Ford Vehicles With SYNC 3 to Offer Full Waze Integration Beginning in January
Ford will offer full integration of Waze navigation in vehicles equipped with SYNC 3 over the coming weeks, thanks to the service’s compatibility with Ford SYNC AppLink. New 2018 Ford vehicles with SYNC 3 v3.0 or higher will be able to project Waze navigation directly to their touchscreens; other SYNC 3-compatible vehicles will also be able to receive the update that brings in Waze integration through an over-the-air update or via USB.
“Our goal is to bring a human-centered approach to technology in the vehicle, making it as easy as possible for people to integrate the tools that matter most to them,” said Don Butler, Ford executive director, Connected Vehicle and Services. “With the flexibility of our SYNC 3 software and AppLink, customers can easily use Waze to get all the traffic and navigation help they need—on a big screen and without having to fiddle around with their phones while driving.”
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To project Waze to a Ford vehicle’s touchscreen, drivers need only plug their smartphone into the vehicle’s USB port. This will enable easier and clearer access to Waze’s features, including the newly-added Talk to Waze voice command function and Spotify integration. Waze is a real-time traffic and navigation app that allows its community of users to report everything from road hazards to speed traps to traffic jams, making daily commutes all the easier to bear.
“Since announcing the partnership between Waze and Ford at Mobile World Congress 2017, we’ve been working hard to optimize and evolve the experience for the driver community,” said Jens Baron, product lead for B2B and in-car applications at Waze. “We are happy to showcase our partnership with Ford through AppLink SDL (SmartDeviceLink) on iOS—a seamless in-car navigation experience that connects Waze navigation to your car’s console.”
With SDL, Waze guidance is presented onto the driver’s in-car screen and new features are made available as soon as they are released,” Baron added. “With SDL, drivers get the most updated version from Waze—with all the new features and design releases, the same as driving with Waze on your phone.”
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