Android Auto’s wireless compatibility reaches new countries

Android Auto’s wireless compatibility is coming to new markets, Google has confirmed. This feature allows the app to automatically display information from a compatible smartphone on a given vehicle’s in-dash display without relying on a traditional tethered connection via a USB cable. Until recently, Google limited its use to 15 countries which acted as testbeds of sorts. As of today, Android Auto’s wireless compatibility will be available in 16 additional countries: Australia, Austria, Germany, France, India, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.

A Smart App for Smart Drivers

Android Auto allows drivers to utilize their vehicles’ in-dash displays, consequently enabling a wide range of features like GPS navigation, phone calls, texting, or playing music. But quite possibly the most important app among them may be Google Assistant. Android Auto supports the use of touch screens and button-controlled head unit displays. However, with Google Assistant, drivers can use other apps hands-free by issuing voice commands, thus minimizing potential driving distractions.

Google first released Android Auto in 2015, with the service continuing to receive regular updates to date. This complex app still isn’t compatible with all brands of smart devices and some of its features were deliberately disabled in certain markets. Nevertheless, the number of car manufacturers supporting Android Auto is rising. South Korean company Hyundai was the first. Others quickly followed. Among them: Cadillac, Chrysler, Dodge, and Ford in North America; Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, and Volvo in Europe; and Mitsubishi, Honda, and Toyota in Asia.

By expanding the availability of Android Auto’s wireless support to so many new markets simultaneously, Google is signaling it’s growing increasingly more comfortable in the connected vehicle space. Even as it works out the final kinks in the system, the tech giant is now quite obviously preparing to kick Android Auto into a higher gear.