Automotive

Published on September 20th, 2016 | by Subhash Nair

Land Rover InControl Apps enables you to use vehicle optimised smartphone apps on the vehicle's touch screen by connecting your smartphone with a USB cable to the dedicated InControl Apps USB port. Once connected, the apps on the vehicle's touch screen have the same look and feel as they do on your smartphone. Note: Some cars require Spotify Premium. Many car media systems offer a Spotify app built into the stereo. Check out Spotify Everywhere to see which ones. Don’t worry if your car’s not listed, you can check with the manufacturer, and there are plenty of other ways to play in the car listed below. The official app of Land Rover Owner International, the world’s best-selling magazine for lovers of Land Rovers and Range Rovers globally. Our favourite features: - Search any term or topic and find all relevant articles from every issue - Bookmark an article to come back to later - Read the magazine in full on mobile and tablet - Turn post notifications on to be notified when the latest.

0

Jaguar Land Rover is on a mission to transform the way we listen to music in cars. Today, it has announced a unique collaboration with Spotify, the world’s most popular music streaming service, to offer an app with readily available ‘music for every moment’ radio and personalised playlists based on users’ tastes and in-car listening habits.

Musicians Ricky Wilson from Kaiser Chiefs and Elliot Gleave, aka Example, were first to try the app in the car before its official release, going head to head in a battle of music tastes. Each created a Spotify playlist featuring their top driving songs and took to the road in the new Range Rover Evoque Convertible and the Jaguar XE to pitch their playlists against one another.

The artists’ playlists feature recent and classic tracks and include their latest singles, Kaiser Chiefs’ ‘Hole in My Soul’ and Example’s ‘Later’. Both driving playlists are available now via the official Kaiser Chiefs and Example Spotify profiles.

Spotify, which launches this month in Jaguar Land Rover’s InControl Apps library, delivers the best in-car Spotify experience. It mirrors the Spotify interface users will recognise from their smartphone with touch and swipe gestures to navigate content.

Tapping into Spotify’s ‘deep learning’ which recognises listening habits, users can access personalised ‘Just for You’ playlists containing recommended tracks in the car, saving time scrolling through music on the move. Drivers in low-signal areas don’t need to worry, as Spotify’s ‘Offline Mode’ will display downloaded content despite poor internet connection.

Spotify for Jaguar Land Rover is the result of a year’s worth of collaborative development between the two companies. The design teams set out to create a familiar and immersive experience designed for use in-car. Users can swipe horizontally to scroll through menus, which display rich album artwork tiles, all of which minimise distraction while driving.

InControl Apps subscribers can download Spotify from the Apple App Store if it’s not already on their device. From 27th September, once downloaded, the app will automatically show up on the vehicle touch screen when the smartphone is connected. Users do not need a premium subscription to access Spotify via InControl Apps.

Land Rover InControl is the manufacturer’s advanced interactive infotainment system. It also appears in Jaguar models, but with an alternative design interface to represent the two different brands. But how does it work, and is it any good?

What is Land Rover InControl?

According to Land Rover, its ‘InControl’ system is a platform that ‘uses advanced technology that links you to your vehicle and to the wider world’.

In other words, it’s an app-based infotainment system, similar to many others on the market. At a basic level, it allows you to control your audio, sat nav and radio functions, as well as display and adjust information relative to the car’s settings.

At an advanced level, it allows a degree of app-based control, and some pretty clever smartphone integration, although it is not currently compatible with either Apple Car Play or Android Auto — but that will soon change, according to Jaguar Land Rover bosses.

Find out how much you can save on a new Land Rover

How does Land Rover InControl work?

Land Rover Spotify App Download

The driver can operate the InControl system via a centrally mounted touchscreen, situated above the car’s heating and climate controls. On the Discovery Sport, Discovery and Range Rover Evoque, there are also push buttons either side of the screen to control some of the functions.

The new Range Rover Velar plays host to an even more advanced version called InControl Touch Pro Duo, which adds a second screen below the main one that integrates the climate control system. Touch Pro allows the user to switch between screens to simultaneously show more than one function, for example, sat nav on one, and audio media on another.

Land Rover InControl app list

Although it doesn’t integrate with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, InControl still functions in a streamlined way with most of your smartphone apps. Plug your phone into the car’s USB port and the home screen on the phone is locked, with all of the in-car functions (including the phone itself) controlled through the touch screen interface.

Land Rover Spotify App Subscription

Both the Touch and Touch Pro versions pair with popular apps such as Spotify, Stitcher, Audiobooks and Choosic, while functionally useful apps such as Accuweather and Parkopedia also interact with the touchscreen, making life easier for the driver.

Land Rover Spotify App Review

There are three subscription services available – InControl Connect PRO, Remote and Remote Premium.

Connect PRO is only available on premium models and allows up-to-the-minute live navigation, avoiding traffic and constantly planning and adjusting the best route. It also includes a door-to-door feature whereby navigation continues on your phone when you exit the car, helping you reach your final destination on foot. It also gives your vehicle its own wi-fi hotspot.

InControl Remote allows you to monitor functions in your car via your smartphone, as well as operate functions like the climate control, pre-heating, audio selection and central locking via a wi-fi or 3G/4G connection. It also shares useful information such as the car’s odometer reading, remaining fuel range and servicing requirements, along with vital information such as tyre pressures and failed bulb warnings.

Remote Premium includes a concierge service, along with enhanced security – it works as a tracker, for example, should your Land Rover or Range Rover be stolen.

Land Rover InControl cost

The basic InControl function is fitted as standard to all models and allows a basic app control package and touchscreen, with individual option prices varying from model to model. Integrated sat nav starts at around £500, while Remote Services are accessed via subscriptions, ranging from £450 to £650 per year.