5 Reasons To Buy And 3 Reasons Not To Buy Spotify Car Thing
You’re not to blame if you don’t know what a Spotify Car Thing is. Spotify launched this device less than a year ago, and it was the company’s answer to Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. However, this is a whole different thing.
Spotify Car Thing connects to your phone’s Spotify app. You then plug it into your car’s power socket and mount it wherever you want. The device has a 4-inch touch screen along with a dedicated knob and a couple of buttons for quick and safe access to music.
So why are we talking about it now? Spotify has discontinued the Spotify Car Thing, and it selling its remaining stock for $49.99. So if you own an old car that has Bluetooth but no screen, here are 5 reasons to buy the Spotify Car Thing and 3 reasons to steer clear of it.
5 reasons to buy Spotify Car Thing
1. Great value for old cars
It is dangerous to fiddle around with your phone while driving. You may find your jam and lose your driving license in the process. The Spotify Car Thing adds a touchscreen with knobs and buttons optimized for easy access while driving.
The device features a big knob for navigating through tracks and adjusting the volume. Other than the knob, there are 4 programmable buttons on the top, along with a settings button next to the knob. So if you have a car that has Bluetooth connectivity but no screen, this is a good enough reason to buy the Car Thing.
2. Multiple mounting options
You get 3 different mounts with the Spotify Car Thing. There’s a vent mount, a CD mount, and a dash mount. It comes with a magnetic hold, so you can easily dismount the device and take it with you when you leave the car.
It comes with a standard auxiliary car outlet to USB adapter that fits the socket in most old cars, so you need not have a USB outlet for it either. The dismounting option is particularly good if you want to avoid someone breaking your car window to steal a $49 thing.
3. Voice controls
Making it even safer while driving, the Spotify Car Thing has a “Hey Spotify” feature which lets you play music using your voice. While it isn’t as polished as Google Assistant, Siri, or Alexa, it is a neat feature for this device.
Spotify has added 4 dedicated microphones to the Car Thing to make voice recognition easier even with background noise.
4. Spotify library
If you’re already using Spotify, then this could be a good way to use it in your car. It has an optimized interface for car use and connects to the vast Spotify library that already has most of the tracks one can think of.
5. Available at a good price
If you have an old car and a Spotify premium account, the Spotify Car Thing was already a value proposition at the original $89.99. However, now that it is discontinued, you can grab it for $49.99, which is a steal.
Not just a car, if you have an old home theater system and no TV to connect it to, you can use this $49 gadget to bring your Spotify library to it.
3 reasons not to buy it
1. No maps or any other apps
Let’s be honest. This is a light and inexpensive device for Spotify only, but it should’ve had some more functionality to it. You can use it to cast navigation or route or even use any other music service. The device doesn’t even sport an equalizer, which, for a ‘music streaming’ device, is just sad.
However, if you spend slightly more, you can fit your old cars with a proper third-party stereo like the Pioneer AVH-W4400NEX or the Sony XAVAX5500. Both these options bring Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity but cost over 10 times more than Spotify Car Thing.
2. Needs Spotify premium
You need a Spotify premium subscription to use this device. So it isn’t a one-off investment. It is a monthly commitment, and if you stop paying that, you won’t be able to use the device anymore.
3. Not a standalone device
Spotify Car Things requires you to keep your phone connected at all times. It isn’t a standalone device, but just a medium for you to safely go through your music library while driving.
Should you buy Spotify Car Thing?
At the current $49.99 price, it is a good deal, and if you have an old car that has Bluetooth but no display, this is one of the most inexpensive ways to add a good bit of functionality to it. If you can live with its above-mentioned quirks, then you get to use its features too.
While Spotify has had to discontinue the device, we think there is some potential, and it could be one of the options that you can consider while seeking advanced features for an older car. If you think we missed any points in favor of it or against it, do let us know in the comments.
