3 overlooked CarPlay features you'll wish you tried sooner - and why

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I plug my phone into my car every time I get in it. I refuse to drive without Apple CarPlay on my car's infotainment screen, even if I don't plan to use Maps or listen to music. Still, beyond navigation and music selection, there are a few CarPlay features and customization options you may be overlooking.

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From widgets and calendar integration to ETA sharing and Siri controls , there are plenty of helpful CarPlay features that don't require you to fiddle with your phone or the car's screens. These are my favorites.

When you connect your phone to your car, your CarPlay home screen is displayed. Swipe left, and you'll find your widgets. You can display the basics, such as the weather, an analog clock, or your calendar events. To customize your widgets, search "CarPlay" in your iPhone Settings, select your car, and choose your widgets.

My Nissan Rogue's 8-inch touchscreen can display two widget stacks; one stack shows my Reminders, device battery statuses, and Google Home devices. In the winter, I appreciate that I can turn on the heat in my house from my car's screen without picking up my phone.

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My other widget stack contains my Chick-fil-A ordering shortcut and live scores from the Sports Alert app. These at-a-glance options come in handy more often than not, especially when sitting in Atlanta's rush-hour traffic.

I'm at the age where I need to put everything in my calendar or risk forgetting about it. I put doctor's appointments, meetings with friends, birthday parties, work events -- everything -- in my calendar.

When you add an event to your Calendar, you can include its address. Within a few hours of your event, your Calendar widget will display the upcoming event, and when you open Maps, your event's location will populate.

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This integration is useful when you need to hop in the car and start driving immediately to reach your destination on time. You'll just need to remember to input the correct address into your calendar event ahead of time.

Once you put your destination into Maps, you can share your ETA with anyone in your contacts. This option is great when you want someone to know when you'll arrive at your destination without sharing your location with them. Once you reach your destination or end your navigation, your phone stops sharing your ETA.