Your BMW or Mini car gets a great Christmas gift from the BBC

(Image credit: BMW)

By Chris Hall

published 19 December 2024

in News

Quick Summary

BMW and Mini are the first car brands to have the BBC Sounds app on their own app store.

That means you can install the app directly on the car without the need for a smartphone.

Driving home for Christmas? Can’t wait to see those faces? Undoubtedly you’re top to toe in tailbacks, which is where this update coming to BMW and Mini cars could be the best gift that you get all year.

BMW and Mini are the first car brands to integrate the new BBC Sounds app directly into their app store, so you can catch up on music from Radio 1, comedy from Radio 4 or all those BBC Sounds podcasts, directly from the car.

That means you won’t have to use your connected smartphone via Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, as the car’s own systems will do it for you. You’ll have to have a car that runs BMW or Mini Operating System 9, which is the latest version of the tech currently on the road.

Once installed, you’ll be able to sign into your BBC account, which will synchronise your listening history to the car, so you can easily keep track of where you get to in a series. That will then mean you can easily get access to all the BBC audio content, to keep yourself entertained or informed, whether that’s late-night dance music or the infamous Newscast.

You will need to have a car that’s connected, of course, so that means you’ll need the BMW Digital Premium or Mini Connected Package. Some drivers might have this on their car already, some might get a free trial or some may have already subscribed. If you have, you’re good to go – head into the app store and install BBC iPlayer to keep yourself entertained when driving home for Christmas.

What else does BMW have planned for in-car tech?

BMW has been really active on the in-car technology front recently, move over to an Android-based system for Operating System 9 as it looks to speed up development. BMW has been quite open about saying that it wants to own the experience and doesn’t want to just hand it over to third-party platforms like Apple CarPlay.

There’s going to be a big jump forward in 2025, with the launch of the Neue Klasse models, which is expected to be spearheaded by the new 3 Series. There’s going to be a preview of the new in-car tech at CES 2025, which BMW says will show off the future of in-car experiences.

The Neue Klasse concept focused on a panoramic iDrive display, so it's likely that BMW will be showcasing exactly what that looks like and what is to be expected at the Las Vegas tech show.

One thing is for sure – you’ll be able to get BBC Sounds on it.

Chris has been writing about consumer tech for over 15 years. Formerly the Editor-in-Chief of Pocket-lint, he's covered just about every product launched, witnessed the birth of Android, the evolution of 5G, and the drive towards electric cars. You name it and Chris has written about it, driven it or reviewed it. Now working as a freelance technology expert, Chris' experience sees him covering all aspects of smartphones, smart homes and anything else connected. Chris has been published in titles as diverse as Computer Active and Autocar, and regularly appears on BBC News, BBC Radio, Sky, Monocle and Times Radio. He was once even on The Apprentice... but we don't talk about that.