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Android Auto Blamed for Major Bug Turning Android Phones Into Useless Bricks

As many of us learned the hard way, running Android Auto is often quite a challenge, all due to the occasional bugs that show up out of nowhere and ruining the entire experience.
Google is yet to acknowledge the glitch 6 photos
Photo: Alpine
Android Auto interfaceAndroid Auto interfaceAndroid Auto interfaceAndroid Auto interfaceAndroid Auto interface
But as it turns out, Android Auto could end up causing trouble not only when it’s running but also after shutting down.

Plenty of users are now complaining on Google’s forums that Android Auto is making their phones painfully slow after the app shuts down and the device is no longer connected to the car.

More specifically, these users explain their phones become pretty much useless bricks every time they close Android Auto, as everything is dramatically slow, including the touch response, the animations, and launching apps. In some cases, it takes up to several minutes to register the touch and launch an application, some say.

And it’s all happening after disconnecting the phone from the car and shutting down Android Auto, it seems. Only Android 11 devices are impacted, yet right now, it looks like not all devices are affected, but only models from Xiaomi and Vivo.

The typical workarounds that involve clearing the cache and changing cables are a waste of time, but on the other hand, what works for these users is a phone reboot. In other words, every time the device becomes so slow after shutting down Android Auto, a restart brings this back to normal, though it goes without saying this isn’t necessarily a convenient fix.

Some have tried even more extreme workarounds, such as a full device reset, but all to no avail.

According to one of the affected users, what prevents the glitch from happening again in their car is turning off the automatic screen lock option and the Pocket Mode (if available, depending on the phone model).

Google is yet to acknowledge the problem, so there’s no confirmation as to whether a fix is coming or not.
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About the author: Bogdan Popa
Bogdan Popa profile photo

Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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