Twelve South has launched AirFly Drive, a compact wireless adapter that converts compatible wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto systems into wireless connections. Priced at $39.99, it lets drivers connect their phones to the car without plugging in a USB cable every time they get behind the wheel.

The concept is simple: AirFly Drive plugs into the vehicle’s existing media-enabled USB port, then connects wirelessly to a compatible iPhone or Android phone. Once paired, the adapter is designed to reconnect automatically when the car starts.

There is one important catch: AirFly Drive does not add CarPlay or Android Auto to a vehicle that doesn’t already support them. The car must already have wired Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.

AirFly Drive converts wired CarPlay to wireless

AirFly Drive sits between the car’s infotainment system and your phone. Instead of connecting the phone directly to the vehicle with a USB cable, the adapter handles the connection wirelessly.

That means the existing CarPlay or Android Auto experience remains largely unchanged. Drivers can continue using the car’s display, steering-wheel controls and other supported controls, while the phone stays in their pocket or elsewhere in the vehicle.

Twelve South says AirFly Drive works with iPhones running iOS 10 or later and Android devices running Android 11 or later. The company also lists compatibility with vehicles supporting Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, but compatibility depends on the specific vehicle and its USB connection.

The adapter needs to be connected to a media-enabled USB port. A USB port that only provides power will not work.

AirFly Drive uses USB-A for its vehicle connection, while Twelve South includes a USB-A-to-USB-C adapter for vehicles with a USB-C media port.

It can remember two phones

AirFly Drive is designed to be useful in households where more than one person regularly drives the same car.

The adapter can pair with two phones, and a physical button lets drivers switch between them. Once paired, the adapter is designed to reconnect automatically when the vehicle is started, eliminating the need to manually connect the phone each time.

The adapter itself draws power from the car, so there is no separate battery to charge.

That also means your car’s USB connection is no longer occupied by your phone. If you need to charge the phone while driving, you can use a separate charging connection instead of keeping the CarPlay cable plugged into the phone.

A tiny adapter designed to stay in the car

AirFly Drive measures 0.89 x 0.89 x 1.06 inches and weighs 42 grams. Twelve South uses an aluminum alloy and polycarbonate enclosure, with black and white versions available.

The small design is intended to make the adapter something you can plug in and largely forget about rather than another accessory hanging from the dashboard or center console.

The important part, however, isn’t the size. It’s that AirFly Drive can potentially eliminate one of the more annoying parts of older CarPlay-equipped vehicles: having to connect a cable every time you want to use CarPlay.

AirFly Drive price and availability

Twelve South AirFly Drive costs $39.99 and is available in black and white. The company includes a two-year manufacturer’s warranty and a 30-day return period.

For drivers whose vehicles already have wired CarPlay or Android Auto but lack wireless connectivity, AirFly Drive offers a relatively simple way to remove the cable from the equation without replacing the car’s infotainment system.

Just make sure the vehicle is compatible before buying. The most important requirement is that the car already supports wired CarPlay or Android Auto through a media-enabled USB port.