When GM decided to stop supporting Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in many of its vehicles, the company faced a wave of criticism. Many buyers had grown accustomed to plugging in their phones and instantly seeing their familiar apps on the dashboard.
Recently I had a chance to try GM’s alternative—a system based on Google’s Automotive OS—in a rental car my son was driving. Although my time with it was brief, it revealed to me more of why GM made the switch and why many drivers remain unhappy.
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto essentially extend your smartphone onto the car’s display. Your iPhone or Android phone does the computing while the dashboard serves as the interface. Maps, Spotify, Messages, Podcasts, and other supported apps all run from your phone. When you disconnect, the car reverts to its own built-in infotainment system.
Google Automotive OS takes a very different approach. Instead of relying on your phone, Google’s operating system is built directly into the vehicle. Navigation, voice control, climate controls, seat settings, and downloadable apps all run on the car itself. The system is always available, whether your phone is connected or not.
To use it, I first paired my iPhone for calls. Apple Music appeared automatically, but many of the apps I regularly use—including Neil Young Archives, Messaging, and Overcast—did not. Instead, I had to search for compatible versions in the Google Play Store built into the car, download them, and sign in to each one. It felt much like setting up a new Google TV: every service requires its own installation and login.
There are a few advantages. Because the operating system lives in the car, you can install apps that aren’t available through CarPlay, including YouTube and other video services that can be used while the vehicle is parked.
The system is also integrated with some of the car’s controls such as window switches and door locks – meaning GM can save money by elimitating physical controls.
The downside is the loss of continuity. With CarPlay, I can begin listening to a podcast on my phone while walking to the car and continue seamlessly once I start driving. With GM’s system, the car becomes a separate device with its own apps, settings, and logins. It doesn’t automatically share the same experience as my phone.
That is something every traveler who rents a car appreciates with CarPlay. With a GM rental car you must sign in to your apps and remember to delete them when you turn yor car in.
So why did GM make the change? Google provides a platform that’s continuously updated and deeply integrated with the vehicle where GM can add more controls to the screen, such as climate settings. It also gives GM access to data and services that aren’t available when customers use CarPlay or Android and gives them the opportunity to sell us subscriptions.
By choosing Google Automotive OS, GM has given Google access to everything we do in the car. Every destination entered, every app used, every interaction with the infotainment system potentially becomes another piece of valuable data that Google knows about us and can use to serve us ads on our phones and computer.
My initial dislike of GM abandoning CarPlay has not been mitigated after using their new sytems over a short while. I still think it trades too many inconveniences for their customer to monetarily benefit others. And while Google knows much about me from my phone and computer, I do turn off their tracking feature, which is something you cannot do with this system.