After the new Android Auto 7.8 update , the service starts to crash and stops working for dozens of smartphone models under the guise of ‘phone not supported’ error . This does not seem to have a solution in any way, at least for now.
A large number of Android users have complained that the Google service connection has been interrupted and this problem has appeared in Android Auto after the latest update that has been implemented to users around the world, but it is giving significant problems to several users.
A thread on the Google forums has a hundred reports in the last few days alone stating that the device has stopped working and has started to be considered unsupported. It seems that the problem would affect dozens of smartphones from various manufacturers, and not a specific model or brand. There are many Samsung mobiles, such as S22, S21, S20, S10, S9, Galaxy Z Flip 3. Some Asus, OnePlus, Xiaomi, Pixel and more.
What exactly is happening?
The complaints do not stop arriving, so the models with this problem can be added, which in most cases is expressed under the error ‘phone not compatible’. This happens when they try to pair their device with the Android Auto app to the car. Depending on the brand and model, something different may happen on the screen, but it is usual for an error like the one mentioned or similar to appear.
The issue is independent of the Android version and is related to the Android Auto 7.8.6 update . It seems that there is a problem in this update that shows many mobile models as not compatible and does not allow them to use the service. Here we show the screen of a user who exposes his problem, in which we see what is happening clearly.
He explains it as follows:
I connect my phone with a USB and Android Connect appears on the car screen. I touch it and it asks me to connect through my phone which says Android Auto available and to update. When I tap Update, the app closes and the car screen says to reconnect the Android Auto device. This goes round and round. I tried to uninstall Android Auto on the phone but when I tap uninstall it tells me to update which I do. Again, that goes around in circles, so I’m assuming it has something to do with the August 12 software update.
It’s very annoying as now I can’t use Waze, stream music, etc. Any solutions or ideas on what happened and when it will be fixed? It worked perfectly before Friday on the Citroën C4 info screen.
Complaints do not stop occurring, and users do not find any remedy. One of the users claims to have tried everything :
Same problem. It says to check my device, but there is no message on my screen. Or reconnect, but doing that does nothing. I cleared my cache and uninstalled the automatic android app for phone screens on my phone. My car was designed to use Android Auto, so it’s a pain in the ass. Google needs to undo or fix whatever is in that update.
A Pixel user expresses his opinion, although he does not know if it is a problem with the device or Android Auto:
Pixel 6 here, Android Auto stopped charging for me yesterday, it was working fine before. I have a 2008 Volkswagen Rabbit with RCD360 head unit. Tried several different cables, tried disabling and re-enabling the Android Auto app, clearing cache and user data, all to no avail. When I plug in my phone, I can see that it’s trying to connect, but after a few seconds, I get a message that the device doesn’t support Android Auto.
It is unfortunate that this problem has arisen for so many after the new release. Hopefully it will be fixed in due course. For now I have to use bluetooth which isn’t too bad but it’s much easier to use AA.
As a side note, my Pixel 6 has been giving me trouble for the last couple of months. I’m not sure if this is related to the Android Auto issue, but my Pixel 6 likes to disconnect frequently and requires a restart to put it back together. It is very irritating especially when driving and using Android Auto. I was considering a trade, but no carrier seems to even want to trade this phone for some reason. Anyway, I hope things work out. It was a good phone for a while, but all the problems start to add up and create a bitter experience.
Still not fixed, although Google knows it
On the part of Google, they have already responded to the thread requesting more details about user reports such as mobile model, Android Auto version and other data. In recent days, he has remained somewhat silent after indicating that the information has been sent to the Android Auto team.
The only thing users can do if they encounter this issue in order to use this service is to use an older version of Android Auto and try to enroll in the beta program. You can also try it with Android Auto 7.9.
If it happens to you, before that you can try the classic solutions, such as restarting, clearing the cache, trying to install the application again, but it is a very common error that many users still cannot find a solution for. Hopefully Google is working on it and fixes it soon.