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Android phone vs Apple phone with i4

3148 Views 6 Replies 5 Participants Last post by homerfan, Oct 31, 2021

Ultrachrome

Discussion Starter · Oct 30, 2021

We put our deposit on our i4 at the dealership yesterday and I told the dealer I was needing to get a new phone soon and asked should I buy an Apple or Android and he said definitely Apple. I don't really want an Apple phone but if it makes a huge amount of difference with this car, then I'll probably get one. One the other hand, I've been seeing videos and reading articles that the car has both Apple Carplay and Android Auto and then others saying it only has Carplay but should have Android Auto in the nearish future.

Three questions...

1.When my i4 is delivered late spring early summer 2022 will it have both systems?
2. What can I do with Carplay that I can't do with Android auto if the car has both systems?
3. What can I do with Carplay that I cant do with Android auto if the car only has Carplay beyond the phone working as your key to the car or having Apple maps on your display screen?

My dealer couldn't answer these questions so I'm hoping someone here can clarify that for me so I can make a decision about my new phone.

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max03

· #2 · Oct 30, 2021

CarPlay seems really well integrated in this car. Full screen on the central console, and some info on the driver screen (like navigation, this is the first car to offer this).
Digital Key should work with some Android phones, but the integration is way better on iPhone and Apple Watch with Apple CarKey. Even more if the i4 is eventually compatible with UWB (I still hope …)

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Ultrachrome

Discussion Starter · #3 · Oct 30, 2021

max03 said:
CarPlay seems really well integrated in this car. Full screen on the central console, and some info on the driver screen (like navigation, this is the first car to offer this).
Digital Key should work with some Android phones, but the integration is way better on iPhone and Apple Watch with Apple CarKey. Even more if the i4 is eventually compatible with UWB (I still hope …)

Thanks for taking the time Max. I'll have to weigh what I'll miss from my Android and see if I want to make the move back to Apple again. Won't the UWB from Android (when available) also work or only Apple?

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b1mm

· #4 · Oct 31, 2021

Since you don't know the difference between Carplay/AA (in functionality), wouldn't it be more obvious to choose a phone you want to use daily?
Instead of choosing your phone based on you current car?

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460

· #5 · Oct 31, 2021

max03 said:
CarPlay seems really well integrated in this car. Full screen on the central console, and some info on the driver screen.

I think it's the same with Android

Best way is to compare the OS: Car play Android Auto
from what I see, with both you've got gps, waze, audio book, personal assistant, multimedia, phone...
I don't know if one is better than the other, but it's not going to make me change my phone

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Ultrachrome

Discussion Starter · #6 · Oct 31, 2021

b1mm said:
Since you don't know the difference between Carplay/AA (in functionality), wouldn't it be more obvious to choose a phone you want to use daily?
Instead of choosing your phone based on you current car?

Yes...I think perhaps you're right. My current car I have no idea what either of these do because it's 2012 Countryman but whether I have Carplay or AA either will be better than what I currently have.

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homerfan

· #7 · Oct 31, 2021

I have both an iPhone and an Android device.

I have a 2017 Chevy Bolt which has both Apple carplay and Android auto. After using both for a bit, I have stuck with Android auto. It can feel a bit more buggy than Apple Carplay at times but the following are the main reasons I stuck with Android Auto.

Most of the services I use are Google based. Google maps, YouTube music, Google assistant
Android auto supports multitouch screens and Apple carplay does not. What I mean by this is that things such as pinch to zoom in Google maps is supported in Android auto but not carplay. This became the major deal breaker for me. Traffic is a thing of life where I live so being able to pinch to zoom in and out in Google maps is a must for me to see how good or bad traffic is ahead. This is not supported in Apple carplay in any map app. For Google maps specifically, there is arrows at the top, bottom, left, and right of the screen that you can tap one at a time to move the screen around. That is too much work when driving in traffic.

I'd say if your daily phone is an Android and it works well for you then stick with it. Like othera mentioned, no need to change your phone because of a car. =]

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