Android Automotive is coming to a motorbike for the first time, thanks to KTM
KTM is introducing a new communication unit in its upcoming premium motorcycle that runs the open-source Android Automotive OS. Read on!
Android Auto used to just work as an app on my phone. It was great for my bikes. Ram mount, USB 12v, sena, android auto. Everything worked great. Then Google, like they always do, turned it off. Fuck Google. I don't need a head unit on my motorcycle when I already have a phone.
I repeat, fuck Google.
Aftermarket navigation accessories are incredibly common on motorbikes, the most common ones are phone mounts, or a Garmin unit.
So, there is clearly a need for this.
I'd be very intrigued in a system that lets me leave my phone in my (waterproof) pocket and access audio and navigation on Bluetooth. Let's get this on bikes asap
Remember folks, Android Automotive ≠ Android Auto. They are VERY different things.
Android Auto has been available for bikes for quite some time. Android Automotive hasn’t.
After driving my current car with Android Automotive for over 45.000 km I can only advice to stay away from vehicles using it
Android Auto (with the car working as a display for your phone) is really nice. AA OS is not.
Why do you need an extra screen for a smartphone while driving?
This is android automotive, not android auto. They are two very different product that have been named by total morons.
Android auto is a second screen projection experience, similar to CarPlay. Android Automotive is an operating system for a vehicle’s infotainment system. It can be used without a phone, or it can even host a projection system like CarPlay inside of it.
Mostly navigation and handsfree phonecalls
In a car the larger screen for visibility makes sense. These motorbike screens are about the size of a smartphone, so why not just have a nice place to snap in your smartphone with qi charging and use that?
It would be nice if you can use handlebar controls rather than have to remove hands and touch it.
Also people using handle mounts for phones have found that some phones break due to the vibrations. Modern phone cameras seem particularly susceptible to breaking since they have tiny little mechanisms to move the lenses and so much vibration can shake them to death. So it’s better to be able to keep your phone in your pocket where that gets dampened.
Some KTMs have settings that can be adjusted via the screen like ABS (turned off for offroading) power settings etc...
So if you have a screen might as well add navigation to it
So they can track your driving habits better
Sounds like I'm not buying any new KTM with that shit hole software on it.
If that means we can potentially hack it so create our custom fuel mapping, then I'm 100% down.
Naw that's gonna be on the ecu.
That's pretty cool! With Android Automotive, bikers can expect some neat features like hands-free navigation and music control, making rides more enjoyable and safe. I can't wait to see how it changes the riding experience.
No way this is a human response, and the comment history looks like an AI showcase of summaries and responses.
I think they're all top-level responses too. I took a random sampling of their comments, and they never respond to anyone else's comment. That smells like someone being lazy and not bothering to iterate through comments when writing their dumb AI commenting script.
Like, just, what the fuck is this shit? There's one comment from 8 months ago that looks real. Everything else is from the past week and reads like LLM drivel. Why would you bother? Is it just someone who is bored and wanted to see how long they could convince people?
The last thing I want while riding, and I-ve been riding over 40 years, is another set of distractions. I don-t want music, I don’t answer phones, etc. The only thing I want is waterproof GPS-maps, which I get by using an old OUKITEL rugged phone tethered to my regular phone in my pocket, on my forearm in a flexible sports case (a mount failed me)
