Since 2019, Spotify has been working on “Car Thing,” a voice-controlled music and podcast assistant. After Spotify announced Car Thing, little else was said, but it looks like the company is gearing up for some sort of launch.
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In January, Car Thing appeared in the FCC files, and now images of Car Thing have been located in the Spotify app code. MacRumors collaborator Steve Moser we find several images of the Car Thing, which give us a clear view of the new device.
The original Spotify Car Thing had a small circular screen with several controls available on a side panel, but the new version features a much larger rectangular screen that has a design closer to a smartphone, along with a large remote and a smaller button.
We don’t know what the control button or the smaller button do, but Spotify’s FCC file described Car Thing as a “voice-controlled accessory for the Spotify phone / app with display and support buttons”. It is Bluetooth compatible and can communicate with the main units of the car and is powered from a 12 V socket.
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Also included are photos of various mounts in the Spotify app, indicating that Car Thing can be connected to a dashboard or mounted on a car respirator and may be sold with these mounting options. There are indications that the addresses will be compatible with some capability, perhaps through the Waze / Spotify partnership.
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When Car Thing was announced, Spotify said it was a test device developed to help the company understand more about how people listen to music and podcasts and that there were no plans to make the device available to consumers. . However, Spotify has continued to work on this device for the past two years and has significantly changed its design, suggesting that it could finally be released.
The Spotify app also has code for paid subscriptions to podcasts as the company prepares to launch its Anchor podcasting tool. Eventually, Spotify will launch a paid podcast subscription feature, but some basics need to be established first. Spotify paid podcasts will allow registered Anchor creators to offer paid podcast subscriptions that their listeners can subscribe to.
There is another new feature for podcasts that stands out: comments. In the Spotify app, there is code to leave comments on podcasts, which is not currently available. Spotify users will be able to comment on podcast episodes, and creators will be able to respond.