Photo: Bogdan Popa/autoevolution/Volvo
Many people consider Waze the most advanced alternative to Google Maps, and this is a correct assessment at some level.
With a freeware license and a top-notch crowdsourcing engine to power its incident reporting system, Waze helps make the road significantly more predictable. By allowing users to report what’s happening on the road, the app keeps everybody up-to-date about traffic conditions before approaching a specific point on the map.
As such, this week’s announcement that Waze is launching in more Android Automotive cars was fantastic news for some users. The Google-owned company is bringing its app to Volvo and Polestar models after previously being exclusive to Renault models powered by AAOS.
In theory, this is good news for AAOS users because they can finally replace Google Maps with a worthy alternative. In practice, however, Google Maps remains the best navigation app on this operating system, as the Waze integration leaves a lot to be desired.
First and foremost, it’s the lack of settings in Waze on AAOS. As I explained a few months ago, certain Waze settings are only available on the mobile device. To get them on Android Automotive, you must use the same account. And yet, certain settings don’t seem to sync correctly, including distance units (changing from metric to imperial and the other way around).
Then, Waze does not support preconditioning on Polestar models. If you drive towards a fast-charging station with navigation enabled, Waze does not prepare the vehicle battery for charging.
The integration in Polestar models feels half-baked, to say the least. The application does not display route guidance on the instrument cluster but only next-turn information. Most of the available screen estate is left blank, turning the instrument cluster into a waste of space.
Polestar confirms that Waze isn’t projected into the driver display, so Google Maps is removed from the screen. In other words, Waze replaces Google Maps on the instrument cluster despite not showing anything other than simple turn-by-turn instructions. The carmaker says it’s looking into ways to integrate Waze into the instrument cluster, but for now, there’s no ETA as to when this feature could be released.
In the meantime, Google Maps is the application that does it all on Android Automotive. Thanks to the deep integration of Google services, Google Maps can also monitor the battery level and suggest charging stops on the route. Furthermore, the application can also estimate the current range and determine if the existing battery charge is enough to reach a provided destination.
The main benefit of using Waze instead of Google Maps is the advanced traffic navigation system that takes into account the reports submitted by others. Just like on Android Auto and CarPlay, AAOS can also send a wide variety of reports, including for speed traps, potholes, traffic jams, and roadkill.
As such, this week’s announcement that Waze is launching in more Android Automotive cars was fantastic news for some users. The Google-owned company is bringing its app to Volvo and Polestar models after previously being exclusive to Renault models powered by AAOS.
In theory, this is good news for AAOS users because they can finally replace Google Maps with a worthy alternative. In practice, however, Google Maps remains the best navigation app on this operating system, as the Waze integration leaves a lot to be desired.
First and foremost, it’s the lack of settings in Waze on AAOS. As I explained a few months ago, certain Waze settings are only available on the mobile device. To get them on Android Automotive, you must use the same account. And yet, certain settings don’t seem to sync correctly, including distance units (changing from metric to imperial and the other way around).
Then, Waze does not support preconditioning on Polestar models. If you drive towards a fast-charging station with navigation enabled, Waze does not prepare the vehicle battery for charging.
The integration in Polestar models feels half-baked, to say the least. The application does not display route guidance on the instrument cluster but only next-turn information. Most of the available screen estate is left blank, turning the instrument cluster into a waste of space.
Polestar confirms that Waze isn’t projected into the driver display, so Google Maps is removed from the screen. In other words, Waze replaces Google Maps on the instrument cluster despite not showing anything other than simple turn-by-turn instructions. The carmaker says it’s looking into ways to integrate Waze into the instrument cluster, but for now, there’s no ETA as to when this feature could be released.
In the meantime, Google Maps is the application that does it all on Android Automotive. Thanks to the deep integration of Google services, Google Maps can also monitor the battery level and suggest charging stops on the route. Furthermore, the application can also estimate the current range and determine if the existing battery charge is enough to reach a provided destination.
The main benefit of using Waze instead of Google Maps is the advanced traffic navigation system that takes into account the reports submitted by others. Just like on Android Auto and CarPlay, AAOS can also send a wide variety of reports, including for speed traps, potholes, traffic jams, and roadkill.
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