While Google has slowly begun to open up the possibilities of Android Auto, developers have been struggling for some time to bring additional functionality. AA Passenger is a veteran application and ahead of its time with which a passenger can interact with Android Auto sending photos, locations and even audio.
AA Passenger joins the list of unofficial applications such as Local Video Player, Cartube, AA Mirror Plus, IPCarTV or Fermata Audio, with which you can do more with Android Auto. In this case, it is a somewhat more complicated system since requires you to install two different apps, one on the mobile that connects to Android Auto and another on the passenger’s that will send content.
Android Auto control for passengers
To get AA Passenger working, you will need to install two applications. On the mobile that connects to Android Auto, you have to install AA 2nd Seat. You will find this application in AAStore, the unofficial store and downloader of applications for Android Auto that are not in Google Play. Of course, it is mistakenly called AA Passenger.
You can download AAStore from this link, although you can also download AA 2nd Seat directly from the project page on Github. Keep in mind that for it to work, you need activate installation from unknown sources in Android Auto. This is accomplished by activating the Android Auto developer options by tapping ten times on Version and permission information. Then use the menu Developer settings and brand Unknown sources.
Regardless of whether you use AAStore or if you install it from its APK, the rest of the process is the same. Install AA 2nd Seat on the mobile that will connect to Android Auto. At the moment you do not need to do anything else on this mobile.
The process continues on the passenger’s mobile, the one that will control Android Auto sending content even though your mobile is not the one that has been connected. In it you must install AA Passenger, which you can download and install from its GitHub APK.
Connect the first mobile to Android Auto and open AA Passenger on the second mobile. Step-by-step wizard guides you through pair both devices in a simple way, in addition to showing you the main functions of the application.
You do not need to do anything else in the application, as the process is carried out mainly from the Android share menu. To send photos to Android Auto, you can do it from any gallery application, using the share menu and choosing Send to Android Auto.
The same happens for send directions from Google Maps. After opening the address of a place, use the share menu and choose Send to Android Auto in the menu that is displayed. It should be emphasized that in our tests this did not work correctly.
Sending photos does work very well, showing up instantly on the Android Auto screen. Not only that, but every time you take a screenshot, it is sent to the car without intervention on your part.
In addition to sending photos and addresses, with AA Passenger it is also possible to send music and control its playback from the car, with the application Passengers Audio. Although some functions of this application do not work very well since it has not been updated for some years, the truth is that it is still a rather ingenious way of allowing other passengers in the car to handle what is displayed in Android Auto in a certain way.