Ford’s new Digital Experience brings Android and Apple into balance

I’m seeing treble arsenic I cruise down the road successful a 2024 Lincoln Nautilus, a hybrid-powered SUV nether Ford’s luxury brand. I person Apple Maps moving connected the halfway touchscreen, projecting from my iPhone via Apple CarPlay. I’m besides seeing the aforesaid representation mirrored close above, taking up astir a 4th of a monolithic show that spans the magnitude of the dashboard.

That surface is the 48-inch Panoramic Display, which runs connected Android Automotive OS, Google’s autochthonal conveyance level (not to beryllium confused with the telephone projecting Android Auto). It merges what’s really 2 pieces of curved solid successful a mesmerizing and cinematic fashion, combining the instrumentality clump with infotainment and immoderate widgets. In the Nautilus, the full strategy is called the “Lincoln Digital Experience.”

But similar astir modern cars, erstwhile carnal controls are being sucked into the integer satellite of the screen. To set airflow, I person to bash the happening that galore drivers dread doing: switching retired of CarPlay navigation to the car’s autochthonal interface. But to my delight, arsenic the Lincoln’s onscreen draggable integer airflow accommodation controls instrumentality implicit the 11.1-inch cardinal display, Apple Maps continues to tally connected the Panoramic Display above.

I commencement to get it. Most cars instrumentality an either-or attack with native-vs-projected operating systems. A fewer vehicles, similar the Polestar 2, tin besides task Apple Maps to its instrumentality clump screen. But the Lincoln’s larger, uncrowded pano show elevates the acquisition to the adjacent level.

Some automakers contiguous are successful a tug of warfare with Apple and Google due to the fact that drivers are successful emotion with their phones and similar to usage their mobile device’s interface implicit the car’s mill offering. Some manufacturers person made the arguable determination to either discontinue telephone projection (GM) oregon never adhd it successful the archetypal place (Rivian and Tesla). But Ford is staking retired a antithetic position: it thinks it tin bash both.

And to the company’s credit, I deliberation it works. Ford is embracing lawsuit choice, and the caller Nautilus provides what I deliberation is the champion equilibrium of telephone mirroring and built-in bundle that we’ve seen yet.

Three years successful the making

Ford’s been moving connected its caller infotainment strategy for a fewer years now, successful a hunt for the optimal bundle supplier that has taken the institution from Microsoft to Blackberry — and present to Google. Ford and Google struck a six-year woody successful 2021 to bring Android Automotive wrong “millions” of vehicles, and the Lincoln Nautilus is the archetypal to diagnostic the fruits of that deal.

The concern meant Ford would usage Google arsenic its unreality supplier for its connected conveyance services, promising features similar Google Assistant dependable power to alteration clime settings, automotive-approved Android apps, and over-the-air bundle updates.

In an interrogation connected Decoder, Ford CEO Jim Farley said he’d lone privation his teams moving connected navigation bundle if it were amended than the 1 connected smartphones. “An Android oregon a Google Automotive Services gives america a accidental to truly person a unchangeable platform,” Farley said.

Ford is present rolling retired its caller Android-based “Digital Experience” crossed its conveyance lineup. The company’s strategy is to spell large with screens successful the luxury conception and pare things backmost successful vehicles like the 2025 Explorer — portion besides balancing its still-supported but comparatively slow QNX-based Sync 4 system, similar successful the 2024 Maverick.

The machine connected wheels is simply a smartphone

Overall, Lincoln’s Digital Experience has maine believing that automakers are yet capable to present competent and intuitive infotainment. That said, I’m inactive connecting my iPhone. After all, that’s benignant of the point.  

I get a seamless modulation from Google Maps connected some the halfway and pano screens to Apple Maps via CarPlay. I participate and exit the conveyance aggregate times, and astir of the time, everything instantly connects, prevention for immoderate constricted blacked-out halfway surface delays, particularly erstwhile connected wirelessly. I person akin occurrence with my Google Pixel 8 Pro projecting to the Nautilus via Android Auto. It’s benignant of comic seeing Google Maps and Assistant replacing, well, Google Maps and Assistant.

My expectations are usually debased with in-car software. But the Nautilus feels much similar a capable, high-end Android instrumentality — and it adjacent has Google Play Store apps. The accustomed suspects similar Spotify and YouTube were already preinstalled, and I effort a crippled called Asphalt Nitro 2, which performs good connected the touchscreen arsenic I swipe an autopiloting racecar successful antithetic directions. (I didn’t effort playing with a Bluetooth crippled controller, but it’s supported.)

Games and streaming video apps lone enactment portion parked, and successful the Nautilus, it works connected the halfway touchscreen, but not connected the pano display. Lincoln is including a caller “pano mode” successful the 2025 Navigator wherever games and video tin enactment connected either broadside of the large screen, but this relation isn’t disposable successful the Nautilus. And not each Google Play Store apps are there; I can’t download Netflix during my testing, but Amazon’s Prime Video is available, and I watched immoderate Shah Rukh Khan Bollywood classics. (I forgot to log out, truthful bask the escaped movies, Lincoln.)

I played immoderate euphony from Sirius XM vigor and from my phone, and the 28-speaker Revel Ultima 3D audio strategy sounds great. The euphony widget connected the close of the pano show displays medium art, and you tin power the euphony with a nifty touchpad connected the steering instrumentality (although, sometimes, your thumb tin gaffe and prime the incorrect point connected the onscreen grid, benignant of similar swiping connected an Apple TV remote).

There’s besides Google Assistant, which tin judge dependable commands to alteration car settings similar in-cabin somesthesia but couldn’t judge elemental navigation requests for immoderate reason. Lincoln communications manager Anika Salceda-Wycoco aboriginal tells maine that it was a mistake connected their portion due to the fact that they utilized the aforesaid Google relationship crossed aggregate cars successful the fleet, and it disabled the function.

Regardless, dependable would beryllium your lone enactment to alteration destinations connected the move, arsenic the onscreen keyboard does not popular up unless you’re parked. Annoyed, I pulled implicit and manually typed the code to my 2nd destination connected this trip. I’ve gotten utilized to my Tesla Model 3’s interface, wherever my woman could benignant the code connected the surface for maine portion successful question — but that’s not imaginable successful the Nautilus. Siri worked good successful CarPlay mode, but I can’t inquire it to bash things similar crook connected my AC seats.

2024 tech astir of the time

But not each is chummy betwixt the Lincoln and the smartphone interfaces. They bash sometimes abruptly snatch each different onscreen. For instance, calling up Google Assistant portion CarPlay is moving creates an disfigured modulation to the built-in Lincoln interface. Same for erstwhile you’re successful the Lincoln interface and you’re abruptly backmost successful CarPlay erstwhile a substance connection comes. The upside is I person small contented wirelessly switching from CarPlay to Android Auto. A speedy leap into Bluetooth settings lets maine power betwixt my iPhone 13 Mini and Pixel 8 Pro without hassle, which has not been my acquisition successful different vehicles.

Coming from Tesla’s Autopilot, which flashes a bluish surface erstwhile you’re not paying attention, activating BlueCruise was a small startling. After I swiped my thumb connected the steering wheel’s near touchpad and selected the corresponding container for BlueCruise connected the onscreen grid, the Lincoln’s instrumentality clump went each bluish — sharply retired of sync with the tranquil taxable elsewhere connected the pano display.

Lincoln’s menus connected the touchscreen, however, enactment similar a breeze, with gorgeous animations moving successful Epic’s Unreal Engine and a almighty processor with capabilities that intelligibly lucifer immoderate gaming Android phones. 

Even with each the processing power, Lincoln’s not doing excessively much. You’re not getting a ace elaborate interactive 3D exemplary of the Nautilus you tin rotation astir similar Tesla does with its Cybertruck oregon colorful illustrations similar wrong a Rivian. But you get tasteful and swift transitions, a chill 3D whirlwind animation of rider seats showing who hasn’t buckled up, and a futuristic PS5 aura-looking taxable connected the pano display.

It surprises maine that the immense pano show isn’t excessively information-dense, and I ne'er consciousness overwhelmed oregon annoyed with the placement of things similar the substance bar, speedometer, transmission mode, oregon remaining mileage (which, by the way, is often rather a batch — the Nautilus went astir 500 miles for maine connected 1 tank). And Lincoln enactment the show precocious capable that I find it little distracting than immoderate heads-up displays I’ve seen. For immoderate reason, though, erstwhile you accelerate, a wavy mana-looking barroom increases horizontally, which astir feels similar a situation to spell faster.

Beyond the screen

The existent crushed anyone should look astatine the Nautilus is the astonishing pano display. The aboriginal of cars is surely each successful the software, and it feels similar Ford has a bully happening going, striking the champion equilibrium yet betwixt in-car infotainment and the fashionable phone-based systems that astir radical prefer. I was beauteous overmuch sold arsenic soon arsenic I opened the doorway and it introduced maine to a afloat Nautilus intro animation connected the pano display, with waves animating to the sides and timely airy streaks connected the door.

The screens enactment good enough, but not everyone wants them. Surveys person shown increasing customer dissatisfaction with in-car tech, particularly touchscreen software. People are overwhelmed, and Ford’s effect seems to beryllium to adhd much screens, which is not a warrant for success. I person personally owned a 2014 Lincoln MKZ hybrid and see myself tech-savvy. Longtime Lincoln fans who admit much carnal controls (or astatine slightest dedicated interaction buttons) connected erstwhile procreation models, however, could find the integer acquisition excessively overwhelming for their taste.

But if they’re not, and Lincoln customers spell gaga implicit the caller screens, Ford could person stumbled connected the close look to marque it, Apple, and Google each adjacent winners successful the contention to power the in-car experience.