GoKawiil
Tech News
A growing number of Americans are employing strategies like the 'double fill up' to maximize discounts at the pump, with some sharing tips openly. Others are leveraging AI tools to find better grocery deals, while many homeowners are tapping into home equity and extending auto loans to manage higher expenses. These tactics reflect widespread efforts to cope with inflation and rising living costs.
Users running Android 10 on phones like the Galaxy Note 9, Galaxy S9, and Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact are reporting in-car warnings that their devices will soon lose Android Auto support. The messages appear during wired connections and state the phone cannot update to the Android version Android Auto will require going forward. Google has not announced any change, and its support pages still list Android 9 Pie as the minimum for wired Android Auto.
Android Authority found a work-in-progress Gemini interface redesign inside Android Auto app version 17.9.664004, which it enabled to preview. The new animation adopts Google's Neural Expressive design style with dots around the Gemini interface, spanning the full screen width with Live and close buttons on either side, replacing the current subtle glow indicator.
Multiple Pixel 11 and Pixel 11 Pro/Pro XL owners say Google Maps freezes, flickers, or shows pixelated graphical artifacts when used with Android Auto, over both wired and wireless connections. The issue persists despite clearing app data, reinstalling apps, switching cables, or changing resolution settings, and doesn't affect all users or vehicles.
Soulog has released the Sense, an AI-powered voice recorder paired with the Soulog app that records, transcribes and organizes conversations by topic and decision. The app recognizes up to ten speakers, transcribes in over 120 languages, and can summarize conversations in a different language than they were held in. It also generates structured records of decisions and action items, plus a semantic map and timeline linking related discussions across time.
Pairing a phone with a rental car's entertainment system via Bluetooth can prompt a sync of contacts and other data, which may be stored on the vehicle's infotainment system indefinitely unless manually deleted. Using a USB cable with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto instead offers encrypted connections that don't expose this data. Rental companies like Avis state in their policies that customers are responsible for removing their own data and that the company isn't liable for information left behind.
Google is rolling out a fix for a bug that removed cellular signal strength indicators from Android Auto dashboards earlier this year. Google employee Mishaal Rahman confirmed the fix is currently rolling out, after some users reported the icon's return in the Android Auto v17.8 beta build. The fix is not yet widely available on the stable channel.
Batomon Showdown, a new auto battler from developer Berrymint, launched about two weeks ago on Android ($6) and Steam ($15). The game blends economic management, team building and tactical positioning, with players buying monsters of various rarities and types that can synergize or merge into stronger units, alongside items that boost squads and rerollable in-game shops.
Twelve South has launched Airfly Drive, a small USB adapter that converts factory-wired CarPlay into wireless CarPlay. It plugs into a car's USB-A or USB-C port, pairs with a phone without any app or account, and automatically reconnects each time the car starts. The device supports two paired phones with one-button switching and is priced at $39.99 in black or white.
Android Auto users are reporting that Gemini stalls for about 10 seconds when asked a question or search, then gives up without answering. The issue has been seen across Google, Samsung, and Motorola phones, and affected users say common fixes like resetting Android Auto settings or updating their phone don't resolve it. Android Authority says it has contacted Google for comment.
Android Authority's Robert Triggs suggests ways to keep using a retired phone rather than discarding it, including as a dedicated secondary device for work or personal use, as an Android Auto display via apps like Open Headunit, or as a backup device. The piece also notes old phones can be converted into standalone gadgets using their remaining camera, microphone, screen and storage functions.
Android Authority's Insights team found code for an unreleased Android Auto feature that would use an animated raccoon character, paired with a temperature caption, to show weather conditions on the dashboard. Columnist Andy Walker argues the cartoonish design clashes with Android Auto's usual large, legible, high-contrast interface elements meant to be read quickly while driving.