If we are not very inclined to install new apps, the stock of Google applications on Android that we will see in Android Auto are well known: Google Maps, Calendar, Podcasts… I am not going to deceive you: many of them have gone to the bottom of the menu navigation during configuration so that they do not bother me because I never use them and I have others just in case: the reason is that I have other alternative applications for Android Auto that I consider better.
I don’t use Google Maps, I prefer Waze and TomTom AmiGo
They both belong to Google and although Maps is the pretty girl, in my opinion behind the wheel and in Android Auto, Waze is noticeably better and also It’s free. Although I have several reasons for thinking so, there are two that seem fundamental to me. The first is the interface: Waze has a more casual appearance and looks much better, something crucial for someone like me who is not particularly good with maps and gets lost quickly.
The second issue is that it has such an active community that In a matter of minutes it is able to report any problem en route: an improvised police checkpoint, remains of a car from an accident, problems with bad weather… there is nothing like Waze when it comes to unforeseen events.
In the absence of one, two: although I recognize that Waze is the browser that I use regularly, my ace in the hole is TomTom AmiGo, a free browser without ads (something that I do have to swallow with Waze) with very careful maps, a simplified interface and a speed camera warning The best I’ve ever seen. Yes, Waze is up to date thanks to its community, but with AmiGo it is difficult to skip it because it warns you out loud, with the icon, with a red box on the screen where the approximate distance is indicated.
I don’t use Weather, I prefer Weather and Radar
One of the big pending issues of Android Auto It has to do with the weather, a providential issue if like me you tend to drive relatively frequently on long routes that require crossing mountain passes. Because today what Google offers with the official El Tiempo application in its infotainment system It is essentially a quick access to the voice assistant where it tells us what the weather is like here and now.
Yes, it is ideal so as not to confuse the driver, but falls short in benefits and given that we already use applications that require looking at the screen such as browsers (at least from time to time), I consider that it is a worthwhile extra and that it does make Time and Radar.
This app free It has a very visual and intuitive interface because sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words, which allows us to know at a glance if there is a storm nearby or how much it is raining here, but also the weather in real time and in the next few hours, not only if it is going to rain or it will be sunny, but also the temperature. It is possible to choose between several interfaces, but the one that shows the orography seems most useful to me because it is normal that when we cross a pass the weather is worse than when crossing a plain.
Weather & Radar
Your time at a glance! The Weather & Radar application offers you the 90-minute, hourly forecast, the weather today and tomorrow, 7 and 14 days in Spain and any location in the world
I don’t use YouTube Music: Spotify and Amazon Music are better
While in the previous cases I am clear that my choices are based on the fact that, according to my experience, the chosen apps are better than the ones that come by default, with YouTube Music the fundamental thing is that to take advantage of most of its functions it is necessary to be paying customer. However, I make do with what Spotify and Amazon Music offer for freeat the cost of losing some other function such as listening to specific songs on demand or advertisements.
Spotify starts with the advantage of being mainstream. It was the first streaming music application that I tried and with which I stayed out of inertia, plus it is the platform par excellence that people use to send you their playlists. On the other hand, Amazon Music came ‘as standard’ with my Prime and usually has enough promotions to use it for free for months.
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In Apps ProBox | Six important Android Auto settings that I recommend configuring as soon as possible
