In this review, I check out the Ottocast Car TV Mate HDMI Adapter. You can buy this CarPlay adapter for $79 direct from Ottocast > https://shrsl.com/4jx61, $79 from Amazon US > https://amzn.to/3wXaCcy, and for €115.53 from Amazon DE > https://amzn.to/3VkgIwN.
TL/DR: Ottocast Car TV Mate is a convenient HDMI adapter for CarPlay displays, allowing you to connect external devices for entertainment while stationary. It offers good clarity and responsiveness but may struggle with 4K content on CarPlay screens. Compared to AI Boxes, it’s a cost-effective solution but lacks wireless CarPlay/Android Auto support. Ideal for EV owners looking to add entertainment options during charging.
We’ve seen a lot of innovation in CarPlay hardware accessories over the years. From early connected CarPlay adapters for Android OS car systems to wired to wireless CarPlay conversion adapters, 2-in-1 CarPlay and Android Auto adapters, and finally, CarPlay AI Boxes that convert your CarPlay or Android Auto display into an Android OS platform.
It’s almost like we’ve come full circle. So much so that it feels like makers of this technology are scratching their heads desperately thinking up the next BIG thing. Well, in their opinion it’s HDMI to CarPlay adapters.
HDMI input isn’t new. We’ve seen it featured on a select few CarPlay AI Boxes. You connect an HDMI device to the box and can cast its stream to your CarPlay display. This time around, makers are stripping everything they have learned and built to bring you a solo HDMI connection adapter. Ottocast has been the first, out of no doubt many, to bring their HDMI to CarPlay adapter, the jolly-sounding Car TV Mate.
In the box, you get the adapter with its tethered 50cm USB-A power cable, a small instruction manual, and a USB-A to USB-C adapter for connecting to more modern CarPlay car USB ports.
Once connected, its simplistic front menu screen displays in a very swift 9 seconds. On the screen, you’re told to connect the HDMI device, and there is the WiFi network ID to connect to access the IP config screen and update the adapter to the latest firmware.
Connecting up a powered HDMI device instantly sends its display feed to the CarPlay screen. The experience from this point onwards is just like you’ve connected the same device to your home TV display. Control is carried out with the same remote or the controller that came with the HDMI device. There’s no touch passthrough and you can touch the CarPlay display to toggle default and full-screen display modes, and holding down on the screen for a few seconds will exit the HDMI source back to your car system screen. There are no split-screen modes and no other interactive features. It’s pretty vanilla from this point onwards.
This adapter carries over clarity, colour and responsiveness very well. I never thought the HDMI feed was being manipulated or converted in any way that lowered its visual or audio quality. The only thing that could be worse when comparing the Car TV Mate to some alternative ways to watch content on your CarPlay display is purely down to the device you have connected to the adapter.
I tried an Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K and Google Chromecast 4K TV streamers to this adapter and both ran perfectly well. However, trying to watch 4K UHD content on a very incapable CarPlay display was a problem. Turning it down to 1080p soon got around this issue.
Using the remotes from these devices felt more intuitive than using the touch screen. However, this is only feasible when stationary. Like watching video whilst driving, it isn’t something you should be doing/using whilst on the move. I can see this adapter’s appeal for anyone charging with an EV that hasn’t got the apps or the means to cast video to their central console display. As long as it has a wired CarPlay USB port, you can connect up all manner of entertainment to pass the time whilst charging, if you’ve surpassed the usual pee and snack/drink scenario of filling your charging time.
The Car TV Mate is a great solution for anyone seeking to connect an HDMI device to their car display. As for a comparison with what an AI Box could offer, once you factor in the cost of an HDMI TV streamer device, you’re not far off the cost of a closed Android OS AI Box or a very simple open Android OS AI Box that can have any Android app installed onto it. The AI Box’s extra CPU/GPU grunt will handle games a lot better than connected TV streamers. However, it’s a different story if you connect a very capable game console such as a Nintendo Switch or Steam Deck. And if you plan on using cloud-based gaming platforms like Amazon’s Luna, Xbox Cloud Gaming, streaming your PlayStation 5 or Nvidia’s GeForce Now service, then it has more to do with your internet connection than the power of the connected box.
Its possibilities are vast when you think of the different HDMI devices that you could hook up to your CarPlay display. But you are limited to just that entertainment source. You also have to worry about internet connection and powering the connected HDMI device. Most TV streamers can be powered from a simple 18W-30W USB 12v socket adapter.
It is a shame they didn’t add wireless CarPlay/Android Auto support to limit the number of adapters you’d want to connect up to the CarPlay USB port. With its Wi-Fi ability already available, the hardware is inside and ready for it. A simple side switch to flip between these functions would add even more reason to buy such a device.
Maybe that will be the next ‘innovative’ evolution for these adapters, as I am sure the appeal of these adapters is aimed at a very small niche market.
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 – Brief overview
0:34 – Unboxing
0:56 – Features & Design
3:37 – Demo Boot-Up
4:13 – Amazon Fire TV Stick CarPlay Test
5:01 – Fixing Content Display Issue
6:55 – Gaming on Fire TV Stick
7:51 – Netflix Audio Sync Test
7.58 – YouTube Audio Sync Test
8:39 – Google Chromecast CarPlay Test
9:04 – YouTube test
9:40 – Netflix test
9:58 – What else can you connect
10:23 – Internet access
10:35 – Config Screen
11:04 – My Impressions
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