Automotive technology is rapidly evolving, and the in-car experience has become more diverse.
Car enthusiasts know that having a sound infotainment system is crucial.
With Siri and CarPlay, there are more options to get what you need while driving.
You can use Apple CarPlay without Siri, but its functions will be limited. Access to some features of your phone through the car’s touch screen, steering wheel controls, or voice commands will be significantly restricted.
In this article, I’ll discuss some of the functions of CarPlay without Siri and the safety reasons why the features are limited.
Can You Use Apple CarPlay Without Siri?
Smartphones have more or less replaced car stereos in recent years, so it’s only natural that their functionality would be ported over to a car’s dashboard. Enter Apple CarPlay.
With CarPlay, you can connect your iPhone to your car and use various functions of your iPhone while driving. For example, you can use Siri for navigation and calling.
You can use Apple CarPlay without Siri by operating through your car’s touch screen, instead. Although, the functions available will be significantly limited, as Siri is meant to encourage hands-free access and interaction while driving.
Let’s find out how this is possible.
Use Your Built-In Car Controls to Operate Apple CarPlay
Apple’s CarPlay feature syncs your iPhone with your vehicle’s built-in display.
With the Touch ID sensor and Siri voice assistant, you can control your phone from the car.
Vehicles supported by the system also have built-in controls that include touch screens, rotary dials, and touchpads.
You can use these controls to run CarPlay and navigate from the screen.
However, if you have iOS13 or later, CarPlay might not function unless you activate the iPhone’s voice assistant. (See how to update our IOS & CarPlay here)
With CarPlay, you can make and receive calls, send messages, play music (including third-party music apps), and get directions all from within your car.
Plus, you can access Google Maps for navigation or real-time traffic updates.
So why is it difficult to access this information from CarPlay without Siri? The answer lies in safety.
Why It’s Safer To Use Carplay With Siri
CarPlay can work without Siri, but as we’ve seen, with limited capability.
CarPlay is the more intelligent and safer way to use your iPhone in the car.
It puts everything you need to do on your iPhone while driving on the car’s display screen. With this device, you can receive directions, call, send and receive messages, and listen to music while staying focused on the road.
The purpose of CarPlay is to minimize distractions while driving, and Siri is an excellent tool for doing so by performing tasks hands-free.
How Do I Turn Off Siri on Apple CarPlay?
Drivers who find voice control frustrating and distracting can turn off Siri. However, when you turn off Siri on CarPlay, you’ll lose ability to control your iPhone as you drive, which could be a problem if you rely on Siri for navigation or hands-free messaging.
Additionally, it may impair your ability to use other features of CarPlay if they depend on Siri.
To turn off Siri on your CarPlay, you’ll need to disable it first on the iPhone.
Here’s how to turn off Siri on Apple CarPlay:
- Open settings
- Tap Siri & Search
- Toggle off “Hey Siri”
- Turn off “Press the Side button for Siri/Press Home for Siri”
- Turn off Siri
Keep in mind that deactivation doesn’t remove Siri, it only turns it off.
Siri isn’t a separate app that can be deleted or removed from the features, as it’s an integral part of the operating system itself.
This means it won’t respond to your commands while using your device, but it will still run in the background.
Conclusion
Siri is a voice assistant that can perform tasks on behalf of the user.
There are hundreds of different commands you can ask, but see the 30 CarPlay Siri commands you might miss out on if you disable Siri.
Carplay allows iPhone users to control their phones through their car’s infotainment system.
Siri is integrated with Carplay, so you miss out on features including hands-free calling, messaging, music playback, and directions without it.
While you can still use some basic functions of Carplay without Siri, it significantly limits what the system can do.
Carplay requires the use of Siri because Apple developed it as a way for iPhone users to have a safe and secure way to interact with their phones while driving.
