Google’s got a plan to take over your car and promises to make driving a lot more pleasant. But it brings even bigger benefits to Google.
Android Auto, revealed at the tech giant’s I/O conference in June, will let you plug your Android phone into your car, making the screen in your dashboard a big phone interface, one that’s optimized for driving. You’ll be able to find your way with Google Maps, stream music from Spotify, and send and receive texts while driving, among other things. Of course it’s got voice control so you can do all of this without taking your hands off the wheel.
The technology, which we’ll start seeing in cars by the end of the year, will be far better than anything offered by automakers, but then, the stuff offered by automakers couldn’t get any worse. It will offer a seamless transition from using our phones to driving our cars. We’ve already seen 28 automakers sign on, including Audi, Chevrolet, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Nissan, Volvo, and VW.
