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Spotify has already found a home on millions of phones. Now it’s looking to land on car dashboards as well, with the widespread launch of its Car Thing. As a first-generation device, it’ll have to prove its worth, which may be why Spotify’s R&D chief likens it to the Amazon Kindle, which seems to have done all right for itself over the years.
CNET’s Joan Solsman talked at length with folks at Spotify to bring us an exclusive back-story look at the $90 Car Thing — “a souped-up Spotify remote control for your ride,” she calls it — and how it came to be, and where it might go from here. Meanwhile, colleague Lexy Saavides has been an early user of the Car Thing, and she shares that experience in a first-look video.
Those pieces are among the many in-depth features and thought-provoking commentaries that appeared on CNET this week. So here you go. These are the stories you don’t want to miss.
Spotify’s Car Thing Is About to Face the Music
Two million raced onto a waitlist for Spotify’s first hardware. Now that it’s on sale, Spotify’s real road test must prove Car Thing’s more than a goofy name.
James Martin/CNET
AirTags Are Linked to Stalking, and Apple Can’t Solve This Problem Alone
Apple needs to work with Google, Samsung, Tile and other rivals to find a fix, privacy experts say.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Netflix Is Trying No-Binge Release Schedules for Shows. It’s About Time
Commentary: Not everyone can handle streaming services dumping all episodes at once.
James Martin/CNET
Canceling an Online Subscription Shouldn’t Be a Nightmare
Here’s what you need to know about the tactics companies use to keep people from leaving.
Sarah Tew/CNET
It Takes a Village: Solving the Broadband Adoption Problem in Rural America
It will take more than infrastructure to get rural and tribal communities online.
Elizabeth Carpenter/Orleans Digital Literacy Initiative
Watching Me, Watching You: How Eye Tracking Is Coming to VR and Beyond
Leading eye-tracking company Tobii has some ideas about why this is the next great leap for immersive tech.
Victor de Schwanberg/Getty
Elden Ring Is a Much Bigger Game Than You Think It Is
If you want to get the most out of FromSoftware’s latest open world action-RPG, make sure you have lots of free time.
From Software / Namco Bandai Games
Motorola Exec: Smart Glasses Are the Future, But They Won’t Replace Phones
The phone will still be the center of our digital lives when smart glasses emerge.
Scott Stein/CNET
Disney’s Galactic Starcruiser Isn’t a Star Wars Hotel. It’s Like Living Inside a Video Game
I stayed inside the pricey two-day experience, and it’s more involved than I could imagine.
Bridget Carey/CNET
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Spotify’s Car Thing, Demystified
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