Alpine to release CarPlay-enabled console this fall

Car electronics manufacturer Alpine will begin selling standalone aftermarket audio consoles that support Apple's new CarPlay interface for vehicles. Japanese newspaper Nikkie reports that Alpine is planning on releasing an aftermarket stereo console supporting CarPlay that will hit the U.S and European markets later this year and cost $500 to $700 plus installation. The Alpine system will be compatible with the iPhone 5 and newer models and can be used to view maps from their phones on the seven-inch screen and use voice commands to perform other functions like play music, make calls and even read out messages. Apple announced its in-vehicle OS earlier this year and said it would be available in number of new cars from manufacturers such as Mercedes Benz, Volvo and Ferrari among others. This would have meant that users would have had to purchase new cars to be able to use the new system. Alpine is not the only company looking to offer such a console. Car device maker Clarion is also working on a CarPlay-enabled system and plans to support the OS in other products as well, according to MacRumors. The aftermarket stereo segment has take a hit lately largely because most manufacturers offer deeply integrated platforms in most vehicles. Many of these systems cannot be swapped out, like customers used to do in the past. Still, Alpine and Clarion will look to customers with older cars to take advantage of the new consoles.