Google continues to think about the design that the Google Assistant has in Android Auto and the latest attempt, visible in Android Auto 11.2 Beta, is probably one of the best: instead of showing itself covering the map, it does so in a much more subtle way.
When we call the Google Assistant in Android Auto, we will not now see a pop-up window covering part of the interface, but rather the bottom bar, where app icons are normally displayed, will change to show the Assistant animation. Other screens are integrated into the space reserved for widgets.
The Assistant does not cover the map in Android Auto
Google has already changed the design of the Assistant in Android Auto quite a few times and the latest changes are more of a change in the design location itself, so that the Assistant does not appear covering part of the map, which was somewhat frustrating in some cases.
The change is quite interesting because, when our Android Auto configuration includes the button panel in the bottom bar, This bar will change to show the Wizard. That is, we can continue using the map calmly, without anything in the way, but we will not be able to change applications momentarily. Considering we’re talking to the Assistant at the time, it seems unlikely that we’d want to do this anyway.
The changes do not end there, but other Google Assistant screens, such as when it shows us a list of contacts to choose from, are also integrated into other places, instead of being displayed on the map. If your Android interface includes a section for widgets, that will be where these types of Google Assistant screens will be displayed.
Both changes together make the Google Assistant integrates better than ever and bothers as little as possible in the interface, which is to be appreciated because otherwise we would have to wait a few seconds until it “stopped listening” and closed and in that time we could miss the information about the exit that we had to take on the route.
These changes also come as a prelude to the news with AI for Android Auto announced by Google and Samsung and that will mean more information on the screen from the Assistant, such as summaries of pending messages. This information, if the new design prospers and reaches everyone, will not cover up vital information on the car screen.
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