Android 15 Is Already on the Horizon, Yet Android 14 Still Wreak Havoc on Android Auto

The accelerated release isn't a bad thing, though it occasionally makes the previous releases feel like unfinished work.

It's what happens now with Android 14. Google is already working on Android 15, with the first Developer Preview (DP) expected to ship this week. However, Android 14 lacks the refinements of a stable operating system, as users still struggle with a wide range of bugs, especially in the car.

Android 14 has been wreaking havoc on Android Auto, breaking down essential features and the connection between the head unit and smartphones.

Android 15 is coming

The first Android 15 Developer Preview will likely ship tomorrow (February 15), with a Google developer confirming the date in a recent comment on the Android Open Source Project discussion board.

The post reveals that the "first Developer Preview is scheduled for February 15" without disclosing additional details.

However, the date is not surprising. Google typically ships the first DP build of new Android releases in the first half of February. Android 14 witnessed the first Developer Preview going live on February 8, so the company needed one extra week to finish the work on the same build for Android 15.

It is worth knowing that February 15 is not the date when Android 15 will become available for the supported devices. It's just the day when Google starts the public testing of the next Android release. More notably, Google has been working on Android 15 for several months, but this first developer preview is our first opportunity to get a glimpse into its feature lineup.

Android 15 DP builds are only aimed at experienced users, especially developers, who can test the pre-release software and send feedback to Google. The search giant will use the reported bugs to refine the operating system further before it begins public beta testing later this year. Android 15 should reach the production channel in the summer.

Google's Pixel phones will be the first devices to receive the DP builds, the beta, and the stable update. Google has not officially announced the release dates for each Android 15 development channel.

Android Auto issues caused by Android 14

With Android 15 already on the radar, some users wonder if the bugs they've been struggling with on Android Auto after installing Android 14 will get a fix.

The release of Android 14 was received with much excitement by the Android user base, mainly thanks to the improvements it brought to mobile devices. However, Android 14 broke down Android Auto in mysterious ways, causing connection issues, random disconnects, and broken apps.

The experience with Android 14 from an Android Auto perspective has been mixed. While some users claimed that Android Auto has been working flawlessly after the update to Android 14, others said the new operating system caused issues that prevented them from running Android Auto behind the wheel. Most of these bugs have remained unfixed, and with the work on Android 15 making progress, it's unclear if Google still wants to resolve them with an Android 14 update. The company could wait until Android 15 to address the reported glitches.

One of the most common Android Auto bugs reported after the Android 14 update is the broken wireless connection. Several users claimed they could no longer connect the mobile device to the infotainment system without a cable, despite everything working correctly before the update.

Switching to Android Auto wired (if available) was the only workaround, as no other solution restored the wireless connection. Google confirmed it was investigating the glitch, but a fix is yet to go live.

Spotify users also complained of Android Auto issues after installing Android 14 on their smartphones. The widespread issue prevented Spotify from updating the Now Playing interface – the app correctly played the requested song in the background, but the screen offering track information and one-tap access to playback controls didn't load.

Android 14 also caused more isolated issues, including broken voice commands, random disconnects, and occasional lag while running Android Auto. Despite Google's investigations, fixes for these problems are still nowhere to be seen.

Keep in mind that only some users encountered these issues on Android Auto and Android 14, but it's still unclear who is affected. Nobody could determine a pattern – not even Google, as the company would have otherwise released a fix to improve the experience for everybody. The glitches are seemingly produced by an incompatible mix of Android 14, phone model, car model, head unit, and apps running on the mobile device when connected to the infotainment system.

It's impossible to tell what goes wrong without a thorough Google investigation, so fingers crossed for Android 15, not necessarily to deliver a flawless experience but at least not to bring any new bugs to Android Auto users.