Apple CarPlay and Android Auto Make Your Phone Hot. Here’s How to Keep It Cool

You might also want to think about taking the case off of your phone for the length of the trip, if your phone is fitted with one. Your handset is less likely to be dropped or knocked while you're driving anyway, and a case can trap the heat in.

The rules aren't too different to keeping your phone cool generally, though with the added wrinkle of needing to keep it connected to your car somehow. Make sure the cabin in general is at a comfortable temperature, though you're probably already doing that for your own sake. The bigger thing to remember is to avoid leaving your phone behind in a vehicle that's going to heat up in the sun if you're stopping off somewhere.

Limit the Work Your Phone Has to Do

If your phone is hooked up to Android Auto or CarPlay, then it's probably got some work to do—whether it's getting you to a destination or streaming music. However, you can still reduce heat by keeping phone tasks down to a minimum. If your calls and (voice-activated) messages can wait, leave them until the end of the journey.

We mentioned offline syncing above, but it doesn't have to go along with airplane mode. If you sync your tunes, podcasts, and maps to your phone ahead of time, your handset has less work to do while you’re driving since it doesn’t need to pull data from the cloud while also constantly searching for a wireless signal as you travel. Less stress on the modem means less heat overall.

Both Apple Maps and Google Maps let you download maps ahead of a trip. In Apple Maps, tap your profile picture, then Offline Maps, then Add Offline Map and find your location. With Google Maps, tap your profile picture, then choose Offline maps > Select your own map to choose the coverage.

There may be times when your phone has to be charging, wirelessly connected, making calls, in direct sunlight, and streaming music over a cellular connection, but try to keep these times to a minimum. Check regularly on how hot your phone is getting while connected to Android Auto or CarPlay, so you can take action if needed.