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On 23rd April, the Android Auto 9.4 version began rolling out to everyone on the Google Play Store via staged rollouts. To make the updates more stable, Google rolls these updates out to all devices gradually, in phases.
On average, Google rolls out Android Auto updates every seven or ten days. Moreover, the beta versions take about two weeks to move to the public.
Update 12/05/2023: Stable version of Android Auto 9.5 is now available for all users via the Google Play Store. The stable build is rolling out in phases, so it might take a while before it becomes accessible on your device. It doesn’t bring any significant changes; it’s simply an upgrade from the previous version. All users can experience the Coolwalk user interface by installing the stable version.
Android Auto 9.4 didn’t have any official new features. Furthermore, the feature where you can choose the startup app was removed for some people on 9.4, and we’re not sure if it’s back with Android Auto 9.5.
According to prior announcements, Google was supposed to add a first-party screencast feature, but we still don’t see that with Android Auto 9.5. There aren’t any updates about the weather information card either.
This was a major with Coolwalk UI for those who got it. There are a lot of UI lags and freezes. This is a major experience-breaking bug; however, we can’t determine the scale of the issue at the moment.
According to some users, music playback continues in the background. The entire app didn’t crash, but there are touch response problems.
Basic troubleshooting methods like uninstalling, reinstalling, or restarting the app do not help. There’s one workaround for this, and that’s disabling Coolwalk as a whole.
Since this problem only happens with those using the new Coolwalk UI, the only solution is to uninstall the app updates and return to an older version that didn’t have Coolwalk UI. This isn’t convenient at all.
Unfortunately, there aren’t any clear reports on whether or not the Android Auto 9.5 Beta fixes any of these issues. In typical Google fashion, there was no official changelog for the update.
The changelog on some websites says there’s improved Do Not Disturb functionality, but there wasn’t much elaboration. The Dark Mode UI is independent of the dark mode toggle on the phone, but this was there with previous versions, too.
We can assume there were some security updates and bug fixes to improve the user experience. However, we cannot precisely determine which bugs were explicitly fixed. If you’re wondering what Coolwalk is, it’s a new UI/ UX design for Android Auto.
The announcement was a long time ago, in 2021, and the rollout is happening in stages. Google began rolling out Coolwalk in January 2023, and many people have the new UI already.
There’s a dock at the bottom for multitasking, you can open multiple apps in split screen view, the new design language looks more modern and minimal, and there’s a new media card. Hence, active Android Auto users are very excited about when the new UI will arrive.
We’re reminding you that the Android Auto 9.5 Beta does not guarantee that you’ll get Coolwalk UI. Google controls the rollout with a server-side switch, and there aren’t any links to specific versions of Android Auto.
The Android Auto 9.5 Beta is only for developers and testers, and the bug reports will make the public rollout more stable. We don’t recommend relying on Android Auto much if you’re on the Beta software.
Officially, you can find the Android Auto 9.5 Beta on the Play Store if you’re part of Google’s beta program for the app.
If not, you can always grab an APK from a reliable website to try the new version. Following previous timelines, the public rollout will happen in around a week. Nevertheless, the lack of significant changes makes it not worth updating for regular users.
