What can car accessories mean for you ?

Cars, we see them every day on the road in all sizes, colors, models and brands. For example, French car brands such as Renault, Peugeot, Citroën are known for budget-friendly cars, just like their Asian competitors Hyundai, Kia and Mazda. German brands such as Mercedes, Audi and BMW are known for their cars in the luxury segment. American brands usually do well as innovators, such as Ford who was the first car brand to start mass production thanks to the assembly line and now Tesla, who is currently challenging all car brands in the world to merge classic car construction and modern technologies in our smartphones and tablets to create the ultimate 'Smart Car'.

Today's technology is advancing so fast that it is almost impossible to keep up. In the past, when you bought a new car, you drove 'the new model' for years. Now, your new car is already outdated after a year. Fortunately, you don't have to buy a new car every time to enjoy the latest gadgets. One of the most requested built-in car accessories these days is the navigation screen. Of course, very handy for those who like to travel by car or perhaps even manage to get lost on the way to the supermarket. But did you know that such a navigation screen is almost always an unnecessary luxury? Most likely, you have such a screen in your trouser pocket. That's right, your smartphone!

You undoubtedly use your smartphone every day. As a regular phone for calls and messages, but also as a camera or as a music player. Well, this handy all-rounder is also an excellent GPS device! You have undoubtedly heard of applications such as Google Maps and Waze that guide you to your destination via the mobile data of your smartphone, but even for those who prefer not to use mobile data for their navigation system, there are excellent alternatives. Applications that use offline maps that you can download while you are at home and then use in the car without an internet connection. A good example of this is Sygic, which has been a real added value for both Android and Apple devices for years.

Another accessory that comes standard in new cars, but is most likely not yet built into your car, is a digital DAB radio. The major radio stations want to encourage their listeners as much as possible to listen to their broadcasts via DAB+ in order to completely disappear from FM channels by 2030 at the latest. Some stations are even planning the switch in 2022! Fortunately, you don't have to buy a new car or car radio for that either. Via FM transmitters you can 'broadcast' the music from your smartphone to your car radio. This way you can even listen to your favorite Spotify playlists or podcasts in your car.

You see, with a few simple car accessories for your smartphone you can have the most modern gadgets in your own car and you don't have to buy an expensive Tesla for that. Do you want to learn more about handy accessories for your car? Then definitely read our next blog posts!