CarPlay is having a big year, surprising us all after years of middling updates. CarPlay is one of the many new features that iOS 26 has added. It includes a fix for the issue I’ve been having with Messages for years: the lack of support for tapbacks.
CarPlay in iOS 26 now supports Messages tapbacks.
Since Apple announced the “next-generation of CarPlay” for 2022, updates to the standard CarPlay have been a bit disappointing.
Things are beginning to change with the launch of CarPlay Ultra and iOS 26, which brings a slew of new CarPlay features.
This feature is a perfect example of Apple’s lack of attention to CarPlay in the past.
Since iOS 10, tapbacks have been a key feature of the Messages application.
But until now, you couldn’t send tapbacks via CarPlay.
I use a thumbs-up, heart or laughing emoji a lot. It’s an easy way to acknowledge a previous message, but not continue the conversation. With iOS 26, tapbacks can now be used in CarPlay Messages. Now you can enjoy the same convenience of tapbacks in the car as on your iPhone.
Pinned conversations are also supported in CarPlay. These features are part of the iOS 26 updates for the Messages application on iPhone.
Let’s hope Apple’s renewed CarPlay effort is a sign that Apple will not let similar core app features like tapbacks go missing from the car so long in the future.
Do you like that CarPlay now supports tapbacks within Messages? Comment below.
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