[ntnm] DIAL INTO THE CAR OF THE FUTURE
- From: "Dan Roche" <dan.roche@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <paul.roche@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, <ntnm@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "'ianroche'" <ianroche@xxxxxxx>, <tony750cc@xxxxxxxxx>, "'Jamie Dawson'" <jamie@xxxxxxxxx>, "'Tim Dawson'" <tim.dawson@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 16 Aug 2014 09:16:41 +0100
Hi All,
Take a read of the following article:
DIAL INTO THE CAR OF THE FUTURE
A SIM card in every car is not just a dream for smartphone users, but a move
that will save time and stress even lives. More than three quarters of the
British population own a smartphone, which they use not only for making
calls and texting, but also for gaming, shopping and internet searches.
Many motorists also use them for navigation and listening to music, and
smartphones will become even more useful in a few months when Apple's
CarPlay and Google's Android Auto systems start appearing in an increasing
number of new cars, allowing us to use even more
apps while on the move.But tethering your phone to a car, via a cable or
Bluetooth, is still just a stepping stone to what
we can expect to see in the not toodistant future, as our cars start to
communicate with the outside world themselves. Welcome to the age of the
connected car.
Connected cars will be able to help us avoid jams, find a parking space and
catch up with work, all without taking our hands from the steering wheel
and could even save our lives in the event of a crash.
Like smartphones, the connected car will be able to transmit and receive
information by using a humble SIM card, which will be embedded in the car
itself. In fact, BMW has fitted a 3G SIM card to every car that's rolled off
its production lines since April. And other premium
manufacturers are planning to follow suit; by 2018, 36million new cars
almost a third of those sold will have an embedded SIM.
Part of the impetus for this connectivity is the EU's eCall legislation, due
to come into force by early 2018. In the event of a crash, it will require a
car to automatically call the emergency services with its exact location.
The improved response times could save hundreds of lives
and lessen the impact of thousands of injuries every year.The same
technology will also mean that breakdown services can be alerted if a
connected
car shudders to a halt, with the car's telematics system able to communicate
exactly what the problem is. This is known as bCall.
But while legislation might be driving the adoption of connectivity, car
makers will be pushing on an open door when it comes to consumers wanting to
make the most of this brave new world. Because if manufacturers can't supply
it, car buyers will head to another marque's
showroom; indeed, management consultancy McKinsey recently found that 27 per
cent of iPhone users would change their car brand if it offered better
connectivity.
Motorists want a connected car because, thanks to the increasing usefulness
of smartphones, we're hooked on apps. However, unlike Angry Birds, the ones
in our cars will be practical.Take real time traffic information, for
example. As connected cars will constantly transmit
their speed and GPS position to a cloud server, and also receive data from
that server about other cars, information will be updated almost second by
second. The car's satellite navigation system will then be able to use this
information to route you away from any congestion, saving
you time (and stress).Then, when you get to your destination, a parking app
will not only tell you which car park has
vacant spaces, but could even direct you to the empty bays (in a "smart",
sensor fitted car park). Who's going to miss the hassle of driving around
a multi storey car park while looking for that elusive empty bay?
You can also look forward to concierge services that connect you to a
personal assistant in a call centre at the touch of a button. Want to find a
restaurant or know film times at a local cinema? They'll be able to help
you. Or if you need a hotel room, they'll not only be able to find
you one, but book it, too.Car makers are also collaborating with developers
to come up with all kinds of useful apps
designed specifically for your car. These on board apps will include
streaming music services, ones that text your position to loved ones to let
them know where you are
(particularly useful for parents of teenage drivers), calendars that alert
you to forthcoming appointments, and even the ability to dictate notes,
memos and emails, or posts to your social media accounts.
Of course there are issues for car manufacturers and their technology
partners, such as mobile network operators to overcome, including the
dangers of increased driver distraction, the disparity between development
times for cars (about seven years) and apps (weeks, or
even days), as well as data privacy concerns. But as the global connected
car market could be worth about £23.9billion in 2018, there's plenty of
motivation for the car makers to resolve these.
Rupert Stadler, the chairman of Audi, said earlier this year that cars would
become the largest social media devices we owned. As we all start to get
online in our cars in the next few years, the truth of this will become self
evident, as our smartphones are replaced in our affections
by even smarter cars. BMW GETS CONNECTED
BMW is already embracing the connected car by using the embedded SIM cards
in its cars with its ConnectedDrive system to offer owners a wide range of
services, writes Craig Thomas.Real time traffic information (RTTI) is
already up and running and at the disposal of BMW
drivers, with an option in the navigation system to dynamically adjust the
route to avoid congestion (it currently uses other motorists' mobile phone
signals to work out where there's a hold up).
There are also a number of apps that will help business drivers stay
productive, and a streaming music service (called Rara) that, for a fee,
gives owners access to 28million songs.And the launch of BMW's own app store
the ConnectedDrive Store in the UK within the
next 12 months will mean a huge number of services will be available to
owners.Of course, there's a cost: full connectivity is a £1,890 option on a
new BMW, with apps costing extra and a subscription to the streaming music
service £325 per year.
Dan
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