Apple today unveiled the iPhone 14 lineup, the Apple Watch Series 8, Watch Ultra and Watch SE 2. All of these new products bring with them a long-standing feature from Google’s Pixel lineup, car crash detection, to the benefit of all but one another in terms of copying tech companies.
Google Pixel introduced car crash detection in 2019
Car crash detection has been available on Pixel smartphones since 2019, but you’d be forgiven for not knowing about it before now.
Google has historically done little to advertise this feature. It appears buried in a single sentence at the launch of the Pixel 4, and became a consideration with all future releases from the company. By comparison, Apple touted this functionality over the course of several minutes when it launched its latest iPhones and smartwatches.
Still, car crash detection is available in the “Safety” app on every Pixel since the Pixel 3.
How does this work? Like Apple’s implementation, car crash detection on the Pixel uses the phone’s onboard sensors to identify when you’ve crashed.
Google says the feature uses location data, motion sensors and microphones on your device to detect car accident conditions. After a crash, your Pixel phone will vibrate and sound an alarm to see if you need help before contacting 911 yourself to report the accident to emergency services and your location. This is remarkably similar to what Apple just announced for its smartphones and smartwatches.
On a help page, Google states:
Your Pixel 3, 4 and up may use information such as your phone’s location, motion sensors, and surrounding sounds to detect potentially serious car accidents. Car accident detection requires location, physical activity, and microphone permissions to work. If your phone determines that you have been in a serious car accident and call emergency services, your approximate location and car accident data can be transmitted to emergency services by Android’s emergency location service.
Does car crash detection really work on the Pixel?
Of course, the big question is whether or not this feature actually works. This is something that no one expects to be put to the test, but the good news is that documented cases of this feature are actually saving lives.
In early 2021, a Pixel owner shared the story of an accident on his private land not even in a car, but farm equipment where the vehicle crashed and overturned, leaving him unconscious, trapped, and his The phone went out. the access. When he woke up, his Pixel had already contacted emergency services, who found him shortly after, potentially saving the man’s life.
Later that same year, Google highlighted another example of a Pixel owner who was in a car accident in an unfamiliar area, where car crash detection on a user’s Pixel smartphone prompted emergency services to be called immediately.
And in fact, we don’t often hear about car crash detection going wrong on the Pixel. The feature just works, and as mentioned, while we hope no one ever needs it, it clearly works.
Is Apple’s Car Crash Detection Better Than Google’s?
Often with new Apple features, the company waits to deliver something to customers until it’s “right” instead of getting a lower version. It’s hard to say right now, though, if that’s the case if what’s going on in the form of Apple’s car crash detection.
Like Google, Apple says it uses motion sensors to detect crashes, but in Apple’s case, at least on the Apple Watch Series 8 (and Ultra/SE2), the barometer is used with the airbag closed. It is also used to detect changes as they happen. The latest Apple Watch models also include special sensors that Apple says are used to further improve the accuracy of car crash detection, which only trigger when the user is recognized as driving. .
In theory, using additional hardware for crash detection could Results in better accuracy than Apple’s version, but there’s no reason to doubt that Google’s feature is lacking at the moment clearly, it’s working for many to this day.
However, Google notes on its support page that this feature can do Can be accidentally triggered by “high-impact activities”.
Your phone may not be able to detect all crashes. High-impact activities can also trigger a call to emergency services. In some cases, your Pixel phone may not be able to call emergency services, such as when your phone is connected to a weak mobile network or is on an ongoing call.
How to use Car Crash Detection on Pixel
If you already have a Pixel smartphone, we would definitely recommend that you turn on Car Crash Detection, and it’s quite easy to do!
Simply open the “Safety” app, press the Settings button, and toggle on Car Crash Detection. You may need to enable some permissions, but it is completely simple. We have a full breakdown on how to turn the feature on, along with other security features on the Pixel.
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