CES 2015: Hyundai’s Android Wear app lets you control your car remotely

The smartwatch market isn’t quite there yet in terms of popularity. Yes smartwatches are selling fairly well, but when compared to smartphones and tablets they’re still lagging behind. But that’s not stopping various companies adopting smartwatches for their own purposes.

Hyundai is one such company, and at this year’s CES the car maker is showing off Blue Link for Android Wear. It’s an extension to an existing smartphone app that actually lets you control your car remotely.

Sadly you can’t use it to drive your car.

What it does do is lets you flash your car’s lights, unlock the door, and even start the engine before you’ve got into it. And before you ask, it is compatible with Google Now. You can actually use this app to start your engine with your voice.

There are some limitations though. You do need to enter a 4-digit security code before you can make any commands, and every command you make has to go through cloud servers first. Because you can’t communicate with your car directly, it means there will be a noticeable delay before your commands take effect. CNET claims that the delay in Las Vegas was around 30-seconds, and users on less congested networks should have a much shorter wait.

The Android Wear version is set to be released in Q1 of this year, and iOS users will be happy to note that Blue Link will be coming to the Apple Watch after it’s been released.

This week we’re bringing you all the latest news, videos and gossip from CES 2015 in Las Vegas. Check out the CES 2015 page to keep up to date and subscribe to our YouTube channel to see hands-on news with our editor Holly Brockwell from the show floor.