gmb45
9th January, 2010, 05:38 AM
With flat-screen televisions, set-top boxes and games consoles that double as home entertainment hubs, the big technology companies have in recent years colonised your living room.
Now they're coming back for your car.
The latest range of in-car entertainment from manufacturers such as Pioneer, Kenwood and JVC feature touch-screen technology similar to that found on the Apple iPhone, plus the ability to play all manner of digital video and audio formats.
Their existence is a tacit acknowledgement that the modern motorist is likely to spend more time stationary in a queue of traffic, than cruising elegantly through the Sunday-drive empty country lanes that their parents once enjoyed.
?We are bringing the internet into the car in a safe fashion,? Alex Fedorak of Kia Motors told The Times at Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. ?You can go online and Tweet safely while driving, using our voice-activated system. We are at the start of a process whereby the house and the car will become one from a technological standpoint. The goal is for us to make it safe and ensure there is no distracted driving.?
As mobile broadband speeds increase, there is no reason why we should not be able to access all of the digital content stored on our home devices, whether it's music, photos, video or games.
But there are issues concerning safety around turning the car into a mobile entertainment hub. If it's too entertaining for the driver, it becomes a danger.
Under UK law, if you have a DVD screen in the car it must be somewhere that the driver cannot see it, otherwise it will be considered a dangerous distraction.
Perhaps surprisingly, Ed Cadagin, the head of advanced regulatory rulemaking at the Ford Motor Company, agrees. At CES, Ford launched its Microsoft-powered SYNC system, which is designed to bring many key entertainment features within a finger's reach of the driver. ?We want to keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel,? Mr Cadagin told The Times.
Using iPod-style controls mounted on the steering wheel, the driver can customise the instruments on the dashboard. On either side of the speedometer sit two small video screens, which display rev counter, oil pressure, temperature according to the driver's preferences. Each car can store multiple driver identities, so each user gets the instruments he or she desires.
At the centre of the system is a voice-operated control system and touch-screen multi-function entertainment unit.
?We know that some rival manufacturers are allowing unlimited internet access while on the move, and we are not sure that's a good thing,? he said. ?Our system is internet capable, but the internet can only be accessed when the car is stationary and there is no danger to other road users.?
The new Ford system will be fitted to its top of the range 2010 models from this autumn. It will, said Mr Cadagin, be available in Europe shortly afterwards, though it will not cascade down to the smaller vehicles in the range for a few years.
Now they're coming back for your car.
The latest range of in-car entertainment from manufacturers such as Pioneer, Kenwood and JVC feature touch-screen technology similar to that found on the Apple iPhone, plus the ability to play all manner of digital video and audio formats.
Their existence is a tacit acknowledgement that the modern motorist is likely to spend more time stationary in a queue of traffic, than cruising elegantly through the Sunday-drive empty country lanes that their parents once enjoyed.
?We are bringing the internet into the car in a safe fashion,? Alex Fedorak of Kia Motors told The Times at Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. ?You can go online and Tweet safely while driving, using our voice-activated system. We are at the start of a process whereby the house and the car will become one from a technological standpoint. The goal is for us to make it safe and ensure there is no distracted driving.?
As mobile broadband speeds increase, there is no reason why we should not be able to access all of the digital content stored on our home devices, whether it's music, photos, video or games.
But there are issues concerning safety around turning the car into a mobile entertainment hub. If it's too entertaining for the driver, it becomes a danger.
Under UK law, if you have a DVD screen in the car it must be somewhere that the driver cannot see it, otherwise it will be considered a dangerous distraction.
Perhaps surprisingly, Ed Cadagin, the head of advanced regulatory rulemaking at the Ford Motor Company, agrees. At CES, Ford launched its Microsoft-powered SYNC system, which is designed to bring many key entertainment features within a finger's reach of the driver. ?We want to keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel,? Mr Cadagin told The Times.
Using iPod-style controls mounted on the steering wheel, the driver can customise the instruments on the dashboard. On either side of the speedometer sit two small video screens, which display rev counter, oil pressure, temperature according to the driver's preferences. Each car can store multiple driver identities, so each user gets the instruments he or she desires.
At the centre of the system is a voice-operated control system and touch-screen multi-function entertainment unit.
?We know that some rival manufacturers are allowing unlimited internet access while on the move, and we are not sure that's a good thing,? he said. ?Our system is internet capable, but the internet can only be accessed when the car is stationary and there is no danger to other road users.?
The new Ford system will be fitted to its top of the range 2010 models from this autumn. It will, said Mr Cadagin, be available in Europe shortly afterwards, though it will not cascade down to the smaller vehicles in the range for a few years.