Android Auto Adds Zoom to UX, Society’s End is Near
In what is surely the final blow to any semblance of work/life balance, Google has added WebEx and Zoom meeting functionality to its Android Auto suite of services.
Tech wonks will call it enhanced productivity, of course, while the rest of us will bemoan the intrusion of scheduled meetings into one of the last sanctuaries of solace left on the planet for most gearheads.*
*Ed. Note -- Or for anyone.
Fortunately, no one’s forcing us all to use this stuff and a good many of our writers and readers don’t have whips modern enough to support Android Auto, anyway. Last we checked it didn’t work in a Crown Vic or GMT800 pickup truck.
As for the rest of this world’s poor sods whose bosses will now expect constant-on availability for meetings, the two newly integrated apps are said to only work in audio-only. Google says will make it “easy and safe” for drivers to quickly join scheduled meetings from car displays. OK, then. We would like to suggest these apps only be used whilst a car is stationary, such as in a parking lot or while an EV is charging, but we all know some folks will use them on the go.
A more useful tool that’s part of the latest updates from Google is that of a digital car key, permitting owners of certain makes and models to lock and unlock vehicles from their smartphones. Select machines from the Hyundai extended family – Kia, Genesis, and Hyundai brands – in the U.S. and Canada will have access to this tech through compatible Samsung and Pixel devices. Users will be able to share digital keys with others who are like-minded in terms of the device in their pocket.
This differs from what’s on offer in OEM apps in that it’s a standalone feature not dependent on an app from a carmaker, though most functions sound similar. Privacy watchdogs are putting their tinfoil hats on as we speak.
[Image: Google]
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Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.
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Kia/Hyundai are in no position to be marketing easier ways to get into their vehicles.
-smirks- Gents, please remember to switch your Bluetooth off in the parking garage/parking lot. Nothing like walking by a vehicle were the occupant is having an argument with their significant other and we can hear it through all six speakers.