Polestar’s new smartphone seems to be a step above Android Auto and CarPlay
Polestar teased at the Guangzhou Auto Show late last year that it was working on its own smartphone, with Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath saying CNBC “where you have the ability to connect these two worlds without any boundaries… then you can really have a seamless transition.”
Now images have surfaced on the Chinese website Weibo (via Android Police) of the Polestar production phone, with deliveries expected to begin in the domestic market at the end of April.
Specs are sparse, but we do know that the phone is co-developed by Meizu, a smartphone brand owned by Geely, which also owns Polestar and sister company Volvo.
An unboxing video that appeared on YouTube reveals that the design will include four rear cameras and an extremely thin bezel around the main display, while Android Police suggests that it will feature an innovative 21:9 aspect ratio and a screen size of around 6.5 inches has.
But the Polestar phone is more than just a simple branding exercise: the Polestar phone is planned to run Xingji Meizu’s FlyMe OS, an operating system also found in Polestar vehicles sold in China β the recent Polestar 4 is an example of that.
This is due to the fact that both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay do not exist in the Chinese market. That’s why automakers are turning to custom platforms for their infotainment control systems.
βIt’s not just good enough to bring a great European design to China, you have to be very, very special in what you offer to the market when it comes to software,β Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath told CNBC .
Auto Evolution has taken a deep dive into Meizu’s Fly Me Car last year and concluded that it “brings the mobile phone and the car completely in sync”, unlike anything Apple CarPlay and Android Auto can currently do.
The ability to customize wallpapers and backgrounds like you would on a laptop or tablet, run multiple apps simultaneously in different windows, and use the smartphone’s camera for video calls are just a few examples of this seamless integration. Not to mention the ability to use a smartphone as a wireless gaming controller, complete with immersive sound pumped through the smaller speakers.
Where Elon Musk only hinted that Tesla might make its own smartphoneIn response to the idea that Apple and Google could block access to Twitter β or X β from their respective app stores, the EV innovator has yet to confirm anything.
It seems that in addition to slipping EV market share in ChinaTesla is also lagging behind in the kind of technological innovation that could help the company stay competitive.
Analysis: China aims for EV software dominance
While numerous smartphone makers have toyed with co-branded automotive devices, such as OnePlus with its 6T McLaren Edition and the Porsche Design Huawei Mate 20 RS, few have pushed the project to include greater integration with the vehicle in question.
While the Polestar phone will likely help Meizu push the market further with higher-end products (it currently sells mid-range smartphones in China), it also appears that the Swedish brand is increasingly promoting integration with devices and the infotainment systems found are in his stylish electric vehicles.
The ability to access vehicle data and information via Meizu’s AI-powered voice assistant, both in the car and potentially from Polestar’s smartphone, is something we haven’t seen in Western markets yet.
Additionally, the ability to make scheduled maintenance appointments in natural language is something that many manufacturers, including Kia and Hyundai, have teased, but likely won’t become a reality until 2026.
Despite many Western customers owning an iPhone or Android device, the experience of switching from smartphone to infotainment system remains far from seamless. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto typically offer a limited version of your smartphone, rather than becoming an extension of it.
With Chinese smartphone brands such as Huawei and Xiaomi already claiming they will produce electric cars in China, Polestar is doing the smart thing by future-proofing its models with companion devices that work seamlessly with infotainment systems.
Whether it will be a success remains to be seen, but the speed of electric vehicle adoption and innovation in China is breathtaking, and many legacy automakers are finding themselves falling far behind in the tech race.
Polestar’s Geely ownership ensures the brand understands its market and the Polestar phone is the perfect example of delivering solutions its customers clearly want.