Google quietly fixed a big annoyance with Android’s Driving Mode

Modes on Android can help limit distracting notifications based on different scenarios. Whether you want to lock into a flow state with Focus mode or simply wind down with only essential notifications from your loved ones, modes let you selectively restrict certain aspects rather than use a blanket Do Not Disturb. Likewise, Android has a Driving mode that automatically suppresses alerts when you’re driving. The best part is that it can activate automatically when it detects that you are driving. Recent changes to the Driving mode meant it would also automatically fire up for passengers, but Google appears to have fixed that recently.

Traditionally, you could use one of the following ways to activate Driving mode on Android: when the phone is connected to Bluetooth, the phone’s sensors detect motion, or both. However, Google quietly removed the option to trigger it by Bluetooth sometime in the recent years. Therefore, for users with Driving mode enabled, it could automatically activate when the phone detected the vehicle was moving, even if the device wasn’t connected to the car’s dashboard. As expected, this meant users would often miss critical calls or notifications, even when they weren’t driving.

Thankfully, Google appears to have revived the option to activate the mode only when the phone is connected via Bluetooth.

We’re already seeing the option across a variety of Android devices. While the options are consistent, the interface on Pixel devices uses the Material 3 Expressive UI, which is not available on other devices, such as the OnePlus 13R, which we used to verify the rollout.

While the feature’s description mentions “vehicle Bluetooth,” we’re unsure whether it causes any issues with older cars that may have generic or aftermarket head units. Notably, Samsung’s implementation also gives you the option to specifically turn on Driving mode only when the device is connected via Android Auto, and it would have been a good addition for all Android devices, too. I hope Google is taking notes.

The feature is available in version 26.05.32 of Google Play Services. You can check for the latest version and update the app from its Google Play Store page.

To activate the feature, you can head to Settings > Modes > Driving and turn on the toggle for While driving. Then tap the option again to choose between the two available options.