For Australian Tesla owners, there’s a new entertainment app showing up in the Theatre app after the most recent software update.
Software update 2022.12.1 has been rolling out across the world and today reached my Model 3 Performance in Australia.
The new app available now is Disney Plus which seems to be doing a great job of hitting every possible platform. This reminds me a lot of the approach of Netflix and Spotify in the early days.
Disney+ adds to what has been a fairly limited set of streaming services, particularly in Australia, joining Netflix, YouTube and Twitch. Internationally Tesla offers Hulu and TikTok but where’s Amazon Prime Video Elon? Is your beef with Bezos really that extensive? What about Apple TV+ ?
The journey to get Disney+ in our vehicles has been a long one that started way back in December, 2019 when Tesla Owners of Massachusetts asked Elon on Twitter for the Disney+ app. He replied ‘Coming soon’.
Now 838 days, or 2 years, 3 months and 17 days later, I have Disney+ in my car. While that certainly feels like a long time to wait, it’s worth remembering that few brands have the infrastructure to execute on this and even more impressive, the desire to respond to customer requests.
For those who don’t own Tesla vehicles, this is only available to be used when the car is in park.
Also new in the 2022.12.1 software update is:
Additional Bottom Bar Customization.
You can now add vehicle controls such as defrost, windshield wipers and seat heaters to the bottom bar. Long press any app icon to enter edit mode, then drag the desired control to the bottom bar.
Child Lock
Child Lock can now be enabled for a single rear door. Tap Controls > Child Lock, and select Right, Left, or Both.
Additional Mobile App Controls
Dog Mode and Camp Mode can now be enabled from the Tesla app. Note: This functionality requires mobile app version 4.7.0.
Note a Tesla App also lists a couple of undocumented changes in this release.
Browser Improvements
The web browser in your car has been updated to provide a better experience.
In addition to being updated to a more recent version of Chromium, there have been several improvements made to make browsing easier and more efficient.
You can now also clear your browser’s history by navigating to Controls > Service and tapping on ‘Clear Browser Data’.
Compass / Always North
The compass, which can also be used as a button to switch the navigation system between always north or having your vehicle always facing upward, was moved to the top left corner with the v11 update.
With this update, the compass has been moved back to the top right of the screen, where it was originally located.
