Android Auto's redesign is still nowhere, and now 'Driving Mode' is dead

UPDATE: Google killing off 'Driving Mode' dash

Google has confirmed it will ditch its still-new Driving Mode, designed as a standalone component of Google Assistant on Android phones that could be opened as its own app-like view for a big-button driver-friendly interface.

The reveal of Driving mode in 2019 and its eventual launch in late 2021 followed the final termination of Android Auto for phone displays – which occurred as a slow sunsetting process over some years.

Google hasn't offered any official statement on the reasoning behind its decision to kill off Driving Mode, although it likely comes in response to data that shows – and we're speculating here – that most users tended to access the other Driving Mode interface, built directly into Google Maps.

Note: Image atop story is from MobileSyrup.com

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The main difference between the two versions of Driving Mode is that the standalone form could be saved to your phone's home screen with its own app-like icon, and it could also be invoked by simply saying "Hey Google, launch driving mode".

The version integrated into Google Maps, which fires up automatically when the app is connected to a car, or when navigation is started, will continue to run.

This is probably rough news for owners of older vehicles not equipped with Android Auto – particularly as the original Android Auto for phone screens was already a capable and useful app – but at least the Maps-based version continues untouched.

Now, where is that CarPlay-like redesign for Android Auto on car displays..?

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Image from Droid-Life.com

The story to here

August 25: Android 8.0 rolls out, redesign nowhere to be seen

A version 8.0 update for Android Auto is rolling out this week, but hopeful users will see there's still no sign of the system's already revealed redesign.

Unveiled in May after first appearing in previews as far back as last year, the Carplay-like look was supposed to start reaching phones by the middle of 2022.

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For now, Google has offered no comment on the delay, although missed timelines and poor communication with users is nothing new for the tech giant.

It's possible the update will roll out as a server-side change at any moment, or we could see Google formally announce and launch the redesign in October when it unveils the new Pixel 7 series of phones.

Watch this space, and scroll down to see our earlier updates on the redesigned Android Auto.

May 2022: redesign revealed

May, 2022: Google’s Android Auto phone-mirroring platform has come in for its first major design change since 2019, when it dropped the ‘at a glance’ home screen the interface had previously centred on.

For this latest update, Android Auto – not to be confused with Android Automotive, the more integrated platform which underpins infotainment in models like the Polestar 2 – takes a cue from Apple by debuting a new split-screen design.

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As with Apple’s Carplay system, the new-look Android Auto will offer a display divided into three segments – shown in this article with blocks devoted to navigation, media and communication.

The interface is also scalable, with the blocks taking up different positions on screen depending on whether your vehicle’s main display is oriented in either a portrait or landscape orientation.

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On taller screens, the media and communications blocks will appear beneath the main maps module, whereas wider displays will see those smaller modules stacked along the left side.

It’s unclear if Australia’s right-hand-drive market will have the option to move the media and comms modules to the right, although the settings view in Android Auto does currently allow users to specify the difference, shifting the media player and app drawer icon from right to left.

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Above: Android Auto in its current form, launched in 2019

Google says the third module, described here so far as the media block, will switch to other functions depending on the situation. Sometimes it will simply display the time and date, other times it will show navigation details to supplement the map view.

In its communications form, users will also have the option to reply to messages by tapping a predicted response such as “OK” or “On my way” – as Android users will already be familiar with on their phones.

The new interface is scheduled to begin rolling out to phones in the next couple of months. Users will not need to upgrade the software in the vehicles – it all happens on the phone.

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Above: Android Auto in its original 2014 form