Clever Google trick turns your phone into a free must-have car gadget that could save you money – and it’s NOT a satnav

YOUR smartphone has long doubled-up as a satnav device but it could soon serve another purpose behind the wheel.

Google wants to turn your Android handset into a dash cam as well.

9to5GoogleLeaked screenshot gives an idea of what the free tool will look like[/caption]

Experts have exposed screenshots of the yet-to-be released feature.

But it could be a great little money saver for anyone who wants to protect themselves without having to buy any expensive kit.

Alternatively, you could use it to transform an old, disused device instead.

It’ll record video with optional audio.

To make sure loads of space isn’t gobbled up on your smartphone footage is compressed to 30MB per minute.

And there’s a 24-hour cap for recording too.

You can look back at previous recording sessions but they will disappear after three days unless you manually save them.

It’ll allow drivers to turn off the screen while dash cam is in action, so the battery isn’t drained too quickly and to prevent overheating.

But you can still use the handset for navigation at the same time if needed.

The dash cam feature was spotted in the Personal Safety app.

According to 9to5Google, you can even make it so that recording starts automatically when you connect to a certain Bluetooth device like your car’s system.

The tool is expected to land on Pixel devices as well as selected other Android devices – if Google decides to go with it at all.

It’s not clear when – and if – Google will ever release it, but the screenshots reveal a pretty well-developed picture of how the dash cam option is shaping up.

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