Mercedes gets handy with Apple Watch app

Mercedes gets handy with Apple Watch appImage Credit: Mercedes-BenzImage Credit: Mercedes-BenzImage Credit: Mercedes-BenzImage Credit: Mercedes-BenzImage Credit: Mercedes-BenzMore PhotosHottest Cars and Trucks in AmericaMost Popular Cars By StateOur Picks For The Best $5,000 Used CarsCars That Depreciate FastestHistory's 10 Best Selling Cars Of All TimeWard's 10 Best Engines of 2015Noah Joseph

Whether you yourself have been caught up in Apple Watch fever or not, automakers have been embracing the new wearable device one after the other. The latest is Mercedes-Benz.

The MB Companion App for the Apple Watch initially focuses on seamless navigation. Punch in your destination on your watch or iPhone and it'll port over to the onboard navigation system in your Merc. Park the car, get out and the directions will switch back over to the Apple Watch to guide you from your parking spot to your destination on foot. It's similar to the app Mercedes had designed for Google Glass, only in this application it actually stands a chance of catching on.

Designed by Benz's Silicon Valley R&D center, the Apple Watch app is being rolled out this fall in the new C-Class and S-Class equipped with the COMAND Online navigation system. It's earmarked to to spread to other models as well, with further updates to the app planned to allow it to display the vehicle's fuel level, range, odometer and maintenance code.

Of course, Mercedes isn't the first automaker to release an app for the Apple Watch. It's not even the first German automaker to do so: BMW previewed its app for the device back in September, and Volkswagen got on board earlier this month.
Show full PR textMercedes-Benz to introduce new App: Guided all the way: Mercedes-Benz is one of the first to introduce Door-to-Door Navigation with Apple Watch

May 15, 2015

Stuttgart/Sunnyvale. Mercedes-Benz creates an intelligent integration between Apple Watch and Mercedes-Benz vehicles with its new MB Companion App. The MB Companion App allows Mercedes-Benz costumers to search for directions on the Apple Watch or on iPhone initiating a complete door-to-door experience. A seamless integration unfolds: giving walking directions to the car on the Apple Watch, driving directions on the vehicle navigation system and again walking directions on the Apple Watch from the car to the final destination.

The destination that the driver selects on Apple Watch is passed to Mercedes-Benz COMAND Online once the driver starts the vehicle. He then receives safe and non-distracting driving directions to his selected destination from Mercedes-Benz navigation. When the driver parks and leaves his car, Apple Watch gives him walking directions to the final destination making it the perfect guide for "Last Mile Navigation".

The new Mercedes-Benz C-Class and S-Class vehicles equipped with COMAND Online will be able to work with the MB Companion App as of fall this year. Further models will follow soon. By then, the MB Companion App will also enable drivers to find vehicle information such as Fuel Level, Range, Maintenance Code, and Odometer Readings on Apple Watch.

Mercedes-Benz Research & Development North America (MBRDNA) – the agile innovation center in Silicon Valley has worked together with Daimler development experts from Sindelfingen to enable Mercedes-Benz to make this new Door-to-Door navigation available for customers. With its culture of collaboration, networking, innovation and creativity, Mercedes-Benz's team in Silicon Valley established a track record in integrating Silicon Valley innovations into vehicles.Featured GalleryMB Companion App for Apple Watch

Read more »

Mercedes Launching “MB Companion” Apple Watch App—Here’s a Sneak Peek

Mercedes Launching "MB Companion" Apple Watch App – News – Car and Driver | Car and Driver Blog Car and Driver - Intelligence. Independence. Irreverence. VehiclesAcuraFiatLincolnRamAlfa RomeoFordLotusRolls-RoyceAston MartinGMCMaseratiScionAudiHondaMazdaSmartBentleyHyundaiMcLarenSpykerBMWInfinitiMercedes-AMGSubaruBugattiJaguarMercedes-BenzTeslaBuickJeepMercedes-MaybachToyotaCadillacKiaMiniVolkswagenChevroletKoenigseggMitsubishiVolvoChryslerLamborghiniNissanDodgeLand RoverPaganiFerrariLexusPorscheView AllReviewsFirst DrivesInstrumented TestsComparison TestsLong-Term TestsArchived ReviewsView All ReviewsNews2015 NY Auto Show2015 Geneva ShowBlogFuture CarsAuto ShowsView All NewsVideoCar and Driver VideoYouTubeFeatures10Best Cars2015 Editors' Choice2014 Editors' ChoiceColumnsGearboxTech Dept.View All FeaturesBuyer's Guide2015 Editors' Choice2014 Editors' ChoiceShopping AdviceGet a Free QuoteUsed Car ListingsView Buyer's GuideSubscribeMagazineDigital EditionGive a GiftNewsletterText AlertsCar and Driver Store Backfires Skip to navigation Skip to main content Skip to secondary content Skip to footer Home >News > 'Featured' > Mercedes Launching “MB Companion” Apple Watch App—Here’s a Sneak Peek Mercedes Launching “MB Companion” Apple Watch App—Here’s a Sneak Peek May 12, 2015 at 3:24 pm by Jens Meiners SHARE TWEET

Sometimes it’s worth staying to the very end of an event. Such as last week, when Daimler R&D chief Thomas Weber used his closing speech at the Vienna Engine Symposium to make an announcement that deviated from the regular talk of new powertrains, efficiency targets, transmissions, hybrids, and the like: He confirmed that an app is coming for Benz owners who happen to own an Apple Watch.

Like Weber, the Mercedes-Benz Companion App deviates a bit from the script followed so far by the first batch of automaker Watch apps in that it offers just one function at launch, namely door-to-door navigation. A user enters a destination via the Apple Watch or an iPhone, and the watch then leads its owner to their Mercedes. At that point, your in-car COMAND navigation system—to which you’ve previously paired—takes over to provide road guidance. Once parked, pedestrian directions are again provided via your wrist.

Mercedes told German site Computer Bild that as it adds features, it wants to limit them strictly to those most viable for the Apple Watch, and not cram in functions for the sake of, well, functions. Possibilities include remotely checking the fuel level, whether the doors are locked or unlocked, your car’s speed and location information, etc.

Apple Watch and Your Car: A Rundown of Automaker AppsApple Watch App for Tesla Model S Now Exists—Because Apple Watch [w/ Video]Ford Sync 3 Brings Wireless Updates, Gesture Control to New Ford Dashboards

MB Companion will launch this fall in Europe and the U.S. At first, it will be compatible only with the current C-class and S-class, but expect access to be opened up shortly to more countries and additional Mercedes-Benz models.

SHARE TWEET

Research Vehicles Select a Make Acura Alfa Romeo Aston Martin Audi Bentley BMW Bugatti Buick Cadillac Chevrolet Chrysler Dodge Ferrari Fiat Ford GMC Honda Hyundai Infiniti Jaguar Jeep Kia Koenigsegg Lamborghini Land Rover Lexus Lincoln Lotus Maserati Mazda McLaren Mercedes-AMG Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Maybach Mini Mitsubishi Nissan Pagani Porsche Ram Rolls-Royce Scion Smart Spyker Subaru Tesla Toyota Volkswagen Volvo Select A Model (optional) Make ResearchOverview Get a Quote News and Reviews722 x 4 = 2888: A Quartet of Special Mercedes-Benz SLR McLarens Trots Through Stuttgart - Car NewsMercedes-Benz Readies Three New Roadsters - Car NewsMercedes G-Class Gets More Horsepower and Colors, Same (Very) Old Shape - Car NewsYou Ain't No OG: Mercedes G-Wagen Clone Appears at Shanghai - Car News2015 Mercedes-Benz CLS400 4MATIC - Instrumented TestMercedes-Benz Concept GLC Coupe: It's a "Coupe" Version of the GLK Replacement - Auto ShowsMercedes-Benz: Our Pickup Won't Be a "Fat Cowboy Truck" - Car News2015 Mercedes-Benz ML250 BlueTec 4MATIC - Instrumented TestDaimler R&D Chief: G-class Could Go "Sustainable", V-12 Lives On, and No Three-Cylinders - Car NewsMercedes Pickup To Be Based on Nissan NP300 (a.k.a. Our Next Frontier) - Car News Advertisement RECENT NEWSMercedes Launching “MB Companion” Apple Watch App—Here’s a Sneak Peek2015-05-12 19:24:58Chevy Recalls 469,000 Malibus for Faulty Seat Belts2015-05-12 18:33:51FTC Sides with Tesla, Derides State Bans on Direct-to-Consumer Auto Sales2015-05-12 17:08:14This Stirring History of Stirling Moss’s Historic 1955 Mille Miglia Win Is 8 Minutes Well Spent2015-05-12 16:38:49Plug-in and Hydrogen Mazdas Coming, Courtesy of Toyota2015-05-12 15:35:59Hella Cats, Bro! Have a Gander at Dodge’s Hellcat Mascot Sketches2015-05-12 15:04:40Self-Driving Cars Have Been in 4 Accidents in California Since September [Update: Google Responds]2015-05-12 14:36:36“Are We There Yet?”—the Euro Version, Starring Opel’s Family Truckster2015-05-12 14:23:252015 Ford F-150 Recalled for Broken Steering Shafts2015-05-12 13:17:45Watch McLaren’s Current F1 Drivers Channel Senna in MP4 Racers Old and New2015-05-11 23:01:35View All News facebook twitter you-tube rss REVIEWS First Drives Instrumented Tests Comparison Tests Long-Term Road Tests Specialty Files From the Review Vault NEWS Spy Photos Auto Shows Blog FEATURES Hybrid Cars Electric Cars Columns Tech Department Gearbox 10Best Shopping Advice Video BUYER'S GUIDE 2015 Editors' Choice Ford F-150 Jeep Wrangler Ford Escape Honda Accord Jeep Grand Cherokee ABOUT CAR AND
DRIVER Subscribe Mobile User Sitemap Contact Us Subscriptions/
Customer Service Website Feedback FOLLOW US Backfires RSS Facebook Twitter YouTube © 2015 Hearst Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved., Privacy Policy | Your California Privacy Rights | Terms of Use

Read more »