Finally, an automaker puts decent infotainment first

[BananaDunka]

https://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/volvo-android-infotainment-experience/

I recommend watching the whole video in the article. This is pretty great news and whilst the demo is only a concept of what is possible, it is about damn time car makers thought seriously about what kind of integration they adopt with not only the car's hardware, but also entertainment and navigation. There isn't a single OEM system I've seen where I've thought "this is really cool", they are either just ok, or gash.

Android P also utilises a new dynamic sound processing engine, think Viiper4Android for those who used to root their phones in the past, sound quality should be excellent for all cars running a system like this. Also given how super advanced Google Assistant has now become, doing stuff like messaging/navigating or changing car settings with your voice should be totally natural. And because it's a tailored experience based on the driver, everything is bespoke to that person, so it just works.

Google Nav on the driver's instrument cluster is also really cool, and I hope 3rd party apps like Waze add support for those API calls as well. Actually hope is too easy, it's almost certain they will support stuff like this when the time comes.

I also like how Volvo have geared it toward giving a custom experience for each driver, how the seats and stuff move to each driver's preference, pulling in their navigation data, playlists and everything else when they get in the car and their phone/key etc is connected.


Cool.

 

[LiE]

It's a smart move. Why do car manufacturers insist on spending so much time trying to develop half baked infotainment systems when they could do this.

 

[BananaDunka]

Something like this would also be excellent for vehicle tracking. You could find your car via Google's Android Device Manager, lock it out, track it in realtime using Cerberus or other apps, or pre-heat the HVAC on a winter's morning from the comfort of your armchair without having to subscribe to something, as all this is through an open source platform and your car will be sat there connected to the home WiFi or sim card in the car.

 

[adolf hamster]

it is nice to see they're finally starting to catch up with the times.

i guess the problem has always been the development cycle in cars, they don't want to go pushing something that in 3 years time when the thing actually gets released has turned out to just be a flash in the pan that no-one uses any more.

i do with manufacturers would go back to using standard form factors for their infotainment systems though, because it's a right pain in the backside having to install aftermarket kit on some cars these days. and this will be no different in 10 years time when that system needs refreshing.

 

[Amp34]

Something like this would also be excellent for vehicle tracking. You could find your car via Google's Android Device Manager, lock it out, track it in realtime using Cerberus or other apps, or pre-heat the HVAC on a winter's morning from the comfort of your armchair without having to subscribe to something, as all this is through an open source platform and your car will be sat there connected to the home WiFi or sim card in the car.

You can already do that. With Ford Pass for example I can start (both instant and on a schedule), lock/unlock my car, know how much fuel is in it, how much range I have and know where it is at all times wth GPS. All from an app on my phone.

I guess technically it’s not “free” as the cost is built into the purchase price of the vehicle, but there’s no extra charge for it for the first 5 years. It’s got LTE so whatever you do its going to cost if you want to use it (even if you only pay for a sim only deal).

Honestly I don’t see the fuss about this announcement particularly, other than the fact it runs android “proper”, which means if you’re an android user it connects better with your devices and you may have a bit more freedom in use, especially if you already have the option to use Android Auto or CarPlay, where you can use voice commands anyway.

 

[Simon]

Same. Can do all that on the Land Rover remote app.

 

[Jonnycoupe]

Guess now they are doing 4 cylinder only they have enough time to fanny around with this.

Regurgitating a press release isn’t the same as an actual executed system.

</cynic>

 

[robj20]

Sad times when a cars highlight is it's radio instead of a decent engine and drive. Cars these days just aren't exciting.

 

[paradigm]

Honestly I don’t see the fuss about this announcement particularly, other than the fact it runs android “proper”, which means if you’re an android user it connects better with your devices and you may have a bit more freedom in use, especially if you already have the option to use Android Auto or CarPlay, where you can use voice commands anyway.

Agreed. It’s also not as if they are the first to use android “proper” anyway. The new A8 already has an android based MMI system, as will the new A6.

 

[BananaDunka]

Sad times when a cars highlight is it's radio instead of a decent engine and drive. Cars these days just aren't exciting.

Where does anything say this is the highlight over anything else? This article is related to Google's recent I/O event, so naturally everything shown would revolve around Android.

Infotainment is one of the bigger failing points in most modern cars though, and I have yet to use one that has made me go "ok this is actually really cool". The vast majority have rubbish navigation for starters, then music integration with connected services whether OTA or via bluetooth has varying degrees of success and usability. It's one of the reasons I really enjoy using my car's stereo, it runs android, has native Waze, Spotify and GoneMad apps do cover all my needs.

 

[Nasher]

Maybe get a more entertaining car

But the main issue with these over-blown "infotainment" systems, is a few years later when they stop supporting it. You won't be able to update the maps and you can't replace it with an aftermarket one because it's a non-standard fitting. Or it breaks out of warranty and you either pay a couple of £1000 for an OEM replacement, or leave it broken and have no access to certain functions of the car.

 

[Jonnycoupe]

They don’t design cars for the 4th owner 6 years later anyway...

 

[BananaDunka]

I think it would be the opposite^

At present when the car is years old it's harder to update the maps etc. With a pure Android system running off Google's back end, and utilising the Play Store, you can always update the maps, because Google updates that side of things, not the manufacturer. This is why this is a big deal. The owner no longer has to source updates from the car maker. They just update the Maps app of their choice from the Play Store just like they do on their phones.

Point is, this is a natural extension from Android Auto and Apple Car play, you are no longer streaming apps from a connected phone to the car's screen, instead you've got the whole Android OS in the car, which then gets updated by Google, not the automaker. And because Android now uses Treble, the OS update side of things sits on its own partition, so the device manufacturer doesn't have to spend time re-developing everything for each update.

 

[Nasher]

They don’t design cars for the 4th owner 6 years later anyway...

Maybe not European manufacturers.

I think it would be the opposite^

At present when the car is years old it's harder to update the maps etc. With a pure Android system running off Google's back end, and utilising the Play Store, you can always update the maps, because Google updates that side of things, not the manufacturer. This is why this is a big deal. The owner no longer has to source updates from the car maker. They just update the Maps app of their choice from the Play Store just like they do on their phones.

Point is, this is a natural extension from Android Auto and Apple Car play, you are no longer streaming apps from a connected phone to the car's screen, instead you've got the whole Android OS in the car, which then gets updated by Google, not the automaker. And because Android now uses Treble, the OS update side of things sits on its own partition, so the device manufacturer doesn't have to spend time re-developing everything for each update.

You can't keep updating android devices to the latest OS forever though, they stop supporting it eventually. Licensing is likely to be a barrier as well.

 

[adolf hamster]

See this is why standard form factor is important, all this bs about emissions this and save the environment that but it's still acceptable to make a product with no longevity.

 

[TheVoice]

You can't keep updating android devices to the latest OS forever though, they stop supporting it eventually. Licensing is likely to be a barrier as well.

Does it matter? What level of ongoing support is really needed, other than map updates which is easily solved by using Google Maps for navigation?

 

[BananaDunka]

Yup as long as you can still update apps then that's all you need. OS updates are just a bonus. The integration UI bits can remain unchanged for years, the stuff like HVAC controls etc pretty much never need to be updated, for example.

My current Android unit runs Android 4.4.4, but because it has the latest Play Services, I can continue using the latest media and nav apps for a few more Android generations yet until the current API level gets dropped.

 

[Nasher]

See this is why standard form factor is important, all this bs about emissions this and save the environment that but it's still acceptable to make a product with no longevity.

I agree. There's no point in making economical cars which are only built to last 3-5 years. Which seems to be the way with "premium" badges now :/

 

[SDK^]

I watched the video expecting something new and exciting but I got nothing. BMW (and probably other car makers) are already doing this stuff.

I can talk to Amazon Alexa, or through a phone app and do all the remote stuff to my car, including turn on the interior cooling, send a route to the in car nav system, fuel range etc..

 

[Deleted member 66701]

I'd rather they put how a car drives first.

My car doesn't even have a stereo.

Where does anything say this is the highlight over anything else? This article is related to Google's recent I/O event, so naturally everything shown would revolve around Android.

Your OP title says:-

Finally, an automaker puts decent infotainment first