Apple announces 'iOS in the Car' hands-free system

Apple has announced the next generation of in-car iPhone integration with its latest software update, iOS 7, named 'iOS in the Car'.

Next year will see carmakers including Honda, Mercedes Benz, Nissan, Ferrari, Chevy, Infiniti, Kia, Hyundai, Volvo, Jaguar, and Acura offering Apple's new iOS in the Car system, developed to let drivers use key iPhone functions via the dashboard screen.

Drivers will be able to make phone calls, play music, display Apple Maps and receive iMessages either by using the car's controls or through voice commands to Apple's voice-recognition program, Siri, which can also read iMessages aloud and write new messages as part of Apple's Eyes Free feature set.

iOS in the Car was announced at the company's Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, USA, alongside a number of Apple products and updates. Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of software and services, said: "Ninety-five percent of cars sold today have integrated music playback and control from an iOS device, but we want to take this integration to a whole new level."

Cue did not announce which models will get iOS in the Car and whether or not it will be standard or an optional extra.

By Rufus Thompson