Volvo unveils Polestar 2, an all electric Google powered Model 3 competitor | Hacker News Reader

Volvo unveils Polestar 2, an all electric Google powered Model 3 competitor

theverge.com

19 pointsdrewg1239 comments

I love Volvo but I'm deeply disappointed by this direction. Google's support record for new initiatives is completely inconsistent with the lifespan of cars.

Think the owners of Revolv devices were pissed when Google bricked them? The Revolv was only a couple hundred dollars.

Nobody should buy a Google-powered car without a support agreement, in writing, that affirms the core functionality of the car will continue to work as long as the car can reasonably be expected to be repairable.

For a Volvo that should be about two to three decades. Fat chance.

This car checks all the boxes for me - I want a hatchback, I want AWD, I want all electric, and I want something with the range to get me to the ski hill and back. But I'm in the middle of trying to remove Google services from as much of my life as I can, because I'm tired of all the creepy new ways they find to abuse my privacy.

I just discovered, in my Google privacy settings, that Google has started compiling a list of all the things I buy by scraping emails Amazon sends to my Gmail account, and there's no way to turn this off. Creepy AF! And you want me to let you run the OS in my car? No thanks.

"google powered" is a really not a selling point for me.

This story is a little bit underreported. Not because this is a Model 3 competitor. But because it is launching with a native Android Infotainment. This is the iPhone moment of the car industry kick-started by Tesla. With electric drivetrain and battery making car manufacturing is almost a commodity. Cars now have to rely on advanced infotainment to differentiate themselves. Tesla didn't outsell BMW 3 series just because it has an electric car. It is outselling 3 series because it has a 21st century entertainment and control system. Something that can be continuously updated an improved. If this trend persists, Google and Apple will likely be the biggest players in the car industry.

If only there were some way to opt out. I don't want a goddamn tablet on the dashboard, I just want a car that works. If it's android-based, it's going to be utterly Google-dependent, calling home all the time, it'll constantly try to change itself around according to the whims of Google's designers, and half of its features will stop working after five years. Please no: do not want.

I wonder how much differentiation there will be between different auto brands who adopt the native Android Infotainment. There is very little differentiation on newer Android platforms, like Android TV (eg, between Nvidia Shield, Nexus player, and Xiaomi Mi Box). I think Google prefers to minimize vendor customization after allowing way too much leeway for phone handsets.

But if this is true, then the same infotainment interface will be available on $20k economy cars and $100k luxury cars, and manufacturers will hate this. I wonder if that's why the uptick is slow.

If it's treated like other Android hardware, software support will end before the drivetrain warranty is up.

So a Geely EV with flat front and open grille, and Google updates!

No mention of self-driving?

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