Autonomous cars may still be in its infancy, but clever folks are already exploring some really interesting ideas in making this technology work for us. An amazing feature known as “summon” on Tesla Model S was recently demonstrated by Model S owner Mark Schey in a video shared on YouTube.
While the feature has been available on the auto-pilot equipped Tesla Model S (a $2,500 package), the ‘Remote S’ app brings the command function to the Apple Watch. In the video, the Watch is paired to the car and literally turns it on and autonomously moves it from the garage. What’s more, Schey also synced the command to his Homelink garage door to automatically open to let the Tesla out and close once it has exited completely.
Naturally, the YouTube video attracted a lot of comments, but there was one in particular that stuck out: Developer Regos Apps commented on Schey’s video and even congratulated him for being the first person to successfully summon a Tesla with an Apple Watch. When you think about it, it’s kind of odd that the developer of the app never got to test it out:
Hey! Developer of Remote S here. Congrats on being the first person in the world to summon a car from a watch! I actually didn't have my Apple Watch with me when I was coding this feature, so I'm not the first person to be able to do this.
Tip: Try using the remote/keyless start on your car via Remote S (iPhone or Apple Watch). This will allow you to bypass the requirement for having the keyfob nearby the car. This will also mean that you can summon the car without physically being near the car at all.
As the tip suggests, the keyfob bypass function allows the user to summon the car while not being near it at all. We’re definitely excited to see how that feature could open all sorts of options if Schey decides to ever share a follow-up video.
In the meantime, Download your own ‘Remote S’ app for iPhone or Apple Watch for $9.99 from the App Store. Sorry, Tesla Model S with V7.1 update not included. C heck out the Mark Schey’s YouTube awesome video below:
