Google and Apple get pleasure from taking one another on in as many alternative arenas as doable: cell telephones, maps, cloud storage, music streaming, photograph administration, observe taking, good assistants, tablets, smartwatches, calendars, net browsers, phrase processors, e mail, and extra in addition to. In automobiles, we’ve Android Auto and Apple CarPlay vying for management of your dashboard.
We felt it was time to take a deep dive into the present state of play on these two platforms—which apps and which options can be found on every, the place the strengths and weaknesses are on each, and which is the higher alternative while you’re driving. It might be a small a part of the Google vs Apple battle, however for normal drivers, it’s an necessary one.
Feel and look: Pretty comparable
On the time of writing, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay each have an analogous look after they’re in your dashboard—maybe there are solely so some ways to arrange an interface like this. Usually, you’ll have your maps app in a big widget, your media app in a small widget, and fast navigation shortcuts in one other small widget.
Each platforms allow you to put any app full display screen if you happen to want a greater take a look at the route you’re taking or the music that you simply’re at present enjoying. You additionally get indications of your cellphone’s sign power and battery degree when you’re driving in each Auto and CarPlay, which is useful to know when you’re on the go. Solely CarPlay really exhibits the time, however we’re assuming your automobile’s built-in devices have that coated.
In each the Apple and Google interfaces, you’ll discover a sidebar with fast hyperlinks to your most not too long ago used apps, and you may swap to a full drawer of apps with a single faucet if it is advisable launch one thing else. Scrolling and navigating is all very easy, which in fact it must be.
The same old aesthetic variations between Android and iOS are additionally evident in Android Auto and Apple CarPlay: The previous is barely extra chunky and easy, and the latter is barely extra detailed and refined, with regards to the textual content and the icons used. Nevertheless, you received’t be confused in any respect if it is advisable swap between them recurrently. They work in almost similar methods.
Android Auto does provide you with a little bit extra by way of customizing the format: You possibly can put fast controls for apps down on the backside of the display screen if you wish to, in a taskbar-style widget. In different phrases, playback controls on your media app can nonetheless be seen when your mapping app is taking over the remainder of the display screen.
That’s not doable on Apple CarPlay, apart from on the default multi-widget format. It’s a small distinction, but it surely makes life barely extra handy if you would like your navigation system maps as large as doable whereas holding your media playback controls accessible (that stated, you might nicely have bodily controls on the steering wheel in any case).
Apps and options
You’ve obtained an analogous set of apps accessible on each Android Auto and Apple CarPlay—the standard suspects within the maps and media classes. Google Maps and Apple Maps are each accessible on Apple CarPlay, although you received’t discover Apple Maps on Android Auto, which is unlikely to hassle you if you happen to don’t have an iPhone. In the event you’re a Waze consumer, you then’re coated on each platforms.
Apple Music is out there on Android Auto, as it’s on Android. You’ll additionally discover Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, YouTube Music, and lots extra. You get a smattering of messaging apps as nicely, together with WhatsApp, Fb Messenger, and Google Chat. Neither platform helps video streaming apps, for apparent causes.
Over on Apple CarPlay, there are all the identical audio apps that we’ve simply talked about. There’s much less help for third-party messaging apps—WhatsApp is the most effective third-party possibility by way of CarPlay help, however you may’t browse a listing of messages and might solely work together with the app by way of Siri. Whereas Android Auto solely exhibits messages in third-party apps which have arrived when you’ve been driving, it’s simpler to evaluation them, and extra third-party apps are supported.
Each platforms provide the capacity to select and select which appropriate apps out of your cellphone present up in your automobile dashboard. In different phrases, if there’s an app that you simply use in your cellphone however not in your automobile, you don’t must have it displaying up within the Android Auto or CarPlay dashboard—and app order might be personalized in each instances as nicely.
One plus for Apple CarPlay is the Now Taking part in icon within the app drawer, which is a useful shortcut to whichever media app is at present enjoying—it means you don’t must dig by way of a listing of apps to search out the one which’s energetic. There’s no such display screen on Android Auto, so you must delve into particular person apps every time.
Each Google Assistant and Siri are current on their respective platforms, able to take motion in your voice instructions: Navigate to an deal with, cease the music enjoying, let you know the climate forecast, make a name, ship a message. When it comes to in-car use, they’re each fairly nicely matched and might maintain the identical sort of duties.
Settings and customization
Android is normally considered extra customizable than iOS, and it’s honest to say Android Auto affords a couple of extra settings than Apple CarPlay does. For instance, you may set whether or not or not Android Auto begins up mechanically together with your automobile, and whether or not or not audio out of your most not too long ago used app begins enjoying straight away—customization options you don’t get with Apple CarPlay.
Android Auto additionally helps you to select whether or not or to not present previews of incoming messages on display screen, how maps ought to swap between day and evening mode, and whether or not the navigation or media playback controls needs to be closest to the driving force. These identical settings might be accessed by way of your Android cellphone as nicely, if you happen to discover that extra handy.
Over on the Apple aspect, you may select between a number of wallpapers, you may power darkish mode or have it set mechanically primarily based on the time of day, and decide to have the Driving Focus mode enabled every time CarPlay is activated—that provides you loads of management over which apps and which individuals can distract you when you’re on the transfer.
iOS additionally helps you to select which apps set off notifications on the CarPlay dashboard and which don’t—on Android Auto, you don’t get that degree of management, and the identical notification settings will probably be used in your cellphone as in your automobile dashboard. It’s doable to have Do Not Disturb on Android enabled every time Android Auto begins up, but it surely’s not fairly as simple to configure as it’s with CarPlay and an iPhone.
Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are at present very evenly matched with regards to how they give the impression of being and the options they provide. There are small variations, however nothing which means one platform is considerably forward of the opposite by way of what you’re in a position to do within the automobile.
It’s value mentioning that Apple has a major improve for CarPlay within the works for late 2023. The corporate introduced it plans to combine CarPlay additional with the devices fitted to your automobile, in addition to providing extra widgets, help for a number of shows, and a built-in FM radio app. We’ll have to attend and see when these options roll out, and the way broadly they’re going to be supported.
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