iPhone OS 4.0 Indicates Possible Apple Branded Car Kit

Would you possibly be interested in an Apple branded car kit for your iPhone or iPod Touch? TUAW recently reported that iPhone OS 4.0 includes a new application that makes use of a new “iPod Out” feature that could possibly be used to control the iPhone or iPod Touch when used in a car.

According to the sources that TUAW spoke to, the “iPod Out” functionality is built over the iPod Accessory Protocol (IAP). The report claims that the application contains references to several strings like IAPSImpleRemoteCarButtonNotification and IAPSimpleRemoteCarButtonTypeKey that hints at the use of the “iPod Out” functionality in vehicles.

According to TUAW’s source:

"the application might be used in an Apple-branded car kit, where the user docks his iPhone or iPod touch and gains full access to the onboard audio libraries (no video at this time). The car kit could include both a video screen to show the menus and custom physical buttons that would produce the notifications to allow the user to move through those menus, and select from them.

Other hints in the application point to hands-free phone integration as well (kCTCallStatusChangeNotification). Incoming phone calls would be routed into the same system, allowing users to answer calls without having to pick up their device."

Below is the demo of the new application in iPhone OS 4.0 with the “iPod Out” feature:

  

An Apple branded car kit would truly change the way users consume audio content from their iPhones when in cars.

It will be interested to see if Apple ends up unveiling the car kit, which makes use of this new application when iPhone OS 4.0 is released this summer. Stay tuned for more iPhone OS 4.0 info by following us on Twitter, and subscribing to our RSS feed.