T3’s fast-thinking tech roadster plugs in to answer more queries
Q Can I connect my phone to my car wirelessly?
A You’ve probably heard that many big manufacturers are planning to drop support for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, presumably because they are steaming idiots. Well, let’s just say you should enjoy this while it lasts.
The good news is that adapters exist for both platforms that let you go from wired to wireless, even when using a head unit that does not natively support wireless connections. Apple users will want to look at the QuadLock Wireless CarPlay Adaptor (£80), while Android folks must make do with the decidedly more rinkydinkseeming AAWireless (around £60) or one of its countless clones. These sit in your USB port and act as a bridge – once you get in your car and your phone connects to their built-in Wi-Fi, they send what needs to be sent to the car’s screen.
Do be careful, though: these can draw a little bit of power, so you’ll need to unplug them if your car’s USB port decides to deliver juice even with the ignition off. Cars, eh? Who’d have them?
Your current car stereo isn’t user-friendly. It was designed by a sadistic demon focused only on your discomfort
Those with older autos may consider a more extreme upgrade like the Kenwood DMX7722DABS (£430), as long as it fits the dashboard. It does wired and wireless connectivity for both motoring phone platforms, and it’s almost certainly a lot more userfriendly than your current car stereo, which was designed by a sadistic demon focused only on your discomfort. Just make sure you don’t lose access to any screen-based core car functions when switching out.
Q How can I keep the recordings on my DVR?
A GaGu’s favourite ‘reader’ returns with another stumper: he has a bunch of precious things in his box and wonders if anything faff-free can be done to save his special recordings when said box reaches its natural end-of-life. Heck no, Mr Lewin. This is not the age of VHS.
Here’s the thing: you don’t really own those recordings. The law says you kinda vaguely own a theoretical and non-perpetual license to keep one single time-shifted copy of the content in one place. In this sense, the things on your DVR are similar to your hoary VHS copy of the ITV airing of RoboCop where there are inexplicably no swears or penis shootings. Keeping your own tape of that is fine (you do you) but if you were to start dubbing it onto blank E180s in order to make more copies you’d be entering the realm of piracy.
The same would be true of making copies of the content on your cable box. There’s a reason TV providers encrypt the recordings that go onto DVRs. You wouldn’t even need to faff around wi
