After Spotify made announcements regarding its simplified Car View mode back in 2019, it looked like a smart move to prevent drivers from being distracted while driving. After connecting to their car via Bluetooth, it would remove irrelevant elements, for example, menu buttons along with album art. Replacing them, Spotify provides users with large buttons to pause/play the music; jump to the previous or next track; or like a specific song. We hope you haven’t gotten yourself attached, as Spotify has confirmed it is “retiring” this feature, as per a recent support thread via Android Police.
A Spotify moderator, who was replying to a user who had noticed the feature’s disappearance from his Android app, commented that Spotify is “actively exploring a plethora of new ways to deliver the best in-car listening experience.” They added that removing car views is necessary in order to “make way for fresh innovations.” Despite seeming reasonable enough, it doesn’t excuse dumping a genuinely useful safety feature, that too before there is a clear replacement.
The moderator had also suggested using Google Assistant/ Siri for iOS users to control Spotify without having to indulge their hands, something which would also work while navigating with Google/Apple Maps.
There is a possibility that Spotify is de-prioritizing Car View as there are other ways to handle music playback in cars. If you happen to have a modern car that supports CarPlay or Android Auto, you will be interacting with your in-dash display and would never really see Car View in action. Numerous vehicles made in the past decade have some sort of media control provided on the steering wheels.
There’s a more nefarious objective, as mentioned by Spotify users in the forum thread. It could be the company pushing people towards Car Thing, its $80 display accessory. It might seem like a useful upgrade for older cars; on the same note, it also seems redundant when you could just mount your phone to control Spotify directly. Well with the removal of Car View mode, though, the strange gadget suddenly seems helpful. In cases like this, the simplest explanation usually boils down to the companies realizing certain features aren’t being used as often as intended.
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