Spotify’s $90 in-car leisure system “Car Thing,” which went on sale to most of the people in February, is gaining various new options. The firm announced right this moment it will add one in all customers’ most-requested options — the flexibility so as to add songs and podcasts to a queue — alongside different updates involving voice instructions, playlists, responding to cellphone calls, and controlling different media.

The music streaming system is supposed to supply customers an choice to extra simply take heed to Spotify whereas within the automobile in the event that they don’t have already got a built-in media and leisure system, or a car that helps Android Auto or Apple’s CarPlay. Or it might be used with these different techniques if individuals simply occurred to favor Car Thing’s interface.

As Car Thing already connects to the car through USB, Bluetooth, and Aux with a purpose to stream Spotify from the motive force’s cellphone, it is sensible to permit the gadget to work with different cellphone capabilities, too.

Spotify says gadget homeowners will now be capable of see incoming calls and dismiss or reply them by means of the Car Thing interface. They’ll additionally be capable of play and management different media within the automobile utilizing the gadget, then change again to Spotify utilizing both presets, voice instructions or by tapping the display.

Image Credits: Spotify

Another replace will deliver the requested “add to queue” performance.

There are various methods to make use of this characteristic, Spotify famous. Car Thing customers can both faucet “add to queue” icon subsequent to a observe of their tracklist; use the gadget’s dial to focus on the observe then press and maintain so as to add it to the queue; or use voice instructions (e.g. “Hey Spotify, queue [song name]”). Users may view the queue at any time by saying “Hey Spotify, open my queue,” or by urgent and holding the dial whereas within the “Now Playing” view.

The firm moreover up to date Car Thing’s set of voice instructions to permit gadget homeowners to request customized playlists by temper, style, or exercise. Spotify already presents various frequently up to date customized playlists in its app, however now customers can say issues like “Hey Spotify, play cozy Sunday RnB,” and the app will generate a playlist primarily based on the person’s request.

Spotify had been working to enter the gadget marketplace for a while earlier than this 12 months’s public launch of Car Thing.

It first started {hardware} experiments in 2019, earlier than finally selecting the present design that grew to become the brand new Car Thing. During this era, the gadget’s {hardware} and industrial design advanced from a smaller merchandise plugged into the automobile’s cigarette lighter to a extra consumer-friendly product with a giant knob, colourful touchscreen, voice management options, and extra. Car Thing, to this point, has been pretty well-received. Spotify stated over 2 million customers signed up on the waitlist to buy inside a matter of months after Spotify introduced the product. It has not but stated what number of have bought, nonetheless.

At launch, Spotify stated the gadget would quickly achieve some small software program updates, together with a “Night Mode” and this “Add to Queue” voice command, amongst different issues, so not all of right this moment’s additions are a shock.

The new options will start rolling out to Car Thing homeowners right this moment.