Bluetooth audio control through i3 radio?

Carvana delivered my 2015 ReX yesterday after months of research and dealership test drives. I'm enjoying the vehicle very much during my seven day Carvana "test own", and I can see how it would be tough to go back to a non-electric vehicle after this. I'm very happy with the driving experience.

But this is also my first BMW, and I am new to iDrive and all that it does in the car. I'm learning through trial and error and extensive net research, but one area that my research and experiments is failing me is with controlling my phone through the radio. Is that possible?

I have a newer Android phone (LV V30) that I was able to connect without much of a problem. Even taught myself how to delete the previous phone owner's phone from the entry list. I can get phone calls through the radio without an issue. And I can play media over my phone, although the sound is much lower than the normal radio (but I think that is a normal issue with BT streaming).

Here's my issue. Is it possible to "control" my phone media through the radio? Like PAUSE a track (I do audio books quite a bit) or SKIP a song (streaming Sirius XM or Google Play)? Or can I just have it play when I start the car and that's it? Is there a workaround? I have already purchased the materials needed to CODE it once I decide to keep it or not. Will that do anything? Is there a CODE that will allow this function?

Or should I purchase a separate BT controller dongle and plug it in through the AUX port like I have in my current 2009 Jeep Compass. That can certainly work, but I was hoping this newer and fancier vehicle might integrate that. But I'm not seeing much on the internet.

Oh, and is it at all possible to have my text messages READ to me when they arrive? My wife's Chrysler Town & Country will do that. Will this cool little Beamer do it, too?

The car does have all the upgraded driving/tech packages as far as I've been able to research.
Any help is appreciated before my seven day Carvana return window ends.

And thanks for being a great sub. I've really been enjoying reading the posts here over the past few months during my research.

Yes! And I use an LG V30, too!

The volume knob pauses playback when you press it like a button (mute -- but you'll notice your player shows pause).

The arrows to the right of your 1-8 preset buttons skip and rewind tracks.

Tested it today. Thanks! That worked and is now a huge relief I know how to do it.
I have not played around with the voice commands much. Would a voice command allow me to have my text messages read out loud to me? Not sure what all the voice commands do.

I'll bet you can find an app that will read your texts out loud. My Motorola phone does it automatically, and when I have it set on Android Auto, Google will do it, too.

eNate said:

Yes! And I use an LG V30, too!

The volume knob pauses playback when you press it like a button (mute -- but you'll notice your player shows pause).

The arrows to the right of your 1-8 preset buttons skip and rewind tracks.

Click to expand...

You'd think that the thumbwheel on the steering wheel would also let you change tracks -- if you think like me, at least -- but you'd think wrong. Nudging the thumbwheel gets you a message "Not possible" on the steering column display. Personally, I've found playing ripped/downloaded tracks stored in the on-board HDD a far nicer feature for my needs.