Android - coming to a vehicle near you

[CodeRedR51]

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/01/06/automakers-teaming-google-android/

Google has teamed up with Audi, General Motors, Hyundai and Honda to form the Open Automotive Alliance. With the help of chipmaker NVIDIA, the group aims to bring Google's Android operating system to the auto industry on a large scale. While the speed with which Android will be adopted by the industry remains unclear - the OAA's own press release says "timing for each automaker will vary" - we could see the first Android-equipped vehicle by year's end.

Discuss.

 

[Dennisch]

These cars will have to recharge their battery every day.



How must I see this? Onboard systems operated by Android, or will the entire engine cpu run on Android?

If the latter. That would be awesome. Open source ECU ftw.

 

[YSSMAN]

Several things:

1. It won't make a lick of difference if the hardware isn't up to snuff. Poor CPU performance and inaccurate touch screens will not help this be successful. They can easily skin a version of Android and tune it for car use (some apps already do this), or they could simply run a stock version of Android with significant restrictions to prevent some apps from installing. We will see.
2. The NHTSA and FCC are going to have a hayday with this in the US, especially when they are going to be pairing these Android systems with new LTE and 3G hotspots within the car. It'll be interesting to see who will be supplying most of the bandwidth (currently sounds like AT&T), but your mileage will certainly vary depending on where you live in the country.
3. Remember a year ago when GM and Honda announced their partnerships with Apple to integrate Siri Hands Free into their cars? Yeah, me too. Guess who's going to get left behind...
4. It's safe to assume that, if these heavy-hitters are getting behind this tech, and they are indeed successful in skinning Android to their tastes, it won't be long until everyone is getting ready to hop in, or, Microsoft makes a full investment with Ford to run some version of Windows 8.1, and Apple with someone else to do a OSX car.

 

[Tornado]

I've actually been curious why touch screens in cars are so extremely expensive (to upgrade the screen in my Grandfather's new Avalon cost over a thousand dollars to go from 6.1 to 7 inches) as upgrades when actual tablets are cheaper.

 

[Slash]

No.

 

[YSSMAN]

I've actually been curious why touch screens in cars are so extremely expensive (to upgrade the screen in my Grandfather's new Avalon cost over a thousand dollars to go from 6.1 to 7 inches) as upgrades when actual tablets are cheaper.

My major assumption is that there is a lot of heavy duty hardware that must be designed to go in the car and that greatly increases the price. Not necessarily high-grade CPUs, hard drives, or otherwise... But equipment that is able to run for long periods of time without standby, can withstand massive temperature swings, and have a shelf life greater than 10 years. Overall, that's got to be difficult to find, let alone produce as cheaply as the Nexus 7.

 

[Third Reign]

Now the NSA will be able to know every spot you drive, every place you broke the speed limit thanks to google storing all of your car's information in one of their data centers.

Will they automatically send a repair/towing service to your location if the ECU gives out an error signal? After all the money google will make with the travel information and data, that's the least they could do.

 

[YSSMAN]

Will they automatically send a repair/towing service to your location if the ECU gives out an error signal? After all the money google will make with the travel information and data, that's the least they could do.

Based on the new dashboard for the Audi TT, I think it's a lot more than that:

They're already using Google Maps in their cars, having a massive screen to display that in addition to being able to use some of your favorite Android apps is a massive improvement over what we have today. Combined with LTE service specifically for your vehicle, it will let you be connected and up to date wherever you go. Combine that with the new possibilities for entertainment for your rear-seat passengers (think Netflix on the headrests for the kids), and arguably, the future is now.

We just have to have the right hardware under the dashboard. Automotive grade capacitive touchscreens aren't as accurate as their mobile counterparts. And, when the fastest of the current generation systems are only running on an ARM11 architecture (same was what's in the iPhone 3G), they're a bit underpowered for modern expectations. I'd imagine that newer touchscreens combined with reliable Snapdragon or Tegra 4 processors would go a long way to make them perform better, and I think we may be getting that in our next crop of cars.

 

[catamount39]

Alright so...I'm sticking to pre-2010 cars as planned.

 

[TVR27]

I hope Ford don't get Windows.

 

[mustafur]

I can't wait, it will make the car's navigation system significantly less useless.

 

[05XR8]

This is because Apple 5S, 6, 6+ updates, are ruining Mazda satnavs.

 

[sems4arsenal]

Not sure how to feel about this, as someone who lives with Ford's utter crap My ford touch, this is welcomed, but would have loved the car to integrate with phone rather than deal with both.

 

[mustafur]

Not sure how to feel about this, as someone who lives with Ford's utter crap My ford touch, this is welcomed, but would have loved the car to integrate with phone rather than deal with both.

I would assume it can be integrated if you use blutooth.

 

[Tornado]

Not sure how to feel about this, as someone who lives with Ford's utter crap My ford touch, this is welcomed, but would have loved the car to integrate with phone rather than deal with both.

What gets me about MyFordTouch was that the original Sync was fine. Relatively snappy, straightforward and easy to use from memory without always needing to look at things. Lots of submenus, but quick to navigate. Difficult to memorize controls also have buttons to back them up.


Then they replaced it with... That iDrive knockoff.

 

[YSSMAN]

But wait! Ford is dropping the Microsoft-based Sync/MyFord and bringing us Sync 3, powered by Blackberry!



At the very least Android Auto/Apple Car Play will let us override what have largely been okay systems. Aside from the numerous revisions on iDrive and their ilk, many of the lower end options have been at best adequate, but not much more. The outright leader thus far has been the UConnect system that is offered in the FCA models, which is very straightforward, and seems to work with almost everything. I've had much more success with Chevrolet's MyLink than other variants of the same system, but that isn't without its own hurdles. Throwing the familiar Android layout on top of what's already there removes a lot of headaches for me, shows the information that I care most about, and lets me use most of the apps I use frequently in an easy way through the system.

What surprises me is that its taken quite some time to get these out. Hyundai is definitely jumping the gun here, and having their units be dual-purpose between both is a fantastic idea. The rollout for GM, and specifically Chevrolet, seems spotty at best. Not sure how/why only certain 2016 models are getting Android support, but not Car Play. And while some will be dual purpose later on, it isn't on every model, and that's pretty frustrating. Even more strange? The Sonic won't get either one (yet). Either way, a setup like this is going to help brands like Honda and Toyota step away from their outstandingly terrible systems and give us a reasonable alternative.

 

[sems4arsenal]

I would assume it can be integrated if you use blutooth.

I meant that somehow uses my Phone's hardware if you catch my drift, our smartphones are very fast and responsive so why not use them as the processer for all this.

What gets me about MyFordTouch was that the original Sync was fine. Relatively snappy, straightforward and easy to use from memory without always needing to look at things. Lots of submenus, but quick to navigate. Difficult to memorize controls also have buttons to back them up.


Then they replaced it with... That iDrive knockoff.

I still have issues with sync if I want to stop playing music from an already connected phone and start playing it from another one, it almost always would require 2-3 tries of turning it off and on again press connect to the other device, nothing happens, retry again then again then it works.

Call me old fashioned but aside from the fact you can change tracks from the steering wheel, I much prefer the simplicity of the AUX cord of my crap Nissan.

 

[RVDNuT374]

Alright so...I'm sticking to pre-2003 cars as planned.

Maybe it's just me, but I don't trust the computers in modern cars controlling every single aspect of driving such as brakes, steering, and acceleration along with all the accessories. 👎 Nobody ever thinks of the carnage if a terrorist hacked the mobile phone networks many cars now come standard with for "communication purposes."