Mercedes-Benz drivers can now control certain functions of their car, and find it if they’ve lost it in a particularly large car park, from their Apple Watch.
This is all thanks to a new app that Mercedes has released for the Apple wearable this week. It essentially takes some of the key features of the Mercedes iPhone app, and puts them on your wrist for extra convenience.
Features of the Apple Watch app include being able to remotely lock and unlock your car, access important information like fuel level, range or battery charge status, and check if the windows are open or closed.
The new app can also be used to check the location of your car. Once it has been located, the app will show pedestrian-friendly directions for getting back to it – handy if you forgot to make a note of where you parked at the airport long-stay.
It could also help you locate your car if you’ve lost it in a festival field, and it’ll help even if there’s no phone signal or data service, thanks to a virtual compass that points you in the right direction.
These features already exist in the Mercedes smartphone app – and you’ll need that app on the phone paired with your Apple Watch for the new wearable app to work – but having such functionality on your wrist is a welcome upgrade nonetheless.
Mercedes says the app works on cars from 2019 onwards, and your Apple Watch needs to be running WatchOS 9 or later. You’ll also need at least version 3.50.0 of the Mercedes-Benz iPhone app.