Google brings tighter Android Auto integration to underachieving Allo app

Well, Allo there, Android Auto, and nice to finally be able to communicate properly behind the wheel without taking one's eyes off the road.

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Samsung phones with high-end Harman audio tech coming in 2018, no car-making plans

Samsung’s ambition and thirst for power and profits in as many tech industry segments as possible knows almost no bounds, but even after Harman’s acquisition closes next year, the chaebol will remain uninterested in building its own car, electric, driverless or otherwise.

In case it wasn’t already abundantly clear, the “business synergies” of the world’s largest smartphone vendor and the market leader in connected car solutions is aimed at stronger collaborations with established automakers rather than feeble competition against current Harman partners like BMW, Chrysler, Jeep, Mercedes-Benz, and Volvo.

IoT (Internet of Things) is still the name of the game, with Google’s Android Auto and Apple CarPlay standards looking in danger of losing steam, as Harman can take care of premium sound and infotainment systems as far as hardware is concerned, while Samsung could handle the software synching your automobile to phones, computers and other smart gadgets and objects.

But that’s not all Samsung’s paying a whopping $8 billion for, with Galaxy S series phones confirmed as likely to “adopt Harman’s high-end audio technology” as early as 2018. No, we’re afraid the 2017 GS8 and Note 8 will probably not feature any of the 1980-founded American company’s top-class sound enhancements, seeing as how the merger is still subject to various approvals and formalities, including a shareholders’ vote.

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