Android-Auto Google’s bet on the conquest of the multimedia equipment of cars. This system, which we have already done a full test of, is a rival to Apple CarPlay, a system with the same approach and very similar in all its functions. At yesterday’s Google I/O conference, the people of Mountain View unveiled some of the upcoming developments that Android Auto will feature.
There are a number of new features planned throughout 2016, such as the ability to use Android Auto directly on your mobile phone, and improvements to Google Now voice control or wireless connectivity. A natural evolution of Android Auto that will allow full integration with the car, Android AutoN, a system that has been shown as a prototype but has yet to be released to the market.
Wireless connection
This year it will also be possible to use Android Auto wirelessly in the car. At the moment, it is important to connect the terminal to the car via a USB cable, which simultaneously charges the battery while transferring data. With the new wireless functionality of Android Auto, we will be able to free ourselves from cables, since communication will be carried out with multimedia equipment via Wi-Fi. Bluetooth doesn’t have that capability for data transfer, which is why Google opted for Wi-Fi.
To use Android Auto without cables, your car’s media equipment must be Wi-Fi compatible. Apart from the convenience that this connection entails, which can be 100% automatic without even taking the mobile out of your pocket, the problem will be the high resource consumption of Android Auto and the longevity of the batteries. For this reason, many users will still be forced to use the traditional USB cable, except for those who have a wireless charger in their car, which is gaining popularity
Ok Google to activate Google Now
One of the best things about Android Auto is its voice control, Google Now. This system works incomparably better than the native one that manufacturers build into their cars. It is difficult for him to get out of order and helps us to enter destinations for navigation, place calls, reply to messages or WhatsApp or request weather information, among other things. The “problem” is that until Google releases the next Android Auto update, to activate Google Now, you need to press the microphone icon on the screen or instead the voice control key on the multifunction steering wheel.
With the update, all you have to do is say “Ok Google” out loud so that, just like on a smartphone, Google Now is listening and we can give it orders. This feature will be available in any vehicle, since activating Google Now with the famous voice command will be done through the mobile phone and not from the car’s hardware. Apple CarPlay has had this feature since the beginning through the “Hey Siri” voice command.
Android Auto on mobile
One of the novelties of this 2016 will be the ability to have Android Auto on our own smartphone. Until now, in order for the Android Auto app to have any use, it was necessary to have a multimedia system, OEM or non-original, capable of working with Android Auto.
When the app is updated, all you need to do is download it for free from the Play Store and run it on your mobile phone. If we put the terminal on a suction cup and stick it to the windshield, we already have Android Auto in the car! No matter how old our car is. The mobile phone will work just like Android Auto, with all its features adapted to driving.
The most interesting, in addition, will have multimedia equipment with Bluetooth in the car, so through this connection or AUX cable, the sounds of the smartphone will be played through the car speakers, greatly improving the sound quality.
Android AutoN
But the most interesting new feature introduced at Google I/O, and one that we still don’t know when it will be, is Android AutoN, an evolution of Google’s system. This is a new system that will be fully integrated into the vehicle software and will display information from our smartphone via Android Auto along with vehicle information. Google introduced it to the Maserati Ghibli, equipped with a 15-inch touchscreen and 4K resolution developed by Qualcomm along with the thinking brain of the system.
Android Auto N will be able to display information on a digital watch, a particularly useful navigation view feature that could likely be extended to the increasingly common head-up display. This integration with Android Auto N will allow you to issue loans with more attention to driving and get the most out of the Google multimedia system.
The central screen will show a drop-down list at the bottom from which all functions will be controlled. air conditioning options, depriving, at least in this Ghibli, all the buttons on the dashboard. Regular radio will be integrated into playback sources as well as streaming music or audio applications. The Google-designed interface is generic and similar to that of smartphones, although it is likely that manufacturers using Android Auto N in production vehicles will develop their own look and feel for the system.