Webex is coming to Apple's CarPlay so you can take your meetings on the road
It's getting easier to join your next Webex meeting while on the road. Cisco has added a Move to Mobile feature that makes it easy to switch your Webex session from your computer to your mobile device by scanning a QR code using your phone's camera. And in an upcoming update to Webex Meetings for iPhone, you'll be able to use Apple's CarPlay platform in your vehicle to join and participate in your next meeting.
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Various car manufacturers support Apple's CarPlay platform. Once your iPhone is connected to the car's infotainment system, you'll see a familiar iPhone-like interface with access to Apple's own apps like Maps, Messages and Music, along with third-party apps that have added support for CarPlay.
With Webex supporting CarPlay, you won't have to try and manage the call using the app on your iPhone. Instead, you'll be able to interact with your car's touchscreen to join or leave a call, as well as view your upcoming agenda.
In August, the app will be updated to give you access to previously recorded meetings so you can catch up on anything you may have missed.
During an interview Jeetu Patel, executive vice president and general manager of security and collaboration, had this to say about the addition of CarPlay to Webex Meetings: "We're excited about this news with Apple. We have a great partnership with Apple that we've enjoyed for quite a while across multiple areas. As we go into hybrid work, one the areas that's an area we want to take out the friction, even more, is what happens when you have to restart your meeting?"
I think we've all encountered a time when we've started a meeting on our computer but needed to leave the house for one reason or another and felt tethered to our desk or had to join from a secondary device.
Patel continued, "We have Move to Mobile, a capability we launched, and then we have tight integration that's happening with CarPlay. You'll be able to Move to Mobile to take your meeting right to your phone, and from there, you transfer the call to CarPlay."
In hindsight, CarPlay support feels like an obvious feature that should have been in Webex Meetings all along, making it safer to join and manage your meetings while on the road without having to touch your iPhone at all.