Month: July 2023

Developers are getting tools to put apps on the Vision Pro, giving us more clues on how the mixed reality headset works.

It may be awhile before we get the answers to all our questions around the Apple Vision Pro headset, since it doesn’t come out until 2024. But some new facts are trickling in as developers spend time with the software.

Apple released a software development kit that lets programmers simulate what their apps could look like in spatial computing — although in a limited way for now. In July, Apple will open developer labs in six cities around the world, getting hands-on experience to test their apps on Vision Pro hardware.

With the current tools for developers, one of the first things we learned is that there is a travel mode — and a speed limit — as well as a guest mode for loaning it to a friend, and potentially the need to book an appointment to purchase it.

With it being about a month since WWDC’s reveal of the headset, this week’s episode of One More Thing reviews all the new things we’re learning — and sometimes it brings us to new questions. You can watch the episode in the video embedded above.

Google has seemingly stopped restricting Android Auto from displaying Google Maps on both your phone and car dashboard at the same time.

Android Auto has been a helpful interface that abridges Google’s operating system to use while driving, but it’s had some limitations, like preventing Google Maps from displaying on a phone as it’s being used on a car dashboard. Now Android Auto users on Reddit are reporting that the limitation has been lifted and Google Maps can be used on phones and car displays simultaneously.

The restriction was as odd as it was frustrating, with Google Maps showing less information on a car dashboard than in its phone app and displaying only turn-by-turn navigation, ETA, distance remaining and music controls, as Android Police pointed out. This simultaneous-use feature had been briefly available to users in February before being pulled from Google Maps, so hopefully it’s now here to stay.

Presumably, Google had wanted to restrict Google Maps for safety reasons while Android Auto was engaged, keeping you focused on minimal information on the car display rather than distracted by a mobile interface. The tech giant my have accepted what drivers have known for some time: that passengers can use the Android Auto-connected phone during the ride to give more nuanced directions, so you can benefit from having a fully functional Google Maps app while on the road.

Google didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

By comparison, Apple Maps offers slightly more information on road trips: While CarPlay is engaged and the Maps app is navigating to a destination, the connected phone will display a list of turn-by-turn directions. That’s helpful, but it’s still limiting, especially for passengers who want to engage Maps’ additional features.