Not because it is entirely necessary but because it’s cool and fashionable, car makers are these days busy connecting their cars with the latest trendy gadget, the Apple Watch. BMW and Porsche have already come up with theirs, enabling the users to control a host of features right from the comfort of their wrists.

BMW currently offers these services only got the ‘i’ models through the new BMW i Remote app. With this app you can monitor the car’s battery level and remaining range, get alerts, or lock or unlock the vehicle. But all that is kind of last year really, which is why they have built in the app a number of new features as well.

Once synched with your BMW i model, the Apple Watch app enables you to continue getting navigation instructions after you’ve left the car and it can also guide you back to the vehicle if you got lost. It also allows the interior temperature to be pre-conditioned.

As for Porsche’s Apple Watch offerings, it is part of the Porsche Car Connect bundle of connected services and integrate all the features available from the iPhone app on your watch. So you get the “remote” display which shows if the windows, doors, boot lid and sunroof are closed and you get the “carfinder” service to help you locate the vehicle via navigation or via the old-fashioned way of sounding the horn and flashing the lights.

Plug-in Porsche models also benefit from services relevant to their type of car, such as charging status, range and residual charging time. They can also control the Climate system using the watch. This being Porsche, they have also integrated a remote Tyre Pressure monitoring system into the app.