Spotify has begun testing its first-ever hardware product called "Car Thing."
As its name suggests, the device is made for cars, and it allows users to bring along a voice assistant on their car rides.
Spotify's First Hardware Is Here
As the company describes it, Car Thing is a voice-controlled music and podcast device. According to The Verge, it plugs into a car's 12-volt outlet or what's known as the cigarette lighter socket, and it connects to the user's phone and car via Bluetooth.
Car Thing has a round screen on the left side that'll display what track or podcast is playing and buttons on the other side for preset playlists, as pictured above. Regarding how it's used, users can say "Hey Spotify" and tell the voice assistant a command.
Users will also link their Spotify accounts to it. That way, they'll have access to their personal playlists and such.
Just For Testing
Spotify announced what to expect from its tests. Apparently, Car Thing was made so that it can "learn more about how people listen to music and podcasts." At that, the company makes it clear that its focus is still on "becoming the world's number one audio platform" as opposed to becoming a hardware maker.
Now it's conducting its tests only in the United States, and only a few Spotify Premium users will get the chance to try it out.
At the moment, there aren't any plans to make Car Thing commercially available. Spotify intends to use the information it can gather from testers using the device to improve its services.
On an interesting note, the company is also planning on carrying out similar tests in the foreseeable future, potentially dubbed "Voice Thing" and "Home Thing." This means that it could have a smart home speaker or something along those lines in the cards, but just like Car Thing, it could just be for testing purposes.
