Remember the guy who made an Apple Watch app that allows users to control the Tesla Model S? Apparently, he got a bit tired of talking to his wrist, so he’s now conversing to his iPhone. In fact, this is a three-way chat since it involves Siri.
To put it shortly, Rego Apps developed an application that uses Siri to issue hands-free commands to the Tesla. You can use this from outside the car, to unlock it, for instance, as well as from the cabin.
The later part means the driver, but also a passenger, can perform actions such as opening the sunroof or turning on the lights.
The app developer offers us a pretty interesting example of a situation when you could use the app from outside the vehicle.
“Imagine that you're at home and it's hot out. You're busy showering, but will be heading out soon. Your hands are wet and your phone is sitting at the sink. You shout, "Hey Siri, cool down my Tesla!" The app issues the command to your Tesla to turn the temperature down to its lowest setting, turn on HVAC, and vent the roof. The app gives you back an audio confirmation (I plan on using a British female voice - like the James Bond's remote control BMW),” the man explains on Youtube.
The shortcomings
However, the app is still in the work-in-progress phase and there are two types of things we need to talk about here. The first is the sort of light details that doesn’t bring too much of a drawback given that it’s not installed yet. For instance, the audio feedback mentioned above will be delivered through “a British female voice - like the James Bond's remote control BMW.”
We do have an issue with the delay of the system though and when the man uses the app to sound the honk, the amount of time between the command and the execution is obviously too large.
Nevertheless, the developer explains that running a solid WIFI connection and using an iPhone 6 would speed things up. Still, as he admits, you can only move so quickly when you have two filters to pass - first of all, Siri has to process the initial command and then Tesla’s servers need to process that and send it to the car.
So, at least for now, this looks like something we’d just use for the fun of it, not for the actual effect.
In his quest to bring you the most impressive automotive creations, Andrei relies on learning as a superpower. There's quite a bit of room in the garage that is this aficionado's heart, so factory-condition classics and widebody contraptions with turbos poking through the hood can peacefully coexist. Full profile
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