Artie Beaty/ZDNET
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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Gemini in Android Auto is changing my daily drive.
- It’s making me safer, providing entertainment, and more.
- I actually look forward to car time now.
At the beginning of April, I tried the then brand-new Gemini in my car for a weekend. I was mostly using Gemini to find information — things like the hours of a local business, the address of a theater, or random questions that popped into my head. It was so useful that I finally embraced Google’s AI assistant.
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Two months in, I continue using Gemini for all those purposes, but I’m still finding more. Gemini isn’t doing anything that it couldn’t before Android Auto integration, but it’s so convenient that I’m using it more, and it’s changing how my drives feel. My daily drive is becoming safer, less boring, and more connected.
4 ways Gemini has improved my driving time
Here’s how finally embracing Gemini is changing my drives.
1. I’m reaching for my phone/screen a lot less
Like my initial test found, Gemini can handle a whole lot of tasks that would usually have me reaching for my phone or car’s screen. If I need to let my wife know I’m running a little late, if I want to find a good local coffee shop in a new city, or if I just want to look up some tidbit of information, I now ask Gemini.
Where Google Assistant required exact commands and often needed repetition, which led to me giving up, Gemini understands my intent almost every time. It’s even able to handle multiple commands at once, like “Find a good burger spot on my way home and text my wife to ask if she wants anything.”
2. Drives with the family are less boring
My kids have fallen in love with Gemini too, and I rarely hear “I’m bored” from the backseat anymore. They love trivia games, and Gemini is great at creating quizzes centered around any topic imaginable. Gemini Live mode is fantastic for carrying on conversations, and it’s surprisingly good at interactive prompts too.
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When my kid made a pretty niche request — a choose-your-own-adventure story set in North Carolina that used places and famous people from our state — we found ourselves sitting in the car after we got home so we could see where the story landed.
3. I’m more connected to home
Through integration with Google Home, Gemini can manage a lot of my smart home devices, so things are how I need them when I get home. I can lower the thermostat, turn on the porch light when I get home at night, and open the garage door. I can even start my smart ice maker so I have ice ready when I walk in.
It’s made my car essentially a hands-free remote control for my smart home.
4. My drives are more productive
Thanks to Gemini, I can turn dead time in the car into productive time, giving me more free time at home. I’ll still spend time learning more about something I heard about in a podcast, but I can also catch up on emails and messages through summaries, brainstorm plans, set reminders for things I might forget later, capture thoughts before they disappear, and more. The old Assistant was pretty rigid, but Gemini goes far beyond basic tasks and helps me use drive time to stay connected to the rest of my day.
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Gemini still isn’t perfect, and there are times when it overcomplicates easy requests or gets something wrong. But after two months behind the wheel with it, I’m finding that time in my car is becoming something I look forward to, either to knock out some tasks, have some fun time with family, or have some good conversation.
