The past 20 years of hand-car interconnection have witnessed a technological revolution without a "protagonist".

The 2024 Guangzhou Auto Show has concluded. As a leading brand in domestic new energy vehicles, BYD showcased its four major brands: BYD (including Dynasty and Ocean series), Tengshi, FANGCHENGBAO, and YANGWANG. Among them, the Tengshi Z9GT, billed as the "world's first D-segment technology luxury flagship GT," attracted numerous visitors at the exhibition.

As the first model resulting from the collaboration between BYD and OPPO, the Tengshi Z9GT showcases extensive hand-car interconnection capabilities. Navigation flow, application continuation, voice control, privacy mode, and off-car safety reminders are among the many hand-car interconnection features that make travel more convenient and intelligent for users.

Source: Weibo Screenshot

In fact, the collaboration between BYD and OPPO is just one of the notable recent examples of accelerating hand-car interconnection integration. Amidst rapid technological development, many automotive companies and mobile phone manufacturers have realized the immense potential of their integration, a trend that is profoundly reshaping the ecosystem of intelligent transportation.

01. Twenty Years of "Hand-Car Interconnection"

In reality, "hand-car interconnection" is not a new concept.

In 2004, Nokia and BMW collaborated to launch the Nokia Car Kit CK-1W, one of the world's first products to achieve mobile phone and car interconnection via Bluetooth. This product provided a novel solution for mobile phone and car interconnection and inspired many subsequent similar technologies.

It wasn't until 2011 that, based on a profound understanding of hand-car interconnection technology, Nokia and the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC) jointly launched MirrorLink technology. This technology supported in-vehicle displays for navigation, music, phone calls, messages, and other functions, enabling the first mirror projection of mobile phone screens onto in-vehicle systems. It was adopted in some models from Samsung, Sony, and Nokia, as well as in some car brands like Volkswagen and Citroen. MirrorLink technology can be considered pioneering in the deep integration of mobile phones and in-vehicle systems and is regarded as the starting point of modern hand-car interconnection technology.

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At that time, traditional in-car entertainment systems were criticized for their complex interfaces and limited functionality, while smartphones, with their smooth operation and rich ecosystem, became indispensable devices for many people on the move. Apple also recognized that this trend presented new market opportunities for intelligent in-car systems.

Against this backdrop, Apple proposed a novel concept: seamlessly connecting iPhones to cars, extending familiar mobile phone functions into vehicles to provide users with a more convenient and engaging driving experience. Thus, in March 2014, Apple's CarPlay intelligent in-car system emerged.

The core functions of Apple CarPlay leverage the computing power and rich application ecosystem of iPhones to provide drivers with navigation, music playback, phone calls, messaging, and other functions, while presenting a simple and safe operating interface to minimize driving distractions. Subsequently, luxury automakers such as Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, and Volvo were among the first to adopt CarPlay, enhancing its market recognition and gradually introducing consumers to the novel experience of "hand-car interconnection".

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Perhaps recognizing the significant impact of Apple CarPlay and the vast potential of the hand-car interconnection field, other manufacturers quickly followed suit to accelerate their layouts in this area.

Just two months after the official release of Apple CarPlay, in June 2014, Google introduced the Android Auto intelligent in-car system. Relying on Android's vast user base and diverse application ecosystem, Android Auto also aimed to achieve deep interconnection between mobile phones and in-car systems, becoming a direct competitor to Apple CarPlay.

Domestic internet giants were equally eager to catch up. In January 2015, Baidu launched CarLife, a new hand-car interconnection solution, becoming the first cross-platform hand-car interconnection solution in China. One of its significant advantages is its cross-platform compatibility, supporting both Android and iOS systems, which allows users of any mobile phone to experience the convenience of hand-car interconnection.

Source: Official Website Screenshot

Since then, various hand-car interconnection solutions, including Ali's YunOS for Car, Tencent's in-car open platform, Huawei's HiCar, OPPO Car+, vivo Jovi InCar, Xiaomi CarWith, and Meizu Flyme Link, have been successively released. With domestic internet and mobile phone companies entering the market, hand-car interconnection has exhibited diverse and rapid development, continually expanding and deepening its scope.

Especially in terms of functional expansion, hand-car interconnection is no longer limited to entertainment and basic information display, as it was in its early stages. Instead, it has evolved to include intelligent driving assistance integration, personalized customization upgrades, and multi-device collaboration, offering numerous new features and experiences. Additionally, in terms of technical optimization, as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, UWB, and other connectivity technologies continue to improve, hand-car interconnection technology has adopted more advanced communication protocols and algorithms to ensure the stability of mobile phone and in-car system connections.

02. Differentiation Strategies of Leading Players

Hand-car interconnection is evolving from the "1.0 Single Connection Era" of mobile app-controlled vehicles to the "2.0 Interconnection Era" of seamless switching between mobile phones and in-car systems. However, even in this new stage of seamless hand-car interconnection, different manufacturers have varying approaches and models. According to "QuJieShangYe" observations, there are at least three differentiated strategies for implementing hand-car interconnection technology at this stage.

The first strategy involves projecting mobile phone content onto the in-car system, with the mobile phone serving as the computing terminal, and the in-car system primarily handling UI and interaction functions. This approach is represented by Apple CarPlay, Meizu Flyme Link, and Huawei HiCar.

Source: Official Website Screenshot

Taking Apple CarPlay as an example, it utilizes the powerful computing capabilities of iPhones to run various applications. Complex computations behind functions such as navigation and music playback are all handled by the phone. The in-car system primarily projects content from the phone and displays the corresponding UI interface, facilitating driver operation of the projected phone functions within the vehicle.

However, this approach relies heavily on the mobile phone. If the phone malfunctions, runs out of battery, or is not present, the corresponding functions projected onto the in-car system may not function properly. Moreover, it has high requirements for compatibility between the mobile phone operating system and the in-car system, necessitating good adaptability between the two to achieve stable and smooth projection.

Nonetheless, Meizu's Flyme Link mobile domain technology, which follows a similar path, is more powerful than Apple CarPlay. It not only provides simple projection but also enables shared computing power between Meizu phones and in-car systems. When a Meizu phone connects to a car, it provides hardware and computing support, enhancing the in-car system's performance and enabling features such as application flow and relay, surpassing the limitations of traditional mobile phone projection models where the in-car system serves only as a display and simple interaction terminal.

Source: Weibo Screenshot

The second strategy involves using a super account ID system to provide a connection path between mobile phones and in-car systems, enabling seamless cross-scenario connection. For example, Tencent's Smart Mobility provides "hand-car interconnection" capabilities, allowing users to log in to different devices (mobile phones and in-car systems) with a unified account to achieve seamless connection across different scenarios.

However, this approach requires high integration of application and service ecosystems, necessitating that participating application developers, automotive manufacturers, and others adhere to a unified account system standard for development and adaptation. Otherwise, some functions may not achieve complete seamless connection.

The third strategy involves integrating the underlying operating systems of mobile phones and in-car systems to achieve seamless connection based on the same operating system. Examples include Xiaomi's Pengpai OS, Huawei's HarmonyOS, and NIO's Sky OS.

Taking Xiaomi's SU7 car equipped with the Pengpai OS system as an example, it leverages distributed technology to enable hardware assistance and resource sharing between mobile phones and in-car systems. When both devices are equipped with the Pengpai OS system, applications can seamlessly switch between them. For instance, a navigation application used on a mobile phone can be seamlessly switched to the in-car system upon entering the vehicle, maintaining previous settings and progress, significantly enhancing user experience continuity and convenience, realizing true device integration.

Source: Official Website Screenshot

Meanwhile, Xiaomi's Pengpai OS is more open and scalable in terms of ecosystem integration. It not only supports Xiaomi's own mobile phones and in-car devices but also connects to third-party devices such as Xiaomi tablets and Apple iPads through standardized interfaces, enabling control of some in-car hardware and interconnection with more in-car devices, forming a larger and richer "human-car-home ecosystem".

However, this approach requires both mobile phones and in-car systems to use the same operating system, posing significant promotion challenges for automotive and mobile phone manufacturers. Moreover, due to the numerous brands and existing ecosystems in both the automotive and mobile phone industries, transitioning to a specific operating system requires substantial resources for adaptation and promotion. Therefore, this approach is typically only feasible for cars and phones of the same brand.

Considering these three common approaches, each has unique advantages and characteristics, driving the deep integration of mobile phones and cars to varying degrees and meeting diverse user needs. However, integrating the underlying operating systems of mobile phones and in-car systems can provide a more seamless interconnection experience for users. Facing the future era of the Internet of Everything, a unified distributed operating system will inevitably become one of the core competencies essential for manufacturers.

03. "Expanding the Circle" in Progress

As former Star Era Meizu Chairman and CEO Shen Ziyu said, "Car manufacturers without the empowerment of mobile software will gradually fall behind." Today, the relationship between cars and mobile phones is being restructured.

Whether it's the Tengshi Z9GT, the first hand-car interconnection model resulting from the collaboration between BYD and OPPO, the "Hand-Car Interconnection and Integration Joint Innovation Lab" established by Volkswagen and vivo, or some models from Lynk & Co and Geely Galaxy equipped with Meizu's Flyme Auto intelligent cockpit operating system, as well as NIO's self-developed NIO Phone, these initiatives represent clear examples of active exploration and deep layout in the field of hand-car interconnection. They also indicate that the boundaries between the automotive and consumer electronics industries are becoming increasingly blurred, with both industries moving towards a new "era of integration" together.

Source: Weibo

While hand-car interconnection seems to have various capabilities, it actually faces many unresolved challenges, with the most critical being the existence of "interconnection barriers."

Due to the numerous automotive brands and diverse in-car systems on the market, ranging from closed systems independently developed by traditional automakers to various in-car operating systems customized based on open-source systems like Android, there is a lack of uniformity. On the consumer electronics side, mobile phone operating systems are primarily Android and iOS, but different brands have deeply customized these systems, resulting in unique underlying architectures and function settings.

For example, to enable a car equipped with Meizu's Flyme Auto intelligent cockpit operating system to interconnect with mobile phones other than Meizu phones, various factors such as different mobile phone system versions and chip architectures must be considered. This necessitates extensive adaptation and debugging work.

Therefore, although hand-car interconnection functions have developed comprehensively, they operate independently, forming relatively closed business ecosystems rather than achieving true "Internet of Everything." For instance, to experience the full functionality of Huawei's HarmonyOS cockpit, Meizu's Flyme Auto intelligent cockpit operating system, or Xiaomi's Pengpai OS's "human-car-home ecosystem," users must use the corresponding manufacturer's mobile phone products. While this approach creates a business closed loop for manufacturers, it poses an invisible barrier for consumers.

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This closed ecosystem exposes an industry issue: the gap between multiple mobile phone brands and operating systems, similar to the rivalry between Apple and Android camps in the smartphone era, each with its advantages and disadvantages.

To address these challenges, many manufacturers have begun increasing cooperation, attempting to enhance the user experience by "expanding their circle of friends."

On September 28, 2021, led by mobile phone manufacturers such as Xiaomi, OPPO, and vivo, and with the preparation of organizations including Changan Automobile, Geely Holding, SAIC Motor, Alfawise, Thundersoft, and China Automotive Technology & Research Center, the ICCOA Intelligent Connected Car Open Alliance (ICCOA) was officially established. This alliance aims to promote the interconnection and user experience between mobile phones and cars by conducting research and promoting the application of related scenarios, technologies, and standards for intelligent terminal and car interconnection and collaboration.

On the latest ICCOA Carlink 1.5 vehicle connectivity protocol launched by the alliance, its functions place greater emphasis on deep adaptation and integration with domestic mainstream mobile phone brands and vehicle infotainment systems, supporting seamless connection between mobile phones and vehicle infotainment systems, as well as cross-device sharing of applications and services. As of now, 8 mobile phone brands (OPPO, vivo, Xiaomi, OnePlus, Realme, iQOO, Redmi, Meizu) support the Carlink 1.0/1.5 protocol, with over 250 million devices supported.

Image source: Official website screenshot

Meanwhile, many automakers are actively expanding cooperation and exploring diverse development paths for mobile-vehicle connectivity. Among them, Huawei has collaborated with numerous automakers, including Thalys, Chery, BAIC, JAC, Dongfeng Nissan, and others, through the HarmonyOS Smart Travel ecosystem alliance. In just one year, it has achieved remarkable brand building and sales growth, with cumulative vehicle deliveries exceeding 500,000 units.

In addition, Feifan Automobile now supports interconnectivity with OPPO, VIVO, Xiaomi, and other mobile phones, becoming the industry's first mobile-vehicle connectivity solution that transcends mobile phone brand boundaries. This open strategy aims to maximize coverage of different mobile phone user groups and provide users with a convenient mobile-vehicle connectivity experience.

04. The New Stage of Mobile-Vehicle Connectivity

It can be said that intelligence has become the second half of competition in the automotive industry, and the intelligent experience of mobile-vehicle connectivity has become one of the key selling points for major manufacturers. So, what will be the next stage of development for mobile-vehicle connectivity?

Overall, mobile-vehicle connectivity has already reached the level of supporting applications such as mobile phone keys, navigation flow, and integrated desktops, showing an explosive trend. Next, with the iterative upgrade of the vehicle's E/E architecture and the trend of cabin-driving integration, mobile-vehicle connectivity is likely to experience a further improvement in interactive experience.

Currently, the vehicle's electronic and electrical architecture has entered the era of cross-domain integration. According to data from the "Gao Gong Intelligent Automobile Research Institute", starting in 2024, cross-domain centralized computing platforms (cabin-driving integration, HPC+ZCU) will enter the pre-installed mass production cycle; it is expected that by 2030, their market share will exceed 30%.

Image source: Weibo screenshot

Automobiles urgently need automotive chips with higher performance, security, integration, and computing power. Taking automotive-grade MCUs as an example, the next-generation vehicle E/E architecture often requires the integration of dozens of ECUs, which requires automotive chips to not only handle massive data calculations but also ensure stable system operation in complex and changing automotive environments, providing a solid hardware foundation for the development of mobile-vehicle connectivity technology.

With the help of higher-performance automotive chips and the new generation of vehicle E/E architectures, mobile-vehicle connectivity will achieve more powerful computing and data processing capabilities, enabling faster and more stable data transmission and more complex functional interactions between mobile phones and automobiles.

Meanwhile, under the trend of cabin-driving integration, the functions of smart cabins and intelligent driving will be deeply integrated, creating more innovative application scenarios for mobile-vehicle connectivity. For example, when a vehicle travels to a specific area, the intelligent driving system can transmit relevant information to the smart cabin and simultaneously synchronize the information to the mobile phone via mobile-vehicle connectivity, providing users with personalized services such as nearby points of interest recommendations and optimized navigation routes, realizing a seamless connection between the driving experience and lifestyle services.

Furthermore, the iterative upgrade of the vehicle's E/E architecture and cabin-driving integration will generate a large amount of data, including vehicle driving data, user behavior data, and environmental perception data. Through mobile-vehicle connectivity, this data can be effectively integrated and analyzed between mobile phones and vehicle infotainment systems, uncovering more valuable information and providing users with more precise personalized services, such as recommending suitable routes, music, and restaurants based on users' driving habits and preferences.

This data also has significant commercial value for automakers and mobile phone manufacturers, which can be used to optimize product design, improve service quality, and conduct precise marketing, thereby driving the intelligent development of the entire automotive industry.

Image source: Canned image library

Objectively speaking, there are still many issues with mobile-vehicle connectivity at this stage. For example, system compatibility is insufficient, and interconnectivity barriers can easily arise between different brands of mobile phones and automobiles due to differences in hardware and operating systems, leading to poor connection stability; interruptions and lags often occur in complex environments, and functionality is limited, such as poor application interaction experience and voice control that needs improvement.

Therefore, although mobile-vehicle connectivity demonstrates huge development potential and a promising future, to truly achieve all-round, high-quality, and deep integration, automakers, mobile phone manufacturers, and all parties in the relevant industrial chain must work together to overcome the many challenges ahead. Only in this way can mobile-vehicle connectivity truly enter the lives of more users and become a standard feature of people's intelligent travel experience.