Android Auto 14.2 Starts Rolling Out, Removes Confusing Hint At 'Glasses'

After debuting in beta earlier this month, Google has started the rollout of Android Auto 14.2 to the masses, and with the removal of some confusing strings about “Glasses.”

Google’s Android Auto rollouts generally follow a pattern of a new update launching in beta a couple of weeks ahead of the start of the wider, public rollout. That’s the stage we’ve reached today. Android Auto 14.2 started rolling out via the stable track a few days ago, but won’t be widely available to all users for at least a few more days, if not a week or more.

As per usual, there are no major features attached to Android Auto 14.2, with the update instead mainly delivering bug fixes and other minor tweaks.

We’re highlighting this particular release as the update has made some behind-the-scenes changes since the beta release.

About APK Insight: In this “APK Insight” post, we’ve decompiled the latest version of an application that Google uploaded to the Play Store. When we decompile these files (called APKs, in the case of Android apps), we’re able to see various lines of code within that hint at possible future features. Keep in mind that Google may or may not ever ship these features, and our interpretation of what they are may be imperfect. We’ll try to enable those that are closer to being finished, however, to show you how they’ll look in case that they do ship. With that in mind, read on.

As reported on April 10, the initial Android Auto 14.2 release included strings around “Glasses,” which was taken to refer to smart glasses based on a Hindi translation in the app. The English version, however, was oddly worded and didn’t seem to align with that alternate translation.

Glasses
Start navigation to launch Glasses

While confusion remains, Google has removed these strings from the stable Android Auto 14.2 update entirely, though it’s possible some alternate translations remain.

We’ll update this post when Android Auto 14.2 is more broadly available. In the meantime, no Android Auto 14.3 version has yet to be released to the beta track.