Why is android auto absolutely obliterating my battery? Is the processing not done on the car unit?

scrotist

Maybe I don't understand Android Auto (AA), but I thought most of the hard work is done on the head unit. Including using the head unit's GPS system (which mine has).

Is the work actually done on my phone? It must be if my battery is riddled after a trip.

So what does AA actually do? Is it basically fancy screen mirroring?

I will add that I was using wireless AA.

Next long road trip I have I'll try wired mode. But for the folks who have tried wired vs wireless, does it make a difference?

blackbox

I find that Waze is especially hard on the battery. I've no idea why it uses so much more than google maps.

scrotist

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122019568#Comment_122019568

Yeah I was using waze actually. For about 4 hours.

AA and waze combined ate 43% of my battery. And it was 4 hours of motorway, nothing super complex.

Any idea what the feck the actual head unit is doing? I thought that would handle the bulk of the processing.

swampy353

The reason for the drain when using wireless is that the phone creates a mobile wifi hot spot to communicate with the radio/head unit. It depends on the phone and how good the hot-spot implementation is but it can really drag the arse out of your battery.

On a wired connection, your phone is actively been charged, so unless there is something seriously wrong you'll end up with more battery than you started with

swampy353

Wouldn't consider 40% bad for 4hrs travel assuming that you have music etc playing.

The radio/head unit is just a display,

the advantage of AA over built in entertainment systems is that everything is run through the phone, meaning the experience is consistent from car to car and allows for quick easy updating of apps etc. Rather then the built in ones where its €500 for the maps update and they might only be available every 18 monthd

KildareP

Everything is done on the phone, the headunit is essentially just a second screen.

It's the same on Apple Carplay too, and wireless Carplay also eats the battery.

It's great for short journeys to avoid the hassle of having to plug/unplug frequently but on longer journeys you're better off cabled as you'll end up with the phone fully charged at the end of it.