  Instead you have to just say, "find me a plumber in <whatever county 'bob's plumbing' is in>" and hope it comes up close... OR simply add it as a contact ahead of time and Siri will find it right off the bat.  I really wish Siri + Maps would pop iGo or simply have Maps work with AppRadio.  
8. Extra Mile and the Traffic apps are occasionally used.  But it is more novel than anything.  

I also highly suggest setting up your social media accounts in your phone's AppRadio app so you can easily check in with a touch of a button on your AppRadio.  You should also play with the wallpaper functions in the AppRadio App as well (when not connected to the unit.)  I use the HD wallpapers I find for my iPad that go into my photostream and show up on my iPhone.  Just use the AppRadio "stretch" function and they look AMAZING.  

 

I also sometimes just "goto" Pandora when all else fails or I need a change of pace.  Its just so easy when you are going to be getting in and out of the vehicle a lot running errands.  However in the long run, I think it hurts Pandora to be the only "embedded" app now because you get so much more inside AppRadio mode.   Switching in and out of Pandora and AppRadio mode causes audio glitches and sometimes conflicts.  

 

Lastly, my other honorable mention is ECTouch.  It is a great concept as it is a universe in of itself.  However the use of the app inside a car is very hap-hazzard.  I have written to them a few times about this.  The buttons in the title bar at the top are just too dang narrow to use in a vehicle.  It is too hard to be that precise while driving along and the road/wind comes into the play.  If they were able to expand the button real estate this app may be a great!

 

I really wish I could try DashCommand... but it is sooo costly with the $50 app price + the $100-200 price tag for the serial port hardware.  I just think I will spend all that money and all I will have is nothing more than an electronic replica of my analog dash that I often minimize to change iHeart stations.  

[dandiggz]

^nice

[dannyz3343]

Just as a note to counter iGo. Waze also supports offline maps (I know this because I used to have sprint, waze saved my life) and learns your routes. It has gotten me out of traffic several times. I drive 80 miles a day. this thing is a must have. 

 

CarMediaPlayer keeps getting more awesome by the day. In fact today they just updated the app to remember where you were in the search menu. Before when lets say you clicked on the wrong song and wanted to go back you would have to start from the very beginning and choose artist, then find the artist, then the track and then hopefully click the right one this time. Now the app just goes back to that page where you messed up. This makes the app safer, faster, and more pleasurable to use.

 

Commute WX is awesome. Nuff said. 

 

DashCommand turns your car into a Nissan GTR with all the gauges it gives you access to, and it is fully customizable. Very cool. 

 

iHeartAuto does exactly what it claims to do. Lets you listen to your radio stations no matter where you are. I never listen to the radio, but I will say nice things to a well made app. 

 

On that note, Inrix traffic is pure garbage. They put no work whatsoever in optimizing their app for appradio. It is pure garbage. 

 

Aupeo was cool but it doesn't currently seem to work. 

[dandiggz]

Great stuff guys!!! thanks for the replies.

[yonel]

GPS navigation ( igo ) , internet radio (streamshifi & tunein ), mp3 (ipod from appradio or carmediaplayer or ec touch...)

[piddy]

I can't find iheart on the app store - is this an Android app?

[wei803]

That app currently available in US AppStore only

 

 

 

Meanwhile I have reported a bug in Waze where we can't scroll inside My Waze > Mood/ Scoreboard and some other menu.

 

Waze support team promise an update will fix it and its coming.