Google has rolled out Android Auto in 18 more countries including Russia, India, Brazil and the territory of Puerto Rico.
In a move that Google hopes would revolutionise the automotive industry, Android Auto has expanded to include most of the top 10 nations in terms of car sales.
The list of nations covered was released by Google in an emoji filled tweet from the official Android account.
For those who do not know the names of countries based on their Flags, here is the list in full:
- Argentina
- Austria
- Bolivia
- Brazil
- Chile
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- Guatemala
- India
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Puerto Rico
- Russia
- Switzerland
- Uruguay
- Venezuela
The only country missing from this list for now, is China. Though it is nothing more than a glorified touchscreen to connect your phone with the vehicle speakers, something I could previously do with Bluetooth, the standardised UI would mean less time fiddling around with clunky buttons as I change from one vehicle to another.
Having said that it is important to note that Toyota has yet to roll out vehicles that support it, and Honda only supports it in the Civic and Accord. This also leaves out manufacturers such as Nissan, Suzuki, BMW and Mercedes who have not shown any signs of support for the same.
So, for now, though Android Auto has expanded to these new countries, it is safe to say that unless most buyers adopt a third party radio, they are likely to not experience any joy with this news. On the upside, those who have vehicles that did support Android Auto are going to begin having a very different driving experience. Now you don’t have to fear your embarrassing messages being read out loudly over the music, however, your fellow passengers can still read them.
