Google Shutting Down Its Best Driving Feature
Google Driving Mode will be no more with the announcement that the company is removing this feature going forward.
This article is more than 2 years old
Internet giant Google is shutting down another part of its business. It announced last month that it is shutting down its game streaming project, Stadia, not even three years after its launch. This failure was due to very little traction with users. Now it has announced another closure to its vast portfolio. It is winding down its Google Assistant Driving Mode Dashboard.
For those who have never heard of it, like a lot of consumers, the Google Driving Mode dashboard is essentially an extension application and can be added to any Google or Android smartphone. It gives the user easy access to Assistant, along with volume control and a music player, while driving. It is also voice-activated and can be opened by saying, “Hey, Google, launch Driving Mode.” The voice control is just for Google phones.
Google announced the new Google Driving Mode dashboard at its yearly developer conference, I/O, in 2019. It was hyped up by the global company for two years until its release last year. It replaces the Android Auto smartphone app, which was taken down last year; this is why it mirrors some of its content and features.
So what is the difference between Google Driving Mode and plain old reliable Google Maps? Maps also has a feature called Driving Mode which will give you easy access to calls, messages, and media apps while driving.
You can also pin the Google Assistant Driving Mode to your home screen through the Maps Driving Mode feature, which is just confusing to everyone who doesn’t have an app developer qualification.
Disclaimer: even though the features are easily accessible through either piece of software, try not your use your phone while driving; set everything up before you begin your journey.
The features on Google Maps Driving Mode sound familiar, doesn’t it? Yes, and you are not the only one who is thinking it. The company is removing Google Driving Mode because most users prefer to use the Driving mode within Maps over the separate Google Driving Mode application. As a lot of users would be using Maps daily and during a long journey, it makes sense for accessibility and time to have everything in one place.
Another reason Google Assistant Driving Mode was not a successful venture as other applications and software is due to the naming of the application itself. It is too similar to the Driving Mode feature on Maps, and most users probably just thought it was the same thing. Also, let’s be honest; it doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, either.
Google has been having a hard time lately, with several of its ventures not working out due to overcomplicated, not user-friendly products. It seems like their developers are removing all the dead products from their portfolio to start again with better ventures.
Competitors, Apple, are excellent at creating a simplified, user-friendly product, which is why their iOS software and various products are so successful. They should take a leaf out of their book. While Google’s technology might be good, you know what they say about curb appeal?
