Apple has announced the official arrival of CarPlay (previously known as iOS in the Car). This feature will make its way to existing iOS 7 devices in the form of an update. However, only the iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c and iPhone 5 are supported as this feature requires Lightning-enabled devices.

It features all the essential features required for a car and is based primarily on Siri voice commands which will read out texts/voicemails, answer calls or revert back to missed calls etc. This is something Apple calls the “eyes-free” experience which will not distract the drivers unlike conventional car media systems. As expected, Maps is one of the core features of this setup and will provide voice assisted navigation whenever required.

In addition to supporting a range of core iOS functions, CarPlay will also feature several third party apps such as iHeartRadio and Spotify for your music needs while on the go. A variety of car manufacturers have teamed up with Apple to bring this on their cars including the likes of BMW, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai Motor Company, Jaguar Land Rover, Kia Motors, Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan Motor Company, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Subaru, Suzuki and Toyota Motor Corp. Many of these manufacturers will ship cars with CarPlay this year. Apple is expected to show off this new feature with Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo vehicles at the Geneva Motor Show later this week.

The VP of iPhone and iOS Product Marketing at Apple, Greg Joswiak said – “CarPlay has been designed from the ground up to provide drivers with an incredible experience using their iPhone in the car. iPhone users always want their content at their fingertips and CarPlay lets drivers use their iPhone in the car with minimized distraction. We have an amazing lineup of auto partners rolling out CarPlay, and we’re thrilled it will make its debut this week in Geneva.”