Before the official start of CES 2016, Ford announced support for Android Auto in their upcoming vehicle portfolio, and we are here, speaking with Mike Lambert, a Mobile Navigation Engineer at Ford, to see exactly what that
entails. Let’s take a look!
Ford already has an in-built infotainment system in place, called Sync 3, that is available with select 2016 models and all upcoming 2017 vehicles, starting with the 2017 edition Ford Escape seen in the video above. But the exciting news is that Android Auto is now going to be integrated into this system. All you need to do is plug in your Android smartphone or tablet running Android 5.0 Lollipop or higher, and the Android Auto interface will automatically launch on the dashboard display.
What that brings to your driving experience is everything that is available with Android Auto, including access to Google Maps, key information like missed calls, messages, and weather, and Google Play Music, and any third party media applications you may have downloaded from the Google Play Store that support Android Auto will also show up.
What Ford is doing different is with regards to the integration with their Sync 3 platform. For starters, in the case of any previous Sync 3 features that become redundant with the availability of Android Auto, the Android features are now given preference in the Sync 3 user interface. So any customers that have chosen Android Auto and its various features, can still retain access to other aspects like native audio systems, FM Radio, Satellite Radio, climate features, and more. The Sync 3 UI also comes with any easy way to jump right back into Android Auto, and vice versa, making for a seamless transition between the two.
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