Although I have to say that I am reasonably happy with the user experience and possibilities that Android Auto offers for cars at a reasonable price, everything can be improved. Yes, with Android Auto I have a moderately easy to use and safe interface (at least if you use it with the importance of keeping your eyes on the road in mind), but there are still limitations and tasks that I find particularly frustrating in Android Autoboth from a safety and functionality point of view.
report incidents
Waze and Google Maps allow report accidents while driving such as traffic jams, accidents, police presence or speed controls… but you can only do this from your phone, because this function is not available for Android Auto.
The goal of reporting these incidents is to do so live and directly while we are driving so that we canwarn others behind the wheel of potential hazards, otherwise it doesn’t make much sense. Interestingly, Waze allows this option through Android Auto, but not Google Maps, the default app.
Plan a travel itinerary
One of the most common tasks for Android Auto (and any other infotainment system) is help us reach our destination using a navigator, which is Google Maps by default. While Google Maps is an application that stands out for its power and possibilities of manipulation on the phone, in the car console the experience is far behind.
This is the case, for example, of the different routes to get to a point: while on the phone you can easily see them, on the car dashboard the experience is not as satisfying, as it involves having to do an extra touch to see them and they are not seen so clearly, as the instructions interfere with viewing.
If you also have to add extra stop with Android Auto, the interface is even less agile. On the other side of the scale, how easy it is to find milestones on your route. Yet when you ask the Google Assistant to show you a gas station, it shows you potential candidates (not all of them) near you… but not on your way, which would be providential.
It is also not possible to move on the map to select a specific point to go and stop. While it is true that these design limitations are eventually implemented to prevent anyone behind the wheel from spending too much time staring at the console of their car, in the long run it also causes us to waste time driving or even go to the phone to open Google Maps. So in my case, I usually decide and configure all of this on mobile, before I start.
Choose what music to listen to
It’s also very common to turn to music or podcasts to pass the time on your car journeys and luckily there are some quality alternatives among the apps available to do so. Many apps let you choose from a list of suggestions or your favorites, but what happens when you want to listen to something that is not between these two options?
You can choose use Google Assistant for your request, mentioning an artist, a song, an album or a podcast, but in this case it will be necessary to be patient, to elaborate the sentence correctly and the process can become long. A list should appear with options to choose from, something that, while it could potentially take your eyes and hands off the wheel, already appears in other apps.
enter an address
You shouldn’t text while driving And yet, most cars equipped with Android Auto allow you to perform certain tasks on the go that involve entering text.
But you cannot write an address, because you have to park or apply the handbrake. Taking text prediction into account, sometimes with inserting a few characters would suffice, so it would be more useful than the criteria for allowing it to be speedwhich would allow for example to do it at a red light (which Apple and its CarPlay allow).
It is clear that not writing anything is safer, but the reality is that sometimes it is necessary and as a resource there are those who resort to unplug the phone to type what you need, then plug it back in. Yes, you can use Google Assistant, but when it comes to a long address or complex or potentially hard-to-interpret names, the voice assistant falls short.
View full posts
Google also limits how you can interact with messages while driving. SO, no way to read full message from screen in android auto… not even when you have stopped the car: you will only see a quick preview. In this sense, it would be interesting to be able to opt for a complete visualization, even if it is for a limited time (to be able to take a quick look) or directly, to be able to see it with the car stationary.
The only thing you can do is ask Google Assistant to read the message to you. and in this case it is always limited to the receptions that took place on that specific trip, while on our phone it is possible to retrieve all your conversations. By the way, Android Auto has committed to voice to minimize risk and yet it is still not possible to listen to audio from apps like WhatsApp.
The consequence is that sometimes those of us behind the wheel pick up the phone to read the messageswhich is a security risk in some scenarios.
Share a location
A feature that I use a lot on Google Maps is the share the location and even the route that I will follow. Because yes, with this function in WhatsApp or Telegram you can locate family and friends when you meet, but applied to Google Maps it helps those who are waiting for you to know where you are at all times and how long it is you have left to get there, ideal for those exits and returns in a Madrid with infernal traffic.
Although Android Auto allows you to use this feature, you can only do this with your Google Maps contactswhen its trick would be to let you share it in other apps, for example with WhatsApp and your calendar contacts.
Home | Eva Rodríguez for Xataka Android
In Xataka Android | Android Auto vs Android Automotive: How are they similar, how are they different and which is better?
Table of Contents
