How to enjoy your 2021 Acura TLX DURING your Zoom call

A deep blue Acura TLX driving on a road lined with trees.
Credit: Acura

I am not sure how, seemingly overnight, Zoom became the online meeting app of choice almost a year ago.  (Does anyone use WebEx anymore?)  But it did…and it sure seems fitting that Apple CarPlay now offers it among their suite of apps.  

More and more of us are working from home (and therefore, from our cars) in this age of Covid-19.  I spend most of my day behind the wheel (over 50,000 miles per year, to be more precise), so I am thankful for this advance in the name of internet meetings.

I experienced my first ever official Zoom app meeting today with some of my coworkers while taking the 2021 Acura TLX for a test drive.  I left the video on while my phone sat awkwardly in the cup holder to allow them to admire the red leather seats in this fun sports sedan.  (The unfortunate camera angle straight up my nostrils was also a nice bonus for them, I am sure.)  Somehow, Acura has figured out a way to get 272 horsepower from this 2.0L engine.  Add that to a sporty suspension, a sharp look (go for the A-Spec package), and an incredible stereo system, and you have yourself one fantastic automobile. (The 2021 Acura TLX also looks similar in style to the 2020 Infiniti Q50.)

A Zoom meeting being held in the 2021 Acura TLX.
Credit: Jason Probst

In its current design, the Zoom app for Apple CarPlay has straightforward controls.  There are not a lot of buttons or options to sort through when using the app.  But users of CarPlay know that this is a good thing since the whole point is to keep drivers off their phones while driving.  The addition of Zoom is one more step in the right, and safe, direction since drivers will now be able to accept meeting invitations, add participants, and keep track of the time of the meeting without looking at their phone.  To get the most out of the app on CarPlay, users will want to add contacts to the app in advance, but they can use Siri to call contacts from the app.  I would love to have been a passive observer during the conversation developers must have had about whether to enable video on the screen of the car and not just my phone.  Though that option would have been impressive, I suppose safety trumped all other factors in that debate.

If you are in the market for a fun ride that is also efficient (31 miles per gallon on the highway) and practical (a sport sedan that will comfortably seat four adults), then you will want to investigate the Acura TLX.  This exciting car looks, feels, and sounds great on all levels.  With the Zoom app on Apple CarPlay, you can easily add meetings to your commute, and make work and connecting socially that much more fun.