Android Auto, like every emerging new innovation in technology, has had a few stutters here and there. And while Google is convinced that their approach towards the automotive infotainment and security sector is going to pay off someday, we can surely say that the tech still has a long way to go and it will be a while until it comes to as perfect as it can ever be.
Having said that, the current feature set of Android Auto is no way short of being impressive and devs have been hard at work to make apps and services for the Google’s automobile OS.
However, a big issue, was the fact that devs needed to get into an actual car with an Android Auto compatible system or use any 3rd party simulators which, if you are a developer, are a chore to handle, in order to test their Android Auto apps.
Google however, has finally pushed in a solution for this. The tech giant announced on Wednesday that developers will now be able to emulate in-car experiences on their workstations using a new tech dubbed the Desktop Head Unit (DHU). No more external simulators — use the DHU over your development system and get the work load off now.
Setting up DHU on your system is a breeze, and Google describes the process in great detail to make it easier for you. You need to compile and run the app that needs to be ported to Auto on a physical mobile device running Android 5.0 (API level 21) or higher. Then install the Android Auto app on the mobile device and open the SDK Manager . Download the DHU package ‘Android Auto Desktop Head Unit’ from the SDK Tools tab. The whole process is described in detail here.
Well, compare that with Apple’s approach to 3rd party apps on their smart car infotainment system and you will see that, for now, Google definitely has the edge.
