Samsung Galaxy S21 phones can unlock Audi, BMW, Ford and Genesis cars using UWB tech

Samsung didn’t just launch the flagship Galaxy S21 smartphone series along with Galaxy Buds Pro and the SmartTag at the ‘Unpacked’ event, but also talked about the future of your car keys. The South Korean tech giant announced its partnership with Audi, BMW, Ford, and Genesis, stating how your Galaxy S21 phones can unlock the doors of compatible cars made by these firms. The firm is making this possible using UWB (Ultra-Wide Band), which is a short-range wireless communication protocol that operates at high frequencies.

“With precise distance calculation, Samsung’s UWB-enabled digital key sends short pulses between the mobile device and the paired car, unlocking the door once you reach it,” Samsung said during the launch event. “Without UWB, users will be able to use their compatible smartphones as a car key through NFC.”

Also read: Samsung to ‘gradually’ remove charger, earphones from future phones

It is worth adding that while the UWB tech is only available in Galaxy S21+, Galaxy S21 Ultra, and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, the Galaxy S21 can use NFC for the same feature.

Samsung says it is also working with Car Connectivity Consortium to standardise UWB tech to act as digital car keys. It’s worth adding that Apple is one of the leading members in the Car Connectivity Consortium. This also means that the UWB digital car unlock key tech won’t be exclusive to Samsung but will be reaching other compatible phones and cars as well. And who knows, it may reach Apple to, only if they plan to bring out their own car or compatibility tech someday.

For what’s worth, Apple has already announced digital key feature with BMW but using NFC feature. However, it was only limited to one model.