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Apple And Google Compete To Connect Your Car | DrivingSales News

Apple And Google Compete To Connect Your Car

February 23, 2015 0 Comments

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Silicon Valley has become increasingly interested in the auto business in recent times, with the continuing developments in autonomous cars and electric vehicle technology. An important competition is also underway for control of the dashboard in the next generation of vehicles, with Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto vying for the top spot.

Google recently hosted a boot camp for its Android operating system, and auto manufacturers were among the attendees interested in learning more about Android Auto. The new dashboard system is intended to allow a smartphone to power a car’s center screen, running tasks as varied as navigation, communication and music apps. Similarly, Apple’s rival system, CarPlay, has been developed for iPhone users.

In the coming period, dealerships across the U.S. will start selling vehicles that are capable of running Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, or both. These systems are far more integrated than currently available Bluetooth pairing for playing music or making a hands-free call, and truly allow for Google’s or Apple’s operating system to take over the center screen of the dashboard. Both Android Auto and CarPlay work by connecting a smartphone to the car with a USB cord. The phone screen becomes dark, while phone calls, music and other options show up on the infotainment display of the vehicle.

“Consumers have spoken,” said John Maddox, Assistant Director of the University of Michigan’s Mobility Transformation Center. “They expect to have coordination between their phone and their vehicle.”

One concern that is often raised is about distracted driving that could arise from having constantly connected drivers. However, both Google and Apple have stated that their systems are designed to actually counter this problem by making driving safer. Engineers have designed these systems to help keep consumers from having to look at their phones to carry out tasks.

“We looked at what people do with their phones in the car, and it was scary,” said Andrew Brenner, lead project manager of Google’s Android Auto team. “You want to say to them, ‘Yikes, no, don’t do that.'”

Brenner explained that the Android Auto team is focused on finding ways to minimize the distraction that is caused by tasks that people frequently do while driving, which includes the company’s decision that some activity should be completely prevented in the car. For example, Android Auto has no “back” button or “recents” button, and Google Maps has been adjusted to feature bigger fonts with less detailed street information, all in an attempt to make the technology easier and safer to use while driving. Video streams and most social media aren’t allowed on Android Auto, and drivers can only send a text by using a voice command. Google built a “driver-distraction lab” to test variations of its technology to increase the safety of its usage.

Android Auto plans to stick to the voluntary guidelines that were proposed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 2012, which asked automakers to limit the number of manual inputs needed on devices and design systems so that no action takes more than 2 seconds to complete.

When the Android Auto project started, a core group of automakers signed on, including Audi, Honda, Hyundai and General Motors. Now that its debut is getting closer, two dozen auto brands have also made the deal to offer Android Auto in their vehicles. Apple has teamed up with most of the same brands, so many cars will provide both systems. Although most automakers haven’t yet announced when these systems will be available in their cars, Ford has stated its goal to have both Android Auto and CarPlay available on all Fords sold in the U.S. by the end of 2016.

In the past, automakers would typically build their own proprietary systems to control every aspect of the infotainment functionality in their vehicles. However, a major problem with that strategy proved to be the quick outdating of the car’s hardware and software. By connecting a smartphone and its apps to a vehicle, this will no longer be an issue.

Although many automakers are planning to get on board, not all car companies are in agreement. Both Toyota and Chrysler have stated that they do not plan to adopt either Android Auto or CarPlay into their vehicles at this point, and instead plan to continue to feature their own dashboard systems. However, once these systems start rolling out across a wide range of new cars, it’s quite possible that their tune will change, based on consumer preferences and expectations for advanced functionality that continues to expand over time.

About the Author:

The DrivingSales News team is dedicated to breaking the relevant and the tough stories affecting car dealers. Have questions for DrivingSales News? Reach the team at news@drivingsales.com.

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