What is the Spotify Car Thing? Reason behind discontinuation explored as streaming service issues statement

Spotify has recently confirmed that they are discontinuing Car Thing after December 9 this year. An email for the same has been sent to the users. The service started back in February 2022 and it lets any user have control over the streaming service via car speakers when they are connected to a phone with the use of voice recognition and preset buttons.

Spotify shared a statement on their official website, confirming that Car Thing won't be operational anymore towards the end of 2024 and added:

"We have made the decision to discontinue Car Thing. This means that Car Thing will no longer be operational. This decision wasn't made lightly, and we want to assure you that our commitment to providing a superior listening experience remains unchanged."

The sudden news of the discontinuation also led to a lineup of reactions on social media platforms. A few users asked for a refund since the overall cost of the device is $90. While speaking to Fast Company, a spokesperson for the company said that they were aiming to check "how people listen in the car." The spokesperson continued:

"In July 2022, we announced we'd stop further production and now it's time to say goodbye to the devices entirely."

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Spotify has informed users through email that they are discontinuing Car Thing: Reasons and other details explained

Spotify Car Thing was available for a premium subscription worth $89.99 and the company had added a few software updates while delivering the device to the public in 2022. However, before being made available to the general public, it was accessible only for Premium users, as per TechCrunch.

As mentioned, the company has sent an email to the users and it reads in part:

"While this chapter is closing, we're working on new, innovative ways to enhance your drives in the future. Thank you for being on this journey with us, safe travels."

The company also requested the public through their support page to reset their devices and dispose of them when they stop working. They additionally told users to get in touch with the "state or local waste disposal department" to get a better idea of the disposal process.

Spotify wrote on its website that they have discontinued the service since it is working to "streamline" the services they provide to consumers. The Car Thing is a small device that has two buttons on the front and a knob that would let people interact with anything that appears on the screen.

Considering that there was no speaker when the device was given a limited release in 2021, it was referred to as a remote from the streaming platform. Despite that it was available for everyone from February 2022, the company decided to discontinue it in July of the same year after their quarterly earnings were affected. In a conversation with TechCrunch, a spokesperson said:

"Based on several factors, including product demand and supply chain issues, we have decided to stop further production of Car Thing units. Existing devices will perform as intended. This initiative has unlocked helpful learnings, and we remain focused on the car as an important place for audio."

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A little more about Spotify Car Thing and its working process

According to Motor Trend, the Car Thing can be easily connected to the car through an aux cable, USB, or Bluetooth after being linked to the phone. There is a touchscreen and a few buttons for easy navigation. For the ones who are willing to avoid tapping, there is a small back button on the right side.

Other facilities include four buttons on top and users can also say "Hey, Spotify" to listen to their favorite song or podcast. The device version which came out in February 2022 also had Night Mode, which could adjust the brightness of the screen, and an "Add to Queue" voice command, which can add music and podcasts to the queue by speaking.