Tesla will soon bring Netflix and YouTube streaming to its cars, Elon Musk says

You won't be able to stream and drive, but Musk says it could eventually be an option, if and when regulators ever allow full self-driving capability.

Steven Ewing Former managing editor

Steven Ewing spent his childhood reading car magazines, making his career as an automotive journalist an absolute dream job. After getting his foot in the door at Automobile while he was still a teenager, Ewing found homes on the mastheads at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog and Motor1.com before joining the CNET team in 2018. He has also served on the World Car Awards jury. Ewing grew up ingrained in the car culture of Detroit -- the Motor City -- before eventually moving to Los Angeles. In his free time, Ewing loves to cook, binge trash TV and play the drums.

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Steven Ewing

July 28, 2019 11:43 a.m. PT

Tesla Model S video game — Tesla already allows you to turn your car into a gaming console.
Nicholas Miotke/Roadshow

As if turning your car into a mobile gaming console wasn't enough, Tesla will soon allow owners to stream Netflix and YouTube videos right on their vehicles' multimedia screens. That's the story from Elon Musk , anyway, who tweeted the news on Saturday.

Ability to stream YouTube & Netflix when car is stopped coming to your Tesla soon! Has an amazingly immersive, cinematic feel due to the comfy seats & surround sound audio.
— e^👁🥧 (@elonmusk) July 27, 2019

Of course, video streaming will only be available while the car is parked, though Musk says that "when full self-driving is approved by regulators, we will enable video while moving." Just don't hold your breath for that anytime soon.

and upcoming Model Y owners will likely have the best in-car video experience, as Engadget points out, since these vehicles use horizontally oriented screens. The and , on the other hand, have vertically oriented screens... which I guess is good if you like to watch those poorly recorded, portrait-style videos.

Musk says this upgrade will be coming "soon," and the widespread rollout could happen in August. I'll admit, while this does sound like an unnecessary bit of distraction if not used properly, the thought of being able to watch a YouTube video or two while waiting to pick up a friend from the airport is pretty cool.