{"id":488245,"date":"2026-02-20T19:03:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T19:03:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/488245\/"},"modified":"2026-02-20T19:03:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T19:03:08","slug":"these-apple-carplay-widgets-introduced-in-ios-26-could-prove-more-useful-than-you-expect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/488245\/","title":{"rendered":"These Apple CarPlay widgets introduced in iOS 26 could prove more useful than you expect"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Apple iOS 26 introduced new widgets to CarPlay for the first time, and they\u2019re proving more useful than people thought. <\/p>\n<p>As ever, the updated iOS 26 came with a <a href=\"https:\/\/supercarblondie.com\/tech\/10-game-changing-upgrades-with-iphone-ios-26\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\">bunch of updates<\/a> for the iPhone, like its controversial Liquid Glass display and changes to its messaging app. <\/p>\n<p>It also introduced some <a href=\"https:\/\/supercarblondie.com\/ios-26-settings-to-make-apple-carplay-better\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\">new features<\/a> for CarPlay, including that same new display and the ability to <a href=\"https:\/\/supercarblondie.com\/tech\/apple-carplay-changes-ios-26\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\">add widgets<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>And if you\u2019re yet to give them a try, then you could be missing out, as they offer some <a href=\"https:\/\/supercarblondie.com\/tech\/apple-carplay-latest-update-ios-26-dashboard-sidecar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\">very handy shortcuts<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/sbxcars.com\/?utm_source=supercarblondie.com&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-link\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">DISCOVER SBX CARS<\/a> \u2013 The global premium auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The CarPlay widgets can make car trips a little less boring <\/p>\n<p>With widgets being a fairly new introduction for CarPlay, thanks to iOS 26, there\u2019s a good chance you haven\u2019t had a chance to check out which ones are worth having.<\/p>\n<p>But the team over at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.slashgear.com\/2092524\/carplay-widgets-surprisingly-useful\/?zsource=flipboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\">Slashgear<\/a> came up with a handy list of some of the most useful ones.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/supercarblondie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Carplay-feat.webp\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\" data-lightbox=\"179960\" data-title=\"Supercar Blondie\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"100%\" height=\"200\" data-id=\"171069\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Carplay-feat-1024x640.webp.webp\" alt=\"Apple\u2019s iOS 26 introduced widgets to CarPlay for the first ever time, and they can be super handy with everything from launching an impromptu karaoke session to turning on your heating at home\" class=\"wp-image-171069\"   style=\"border-radius: 10px;\"\/><\/a>Supercar Blondie<\/p>\n<p>While CarPlay comes pre-loaded with Siri, if you fancy using an AI-powered voice assistant, then you can download the Microsoft Copilot widget.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For it to work, you\u2019ll need to have your phone unlocked, but once that\u2019s done, you can simply hit the microphone icon on your infotainment screen and ask away.<\/p>\n<p>Next up, there\u2019s a neat little Apple Podcast widget that will allow you to open up the app directly on your car\u2019s infotainment screen.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Although it doesn\u2019t sound groundbreaking, the widget can make life easier, letting you pick up your podcast where you left off or access the latest episodes of your favorites without having to fiddle about with your phone.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/supercarblondie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/carplay-1-3.webp\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\" data-lightbox=\"179960\" data-title=\"Apple\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"100%\" height=\"200\" data-id=\"179963\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/carplay-1-3-1024x640.webp.webp\" alt=\"Apple\u2019s iOS 26 introduced widgets to CarPlay for the first ever time, and they can be super handy with everything from launching an impromptu karaoke session to turning on your heating at home\" class=\"wp-image-179963\"   style=\"border-radius: 10px;\"\/><\/a>Apple<\/p>\n<p>If music is more your thing, then the Dynamic Lyrics widget could be right up your street.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The app will display the lyrics of whatever you\u2019re listening to via Spotify or Apple Music onto the screen so your passengers can enjoy an on-the-road karaoke session or finally discover that they\u2019ve been singing the wrong words for years.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Click the star icon next to supercarblondie.com in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=supercarblondie\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Google Search<\/a> to stay ahead of the curve on the latest and greatest supercars, hypercars, and ground-breaking technology<\/p>\n<p>Widgets you never knew you needed in the car <\/p>\n<p>Amazon shoppers need never miss a delivery again, as you can download the Amazon widget straight to CarPlay and receive updates while on the go.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If there\u2019s a package on its way, you can also fire off a quick message to whoever is at home to let them know.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>You can also set it to remind you to stop off at an Amazon Locker or Counter to pick up or drop off a package on your way home.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/carplay_info-e1770694324536.webp.webp\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\" data-lightbox=\"179960\" data-title=\"SB Media\/ChatGPT\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"100%\" height=\"200\" data-id=\"179965\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/carplay_info-e1770694324536.webp.webp\" alt=\"Apple\u2019s iOS 26 introduced widgets to CarPlay for the first ever time, and they can be super handy with everything from launching an impromptu karaoke session to turning on your heating at home\" class=\"wp-image-179965\"   style=\"border-radius: 10px;\"\/><\/a>SB Media\/ChatGPT<\/p>\n<p>And on the subject of \u2018home\u2019, you can also control your smart home gadgets and gizmos using CarPlay by downloading the Apple Home or Google Home widgets.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>So, you can turn on your heating, open your garage door, or switch on your lights all from your car\u2019s screen.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>You can also use it to turn off any smart appliances you might have left on by accident.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDISCOVER SBX CARS:<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/sbxcars.com\/?utm_source=supercarblondie.com&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=article-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" style=\"color: #0074ff;\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Apple iOS 26 introduced new widgets to CarPlay for the first time, and they\u2019re proving more useful than&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":488246,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[49,48,190,61],"class_list":{"0":"post-488245","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mobile","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-mobile","11":"tag-technology"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/488245","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=488245"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/488245\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/488246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=488245"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=488245"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=488245"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}