It was alleged in a recent report that Porsche decided against opting for Android Auto for its in-car infotainment system because the agreement with Google mandated excessive data collection from the car that included things like speed and even oil temperature. Porsche said that this is why it went with Apple’s CarPlay instead, but Google is having none of it, the company has released a statement rubbishing the report about Android Auto’s supposedly excessive data collection.
According to Google users have to opt in to share information with Android Auto which improves their experience, that’s not that different from data collection during web browsing, but specifically for Android Auto the collected data goes towards ensuring that the system can be hands-free when it detects that the car is in drive and also provide more accurate navigation through the car’s GPS.
The company didn’t address some of the concerns taken up in the report directly but it does merit mentioning here that Porsche’s parent company Volkswagen isn’t altogether opposed to Android Auto, rather it has chosen Google’s in-car infotainment system for some of its new vehicles.
Setting up Android Auto is not that different from setting up an Android phones, users have to grant permission about what they’re comfortable with sharing when they’re first setting up the system. If they don’t like it they can simply opt-out.
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