2020 Lexus RX infotainment Review: Embracing CarPlay and Android Auto

Like Toyota, the Lexus brand is supposed to exist a luxurious culling, but that wasn't always the case on the infotainment side. Until this year, where the floodgates are now starting to open wider.

A lot can happen in a few years. It wasn't all that long ago that Toyota and Lexus stood business firm in choosing non to prefer CarPlay and Android Car. That'southward no longer the case, and both brands are better for information technology as far every bit the infotainment experience is concerned.

Not only did Lexus start to play ball with Apple and Google, but its engineers too reimagined how they wanted drivers to interact with the system. Enform, Lexus' past branded infotainment platform, is still kicking around, only information technology now serves a reserve role in other respects.

I got to try all this out in a Lexus RX 450h to come across what the new-look setup could practice.

The basics

Previously, Lexus had what they called a Remote Bear upon system that was like a joystick-and-mouse constructing. It was intuitive when it wanted to exist, but also had little to work with at the fourth dimension.

The newer Remote Touch is more than a trackpad than annihilation else. It features haptic feedback, splitting things into four quadrants, merely offers plenty of costless-flowing action in moving effectually selections onscreen. It'due south also larger than the older iteration, and feels more ergonomic than I initially expected.

At that place are too some customizations available, similar adjusting the speed from slow, normal or fast, along with three settings for feedback force, equally in how strong the haptics would be. Given this is a bear upon-sensitive pad, the speed and forcefulness are relative to how comfy you lot get in navigating the interface with less attempt. I'll impact that further down.

The model I collection was the Luxury trim ($69,000 CAD all in) and information technology included the larger 12.three-inch letterbox display. Information technology's an 8-inch variant on the standard trim without any addition packages. It's a touchscreen, so the Remote Touch pad isn't the only input pick, merely given how deep and recessed information technology is in the dash, it'due south not as convenient to reach out and touch it. This is possibly a purposeful pattern philosophy, but I don't know for sure.

Lexus' Vocalism Command platform still takes precedence whenever a phone isn't plugged in to run CarPlay or Android Auto. It has the same "training" regimen to familiarize itself with your voice, but there is an odd omission. When pairing an iPhone via Bluetooth, I couldn't get Siri Eyes Free to work. I knew that Lexus had previously mapped that to the call button on the steering wheel, rather than the vox button. Just in both cases, it was Lexus' voice that piped up — even later on doing a long printing.

Layout and connections

At that place were two USB ports in the storage bin of the centre panel that ultimately proved to be the ones necessary for telephone projection. CarPlay and Android Auto only worked for me when plugged into either ane of those, as opposed to the two ports situated right in the front nether the climate command buttons.

Interestingly, at that place were as well two 12-volt sockets, and they fifty-fifty threw in an Aux-In port for wired playback, which is an increasing rarity nowadays. SiriusXM was preloaded, as it comes with a standard 3-month trial for new drivers.

With Bluetooth, the SUV can shop upwardly to four devices, though just one can stay paired at any one fourth dimension. A driver and rider couldn't be paired at the same time, for instance. I was surprised Lexus left this out back in 2017 and am equally so this time equally well. It actually simplifies things for drivers who behave personal and work devices, or for those sharing the automobile and need access. Other luxury brands do offering that kind of connectivity, though in fairness, not all of them do.

As I expected, at that place is no in-motorcar Wi-Fi hotspot despite an embedded SIM menu within. That connection does play a unlike role that I will cover later, simply in whatsoever case, in-automobile data plays no serviceable role for passengers here, particularly children in the back.

Wireless charging is simply available on the Executive trim, lumping it in with various other select features, including the fifteen-speaker Mark Levinson sound system. The lack of wireless charging is unfortunate for a vehicle at this price point, and probably should be at that place on all trims in a higher place the standard 1, only Lexus opted to go on information technology as a premium-only feature.

Alexa integration

This may not be the integration you're thinking of. You won't be talking to Alexa within the cabin, like some vehicles in the U.s. come equipped with. This is nigh using Alexa at home or on any uniform device to gain limited remote access to the car.

For example, in my testing, I said, "Alexa, enquire Lexus to start my car," and "Alexa, ask Lexus to check if my doors are locked." The Lexus skill in Alexa offers the kind of integration you would normally notice within the Lexus Enform Remote app. Remote start/stop, lock/unlock, odometer readings and gas levels are the basics of what yous tin can tap into here.

This is where the in-car SIM comes in handy, however there are a few caveats to consider. Outset, this feature requires an Enform Remote subscription. Without that, yous can't link the car to your Amazon account. Second, it won't piece of work if yous alive in a condo or apartment and park undercover where the signal won't get through. Even if you lot park in an open area, it could accept upward to 60-seconds before the auto responds to the command. I found this to be more useful on colder days starting the car to get the heat going inside (or to cool it on really hot days in the summer).

Despite its limitations, it's a cool way to interact with a vehicle, particularly because it's then hands-gratuitous. It is a new feature, though, and that'due south why it's currently only available on Lexus' RX, RX 450h, select NX and NX 300h models, UX, UX 250h, ES, ESh and RC.

Enform Remote app

Technically, there were two apps that worked with the RX 450h. There was the regular Lexus app and the Lexus Enform App Suite app. Of the two, the former is the one that offers the remote access I mentioned. The latter is supposed to integrate into Enform's App Suite in the infotainment organisation to display compatible apps.

There's just one issue: there aren't whatever. Unlike in the U.S. and other markets where there might be something to utilise, Canada has no integration that way. So, it's otherwise a expressionless characteristic.

The regular Lexus app, on the other manus, is not. In lieu of Alexa, this is the way to remotely control the bones functions of the vehicle. You can also set up a guest account for a teen or friend borrowing it to give you some insight into whether they exceed your settings. Even though in that location is an in-car navigation map, y'all tin can't send a destination address through the app to the car, like other makes and models do.

CarPlay and Android Auto

Improve late than never might redress the lack of availability in previous years, though many are nevertheless left out in the lurch without a way to upgrade. With this and other 2020 models, calculation CarPlay and Android Auto too comes with a new input method to work them.

The Remote Touch pad is responsive and easier to manage than you might think, but I believe years of using a laptop trackpad was a big factor in adopting it then speedily for me, personally. Information technology's besides good timing for Android Auto, where the newer filigree layout is better suited for how this pad works, also.

When running either platform, their respective vocalisation assistants are more than prominent. You tin can still admission Lexus' at any time with a short press of the voice push, whereas a long printing will trigger Siri or Google Assistant. One thing I never got to work really well was easily-gratuitous access to those assistants. If I said, "Hey Google," or "Hey Siri," nothing happened. I always had to use the voice button to raise them.

The larger screen also comes with some productive upside. Information technology can split the view into a 1/3 or 2/iii layout, making it possible to have, say, CarPlay on the larger infinite, and something else, like the time or a map on the other, for instance. This also fits well with how the trackpad works because it will motion the highlighted cursor from one section to another when it runs out of existent estate. It does mean a fair fleck of swiping sometimes, only not as much when at that place's a menu bar of shortcuts lined up at the bottom.

These two platforms are too the but real mode to receive and reply to text messages. While I canonical admission to the system to get my text messages (later pairing via Bluetooth), I never actually heard them unless I went through the menu to hear them. I also had no fashion of responding using Lexus' own voice platform. Without CarPlay and Android Car, in that location was no real hands-costless option to respond to a bulletin. I triple-checked in the voice preparation and motorcar manual just to brand sure, but there is no mention of existence able to answer to incoming messages by voice.

I will say, though, that Lexus has improved how well it interprets words. That was a trouble for me in the last review, simply there weren't equally many mistakes this time. It was meliorate with streets and addresses, and making phone calls was a breeze.