Sync

[Sharon Tyler]

I’m curious about users opinions on Sync. I find it so non-user friendly. I am an Uber driver and I like listening to audio books while I’m working but I want to be able to have music playing for my riders at the same time. If it is possible to do that, I haven’t figured out how. I also don’t like sync loading automatically; I want the option of controlling when it loads without having to turn Bluetooth off on my iPhone. My AirPods understand my voice commands much better than Sync’s microphone does. Opinions?

 

[5280tunage]

Not really sure I understand what you're asking.

- are you asking is it possible to have two different sources playing at the same time?: Not unless you have the rear seat entertainment I believe. I haven't messed with it enough but maybe you can with the rear seat controls.
- are you asking if it's possible to prevent voice commands?: I believe in the settings (can't check right now for you as my cars in the shop), you can disable voice commands entirely.

Or was it neither of those? In general I would say Sync is just like 80% of the factory systems out there. I will say it's integrated with vehicle features pretty well, like the climate controls, seat controls, etc. Some others like Mercedes have done a better job but honestly for an American brand, it's pretty good. I like it better than the previous GM's, but the new GM's have a bit better setup.

 

[Sharon Tyler]

Yeah I was wanting to play my audiobook through my AirPods and my Apple Music through the car stereo speakers for the other people in my car. Not possible I guess.

 

[mwl001]

Yeah I was wanting to play my audiobook through my AirPods and my Apple Music through the car stereo speakers for the other people in my car. Not possible I guess.

No - in what car would this be possible, I’m wondering?

 

[5280tunage]

Not only that, but the phone (neither iPhone or Android) would allow two simultaneous bluetooth audio streams to two different devices. At least I've never seen that, I can't even do that from a full features laptop for example.

 

[Sharon Tyler]

Yeah, lol, I don’t know what I was thinking

 

[techdude99]

I’m curious about users opinions on Sync. I find it so non-user friendly. I am an Uber driver and I like listening to audio books while I’m working but I want to be able to have music playing for my riders at the same time. If it is possible to do that, I haven’t figured out how. I also don’t like sync loading automatically; I want the option of controlling when it loads without having to turn Bluetooth off on my iPhone. My AirPods understand my voice commands much better than Sync’s microphone does. Opinions?

I would recommend a separate device for your audio books. As mentioned, the current technology in general doesn't offer the features you want.

I've compared Sync 3 to a few other auto brands and Ford had one of the better interfaces. None are close to perfect.

 

[NyackRob79]

My biggest gripe with Sync is when it's connected via Apple Play. Going from Waze-Apple Play to say - changing the display brightness once it turns dark literally requires 7 clicks. Our Volvo has a much more seamless Apple Play integration, which only takes up a portion of the (much larger display), and still allows instant access to all other functions. The fact that Sync treats Car Play as a separate application that requires exiting and entering in order to get to the crucial vehicle functions is short sighted. I hope Sync 4 with its huge screen mitigates this problem.

 

[5280tunage]

My biggest gripe with Sync is when it's connected via Apple Play. Going from Waze-Apple Play to say - changing the display brightness once it turns dark literally requires 7 clicks. Our Volvo has a much more seamless Apple Play integration, which only takes up a portion of the (much larger display), and still allows instant access to all other functions. The fact that Sync treats Car Play as a separate application that requires exiting and entering in order to get to the crucial vehicle functions is short sighted. I hope Sync 4 with its huge screen mitigates this problem.

Sadly it doesn't, at least not the vehicle i'm in with sync4. Although it is the smaller display, so i'm not sure if the larger display gives more options with more screen space.

 

[techdude99]

My biggest gripe with Sync is when it's connected via Apple Play. Going from Waze-Apple Play to say - changing the display brightness once it turns dark literally requires 7 clicks. Our Volvo has a much more seamless Apple Play integration, which only takes up a portion of the (much larger display), and still allows instant access to all other functions. The fact that Sync treats Car Play as a separate application that requires exiting and entering in order to get to the crucial vehicle functions is short sighted. I hope Sync 4 with its huge screen mitigates this problem.

The 2020 S60R Volvo screen was clear & intuitive for me but I missed the HVAC and other buttons. The sales droid couldn't figure out how to hook up my wife's iPhone without syncing her address book. We didn't know at the time that CarPlay doesn't save the address book to vehicle memory. Android Auto appeared to save it.