Why Apple's Next Revolution Should Be In Your Car 293
New submitter eetc writes "This article surveys the sorry state of car makers' stereo and navigation systems: 'It's clear that most of the auto companies that offer more than a car stereo want to lock you into their interface and services — as awful as they are. The rest don't care. The aftermarket stereo and nav systems are no better. Stuffed with even more buttons and light-show gewgaws, they're sure to keep your eyes off the road and may not work easily with your stuff. Add to that mix the split focus of also having to use a separate GPS unit in most vehicles, and you have to wonder what keeps our roads so relatively safe.' The answer in one word: iCar. This is just the sort of broken market that Apple specializes in taking over."
Apple will decide where you can and can't travel (Score:5, Funny)
Driver: Siri, why is the car slowing down?
Siri: I'm sorry, but this road has not been pre-approved by Apple for use with your Apple vehicle. Would you like me to suggest an alternate, approved route?
Driver: Wait, you can control my car...the WHOLE car? Which one of these wires will unplug you anyway, bitch? ....Hey, what is that coming out of the air conditioner?
Siri: I've detected an illegal attempt at vehicle modification. This will help you relax while I drive you to the Apple Store for sanction.
Driver: waait..iah...stoppp
Siri: Your end-user license agreement specifically stated at purchase that your Apple vehicle was to be used for the sole purpose of engaging in Apple approved activities. Any attempt to modify this car is a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and may result in penalties from a fine to death.
Driver: deaaathhh?
Siri: Penalty will be determined through third-party mediation, which you also agreed to at purchase. Is there anything else I can help you with today?
and you can only go the dealer for oil changes and (Score:2)
and you can only go the dealer for oil changes and more. With price being a lot higher then jiff lube and any other 3rd part shop.
Also you must put premium in.
Siri: driveing out side of the USA data roaming (Score:2)
Siri: driving out side of the USA will lead to BIG data roaming fees.
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But then would the response from apple be "You are just driving wrong"?
"You're driving it wrong"
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Re:Apple will decide where you can and can't trave (Score:5, Insightful)
How is this insightful? Funny? Yes. Insightful? No.
"Insightful" gives a better boost to Karma than "Funny" so a lot of mods use "Insightful" in its place.
Re:Apple will decide where you can and can't trave (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Apple will decide where you can and can't trave (Score:4, Informative)
Microsoft's already there. It's known as Ford's MyTouch and Sync.
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Whining iHater. Oh, that's right, you're waiting for Apple to come out with something first
Oh, you mean like Newton, Lisa, Apple III, eWorld, Apple TV...Any of those ring a bell?
Sorry to rain on Apples parade n all but... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Sorry to rain on Apples parade n all but... (Score:5, Insightful)
Umm... Apple never quite succeeded in that "changing the living room" promise not because of any real failure on their own part, but because of the content industry's stubbornness. When Apple first introduced legally purchasable digital music downloads from the iTunes store, they were able to talk the recording industry into (very tentatively at first) going along with them on it. In fact, just to get THAT much done, they had to code in concessions that frustrate users to his day (such as not being allowed to sync music BACK to a copy of iTunes FROM your iPod).
By the time they were interested in TV content, THAT industry dug in their heels, determined not to lose control over some of their content and advertising revenue to Apple, who had now proven they could make BIG money off this stuff, once you gave them the opportunity.
Netflix is another company struggling with the same issues.... If one of these streaming services REALLY took off (and Apple, of all people, might just be able to do it, since they're known for building devices easy enough to use so the average Joe wouldn't be intimidated by them), it would put an end to the entire cable TV industry as we know it. No longer could they FORCE you to take a bunch of channels you didn't want in a package to get others you wanted. No longer would people be content to pay for "premium" channels like HBO or Showtime. Instead, they'd just pay for specific shows they offered that they liked. (Sounds a little bit like what happened with music, doesn't it? People could just pay 99 cents for that one good single on an album instead of being forced to buy the whole thing for $13.99.) And don't forget - the satellite and cable providers currently make some nice extra revenue charging extra for additional boxes or boxes with DVR recording capabilities in them. That would all be taken away from them as well.
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apple is dead in the living room. Get it? :)
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iPad - not living room specific - did not cause a living room revolution. There were laptops and tablets in the living room long before the ipad.
Apple TV.....Really?......REALLY? a crippled late-to-tha-game almost-abandoned video streamer box is a revolution?
Fan much?
Re:Sorry to rain on Apples parade n all but... (Score:5, Informative)
Have you actually used an iPad with the AppleTV? The Airplay functionality alone makes it worth having an AppleTV.
Re:Sorry to rain on Apples parade n all but... (Score:4, Interesting)
Of course, if the majors would work with Apple to provide aTV-native apps, it would be even easier. It's going to happen eventually, I think. I can live with commercials; I will sometimes buy shows that I can't get via streaming. But if I'm going to watch a show, it's got to be time-shiftable, and I have NO interest in buying a device whose only purpose is time shifting broadcast TV, a-la Tivo.
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I just use hulu on my HTPC. Why do you need an apple anything to do this?
I have considered using an mini as an HTPC though.
Re:Sorry to rain on Apples parade n all but... (Score:5, Insightful)
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Re:Sorry to rain on Apples parade n all but... (Score:5, Informative)
I just changed my mom's living room experience with a Roku box. I got her the extra fancy one that can play Angry Birds for $99, along with a year of netflix. I have to pay for a Hulu account for work, so I'll be setting her up with that, too. She's nearly 70 and didn't have a problem figuring it out.
I've got a Samsung TV loaded with apps. Netflix, Vudu(not with Ultraviolet, so the stuff I buy isn't tied to a company), Hulu, etc... Using my Synology NAS and my Android phone, I can even remotely playback media through the TV using my phone as a remote.
The cable company may lose a few more customers, but it won't be because of Apple.
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I just changed my mom's living room experience with a Roku box. I got her the extra fancy one that can play Angry Birds for $99, along with a year of netflix. I have to pay for a Hulu account for work, so I'll be setting her up with that, too. She's nearly 70 and didn't have a problem figuring it out.
I've got a Samsung TV loaded with apps. Netflix, Vudu(not with Ultraviolet, so the stuff I buy isn't tied to a company), Hulu, etc... Using my Synology NAS and my Android phone, I can even remotely playback media through the TV using my phone as a remote.
The cable company may lose a few more customers, but it won't be because of Apple.
this comment sanctions the end of /.
It's either a bad, bad, bad astroturf and brand crapfest or I just saw it pass by in a woosh: a generation of geeks replaced by one of geeky consumers. I am sitting in between, and I don't know who's the saddest of the lot :(
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Re:Sorry to rain on Apples parade n all but... (Score:4, Interesting)
Sorry to piss *in* your corn flakes, but by saying that you've proven you've never tried the system.
iPad + AppleTV is so, so, so so so so so so SO SO much better than any other single/combination of set tops in existence it's embarrassing.
Mind you, it comes with a price tag that depending on what you've got rivals the TV itself... But to say it isn't good just proves you've never used it.
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I guess it depends on your criteria for revolution. If it's a sheer numbers game, than Apple hasn't even made a blip, and the local (piece of shit) cable company is the most revolutionary thing ever.
If on the other hand it's functionality, Apple most definitely has revolutionized the living room. I can mirror from my phone, my tablet, my computer without any hassle and regardless of my TV. My friends can instead of loading up a trailer or what have you on my computer after asking for passwords and such just
Re:Sorry to rain on Apples parade n all but... (Score:4, Insightful)
And those of us using XBMC have this functionality without the need to force everyone to use an iPhone. All of the major platforms have XBMC remotes, any other platform can use upnp to stream content in the exact same way as airplay. Naturally you can do this from any device with a web browser as well. Displaying a gate camera on screen while watching a movie when someone rings the buzzer? No problem! Press a key on the remote and you can even open the gate.
The problem with the Apple way is that you have to do it the Apple way or it becomes much more difficult than the alternatives. There are way too many different configurations in the living room. As far as the car goes, there's certainly room for improvement and it's a problem Apple has shown they are capable of solving, since there are inherent standards in place they might be able to pull something off. I doubt they are that interested since most cars already support iDevices right off the lot these days. Navigation wise they have a long way to go to catch up but they also have a lot of money.
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Why limit it to setops? I use an HTPC and control it with tablets and phones. I would say it even beats the appleTV since I can get stuff that is only available via Flash.
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Ah well I think there's some fairness in limiting it to set tops really. Ultimately if you don't then my standard computer is the best entertainment system accessory ever (it can play games too!)
However, I freely admit that without the iPad (or an iPhone which is about the same price) the appleTV is not an especially impressive bit of kit. Given that the combo costs considerably more than most HTPCs I can't really argue with you too much here.
I will say that the (new) appleTV has a much smaller footprint th
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Drink holder (Score:5, Funny)
Stereo? GPS? Car companies can't even make a cup holder that actually works.
It is strange, because as far as I can tell, people have been taking beverages into automobiles for at least... 12 years... perhaps more? And yet, car companies keep trying to reinvent the cup holder, usually horribly.
WTF? How can it be that difficult to engineer something so simple after so much time?
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I know that I once had a Mazda that had cup holders that only tripped the cup every time you turned. A little wire popped up when you opened the cup holder, and didnt go near high enough to stop anything. Well, almost anything. It turns out that Mazda was willing to sell a coffee cup that fit perfectly within the shape of this holder to never fall out. To the rest of us cheap suckers that refused their awesomely engineered cup, we could use our laps.
Re:Drink holder (Score:5, Funny)
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Not entirely true. Japanese and German car companies have American design studios. BMW design was headed by an American for years. American car companies often have overseas design studios. Ford's best work now is coming out of their Paris studio.
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Of course the question is a car a travel utility or a living room. Given the number of accidents I see in the morning, and the fact that most of friends, careful drivers, have never had one, I image most people think it is the later and want fully entertaiment system and ktichen.
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So if you use the cup holder and want to change the audio settings, you have to:
Probably, they should have just added some sensors and, wh
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Do you have one of the Subarus with the cup holder that pops out of the dash?
If so, not only do you not exaggerate, but you've left out the part about blocking the climate controls as well. My ru was a great car. Cup holder was the only thing about it I didn't like.
For the sounds system, you can try to become a 'touch typist' and work the controls without seeing them, but if you want to turn on the A/C or adjust the temperature, you pretty much have to hold your cup one hand while adjusting the controls w
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I'm okay with knee steering -- but it seems to alarm some of my passengers for some reason.
Oh, one other thing to hate about my model is the damn "turn on the tail/parking lights" switch on top of the steering column. Every so often the car wash guys switch it on while wiping the interior and, if I don't notice it (such as when parking it outside in bright sunlight), sure enough -- dead battery next day. They seem to ha
Re:Drink holder (Score:5, Funny)
Cup holder? Dude, that's the CD tray!
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Ain't that the truth.
This past weekend, I rented a late model Ford Focus. (I wasn't picky about the car, I just wanted a small, cheap one to get around in.)
It had two interactive displays: one in the dash (which mostly showed fuel economy information) and one in the center console (used for media functionality.) Both had such brain-damaged interfaces I felt like I'd have to read a 100-page manual just to figure out how to change the radio station. Nothing about them was the least bit intuitive, feedback was
Car systems need to be simple (Score:5, Insightful)
What's wrong with getting a bit old fashioned - volume control know, tuning knob, slide controls or dials to control the heater (back to the '80's anyone).
Anytime you get buttons involved and a touch screen you need to look at it. Any buttons should have a unique "feel/texture" so you can differentiate by touch without looking.
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In other words, haptic controls make for less driver distraction.
That's exactly why I ditched my Philips Pronto remote for something with discrete buttons... and at least in front of my TV, I'm not driving (unless it's a game on the Xbox)
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This. I've played with a couple of touchscreen systems and they're horrible, IMO. There's something to be said for tactile feedback.
Re:Car systems need to be simple (Score:4, Insightful)
Not only that, but when they fucking break (and they will), how much is that going to cost to replace? $2,000?
A friend of mine had an SUV with a digital dash (think it was a Jeep but I don't remember), it was just so fucking cool...until it died on her. Then she took it in and found out the replacement alone was gonna cost a grand, not to mention how labor intensive it was going to be (probably another grand on top). It was literally more expensive than the value of the vehicle as a whole (she put a lot of miles on that car). She obviously said, "uh, no thanks" and, for a while, she literally had no instrumentation in her car at all and had to eyeball her speed, get gas every few days to make sure she didn't run out...
While a car is under warranty, great, but some of us like to drive cars until they die, not trade them in every other fucking year.
Not a novel approach to subject. Vanity link. (Score:3, Informative)
Wordpress founder Matt Mullenweg in October 2011:
http://ma.tt/2011/10/whats-next-for-apple/
"This is the most far-out, but I think most certain. Voice-controlled search through Siri and Apple Maps provide the hands-free framework for a rich interactive experience while driving. Walk down the car stereo aisle in Best Buy and see what $800 gets you, or a $300 GPS from Garmin, vs an iPad or iPhone. The screens feel like a TI-92 calculator. The typography makes my eyes bleed. I find it morally reprehensible how bad these products are because it’s one of the areas of technology where a bad interface is most directly tied to injuries and deaths. Car folks are making their iPhone/iPod integrations better and better, which may be a glass of ice water in hell, but they’ll never make the jump to providing a beautiful marriage of media, search, and navigation that a great in-car experience needs. Right now you can spend 110k on a Tesla Roadster, a car of the future, and for an additional $4,500 (9 iPads!) get this Alpine head unit. (Watch that video and try not to laugh at how bad the interface is.) Retail it only sets you back 1.4 iPads. That’s just sad."
I think if editors are going to post non-news blog opinion pieces, they have a duty to do a little due diligence--is the argument novel, or have other people made it before? Is it well explained, or not? Is Galen Gruman a heavyweight? Is Infoworld? Are their arguments likely to provoke further discussion amongst heavyweights?
Not to say that the issue is any less germane than it was in October 2011, but just accepting a link because it was submitted and it seems reasonable enough is not good editorial practice.
The article linked doesn't really add anything to the one I just posted, it's split over two pages for extra ad impressions, and the site is incredibly visually busy filled with social widgets and tags and ads and everything, in contrast to the one I posted which is clean.
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I watched the video of that Alpine unit [youtube.com]. That any manufacturer would release a device with an interface that slow in 2010 is insane. That it's cumbersome as well is typical, but that doesn't make it any more excusable. And I'm not bashing Alpine, all of my aftermarket car stereos have been Alpine. That's simply a product that needs to go back for a major rework of it's entire UI.
Harder! Screw us harder! (Score:5, Insightful)
> It's clear that most of the auto companies that offer more than a car stereo
> want to lock you into their interface and services — as awful as they are.
Uh huh. So if Apple locked you into THEIR interface and services it would be insanely great and you would be lining up for it.
P.T. Barnum was an optimist.
Re:Harder! Screw us harder! (Score:5, Funny)
I'm not entirely sure you understand the difference here. You do realize the auto company interfaces don't have images of fruit stamped into them? Right?
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Navtec via manufacturer - $1200 navigation package plus $100/yr map update for once a year data through a dealership.
Navtec via iOS - $20-40 North American Maps and Google local search integration, $20/yr for subscription for quarterly map update subscription, delivered automatically.
Sorry, I'm pretty sure I know which one I'm gonna choose to have lock me in.
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Navtec via manufacturer - $1200 navigation package plus $100/yr map update for once a year data through a dealership.
Navtec via iOS - $20-40 North American Maps and Google local search integration, $20/yr for subscription for quarterly map update subscription, delivered automatically.
The auto manufacturer provides the hardware. To be fair you need to add in the cost of an iPad to the Apple total.
For my car, all nav system updates are free. My last one included a free car wash and a free loaner for the day. You're paying $20 more for less service.
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Based on the numbers the poster already gave you. Really.
Really, you're going to try to move the goalposts after he just answered your question of when Apple has competed on price?
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Uh huh. So if Apple locked you into THEIR interface and services it would be insanely great and you would be lining up for it.
If our ONLY two choices are (1) being locked into a shitty interface provided by Ford/Honda/etc, or (2) being locked into an awesome (or at least better) interface provided be Apple....well, I pick the later.
Haterz! Hate Harder! (Score:2)
You mean the same way Apple locked the Zune and Android into using Apple's USB interface, and you into only buying music from the iTunes store?
Why the next one? (Score:3)
I already have that in my car. anyone that has bought an aftermarket stereo that has a high level of iphone integration already has these features.
Hell Kenwood has one that now mirrors the iphone screen on the dash display, it's been out for a year now... Did the article author even look to se what was already on the market?
What I want is a genuine Android based car stereo. Unfortunately anything out there is all locked down wierd like the Parrot Android car stereo or a complete steaming turd from china running a 500mhz processor and runs WinCE for the nav section.
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What's the point (for Apple)? (Score:2)
How will Apple be able to leverage such a system to sell third-party content and take their cut?
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map updates? too bad for them that google already flattened that market
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Apple still makes most of their profit through hardware sales. The ecosystem channels just add value to the hardware.
Mirror your phone (Score:2)
Mirror the display, mic, speakers and touch screen of your smartphone. Done. Was that so hard? If you want to show off you can even make it so you enable voice commands by default and integrate with steering wheel stereo controls.
Fuck no (Score:4, Interesting)
I don't want integration. I want my radio to be my radio and my GPS (if I had a GPS) to be my GPS. I don't want co-mingling of technology.
Haven't we learned anything from Battlestar Galactica? You don't network everything. You keep things separate.
Or, if you snerk at that example, haven't we learned anything from Unix/Linux where each piece does it's thing, and ONLY it's thing?
We've seen what an absolute shitfest things become when we try to make things "new and improved", "Now with more features you have to look at and try to decipher while driving!" Hey Ford, how's that wonderful technological tour de force radio and navigation interface working out?
Engineers and developers need to get their heads out of their asses and go back to the ultimate rule: KISS
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Haven't we learned anything from Battlestar Galactica? You don't network everything. You keep things separate. Or, if you snerk at that example, haven't we learned anything from Unix/Linux where each piece does it's thing, and ONLY it's thing?
So your two examples are a sci-fi TV show, and an OS that works well on servers but is an absolute failure on the desktop because its "do one thing well" mentality creates fragmentation and doesn't fit the needs or expectations of average users.
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Mod this guy up.
Apple should forget the car market. It's the wrong market to solve. I know they won't listen to me in my armchair, but doesn't mean I'm not right.
Apple should go after the Healthcare market. I work in healthcare and there is no reason for me to have to make 27 mouse click, 2 tab-folder re-sizes, enter my password 3 times and then fight with an entry screen that is 3" x 3" on my 21" monitor to enter into the Electronic Medical System that the patient has a new complaint. This, my friends,
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It is unlikely that Apple could fix this. The majority of those UI issues crop up because you're talking to multiple different systems. Apple doesn't integrate well with others, they force others to integrate with them. They would have to have a complete stack of software and would still run into compliance issues as they try to keep their software proprietary preventing others from becoming compatible. In other words, say good bye to sending medical records to another hospital unless they too are running a
cars have USB these days (Score:3)
My honda CR-V EX-L has a USB port. i plug my iphone in, pick a playlist and let it play. i can use the steering wheel buttons to skip songs. also works with pandora and slacker radio. spotify is a little buggy.
it also works with Zune and plain USB flash drives. android not so good because it's a plain vanilla micro-USB port on their phones
and i'll take my iphone GPS over a car GPS. Waze on iphone is free, not $2000. and free traffic info.
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The only thing I would change with her system is the inability to share my phone's screen with the 6" touchscreen built into the dash... not that it's really an issue, I would just like to be able to watch YouTube videos on a slightly larger screen while I'm waiting for her to fi
no way (Score:2)
Actually, Microsoft. (Score:5, Interesting)
I have ford SYNC (microsoft SYNC), and it's fucking brilliant.
I never touch my stereo, between the 4 steering wheel controls (volume,next/prev,voice command,hang up) and the frankly kick-ass voice control I just never need to.
I never have had it misdial, only very occasionally does it have trouble when I ask for a specific album (and then only when it's not a native language name) and generally just had it be all sorts of awesome all the time.
So no, Apple can sit this one out (and this is coming from someone who's entire computing existence is apple, I own the iphone/ipad/appletv/macbook/imac). Microsoft has done a great job already.
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And how is their navigation? (Score:2)
Since that was half the point of this story and all.
Why - were they holding a gun to your head to force you to buy an iPod instead of a Zune, or an iPhone instead of an Android?
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I have had the opposite experience with Sync. It is buggy, has mediocre voice control (when it works at all), and the physical controls were clearly designed by someone who has never given a moment's thought to UI. It was actually a big selling point to me when I got my car, but 1 1/2 years in, I'm looking to replace it with something reliable and pleasant to use.
Ford does it right (Score:3)
They realize that your car is around a lot longer than your phone so in a lot of ways your smartphone is really the brains, the car is just the interface. The voice works surprisingly well. They have all kinds of API's that let apps on your phone be controlled by your voice via the Sync. I know that Microsoft designed it, but I like it a lot. 2011 Ford Fusion SE is the car I have.
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Way to reply to the wrong poster.
I do so love morons that believe that apple stuff actually costs more.
I know that you're an AC and you won't read the reply... but seriously go and educate yourself. Find an actually comparable product (resolution, battery, build quality, 5yr failure rates, etc) and you'll discover that in the very few instances that you can get something that matches apple it costs exactly the same.
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5yr failure rate on what? On my network the Macs fail just as often as the PCs, they are the same hardware .... The overpriced comment comes from the insanely overpriced Mac Pro towers. For $20k you get crap compared just about any other manufacturer. When it comes to displays I give Apple props for not compromising. We built a top end cad workstation for $10k which has a lot more computing power than the Mac towers we just purchased for our graphics department. The custom job has better graphics, better an
Been wanting this for some time (Score:2)
Auto manufacturers have very little to gain from good sound in cars, or keeping up with hot stuff in the industry. They're not organized to be able to update and upgrade on a continual basis because you need a car for transporatation, and them putting hundreds of thousands of man hours a year into an constantly updated interface will not sell you another car. In an industry where a small plastic vent costs less than a dollar to make, and retails at $40 - and it only sold at retail - a 99c app or a $20 map a
Never Happen (Score:2)
I Don't Like Them Apples, Thanks For Asking (Score:2)
"It's clear that most of the auto companies that offer more than a car stereo want to lock you into their interface and services"
It's a good thing Apple never tries to do that ...
No Thanks (Score:2)
If like the rest of their devices it is totally useless after 2 years, then no thanks!
Article has a point. (Score:2)
I was just thinking this on the drive into work today.
Would be nice to listen to the same radio station all the way, but reception cuts out half way up. My car is new enough to have an iPod interface, but new enough to not support an iPhone or similar device with in-dashboard controls.
A newer interface would allow me to stream a radio station through my phone (and maybe use google maps from the phone) via the car controls.
How about an API that allows this to be done with any phone via USB? No need for loc
There, fixed that for you (Score:2)
--
Shut up, you American. You Americans, all you do is talk, and talk, and say "let me tell you something" and "I just wanna say." Well, you're dead now, so shut up.
New dock connector, total touch/display mirroring (Score:3)
I'd like to see the dock connector updated so that the entire iPhone display and touch interface could be used on the car's in-dash display, reformatted and enlarged if necessary to fit the screen's native display resolution and orientation, along with all the other expected integration like phone, audio and video.
Apple could license this interface to car makers for free and then help them create apps specific to the car, binding the carmaker to Apple and making consumers shop for iPhone integration specifically.
It would also get Apple closer to the point where the iPhone was really a portable computer that could be docked and then taken anywhere.
don't drive like that (Score:2)
Needed: A line of electronics for grown-ups (Score:3)
I've thought many times that there must be a huge, untapped market for a line of electronics for grown ups. Try searching for a shelf stereo system, for example. Most of it is garish crap, burdened with all kinds of obscure functionality most people will never use. There are systems more minimal and adult-looking, but "minimialist" doesn't mean "user-friendly." What I'm talking about is a system that looks nice, is of relatively good quality, and for which you never need to read the manual. It's just obvious how to work it.
Car stereos are the same way. They almost all sacrifice function for style.
And alarm clocks. How about an alarm clock with a panel that you flip open, and behind it is a simple, phone style number pad. To set alarm 1, you press
[Set Alarm 1] - [7] - [3] - [0] - [am] - [Enter], then turn a little analog dial to set the volume, and flip the panel closed.
Done.
lllll Alaska Jack
Wow!! Had to check to see if it was MY article... (Score:2)
I've been saying this exact same thing for a long time now!
Year after year, we see enthusiasts trying to shoehorn computer gear into their vehicles in creative ways, to essentially check off the same old "want list" we've always had -- yet auto makers never seem to really catch on. (And before you say "What about Ford Sync?", I'd argue all they did was hand things over to Microsoft after exhibiting absolutely NO clue about what the public wanted in a car stereo or modernized dashboard up to that point. Eve
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I just want a slot in the dash I can insert my iPhone and have the touchscreen on my in-dash display, with audio integrated with the stereo and the steering wheel controls.
Apple is the wrong company for this. (Score:4, Interesting)
Apple's speciality is in seamless UI's. While people seem to like this for mobile phones and tablets, it's not the right solution for a car. Cars require tactile interfaces so that they can be navigated using touch while the driver keeps his eyes on the road. Apple has the potential to bypass this concern using Siri, but that comes with additional problems.
Siri and the maps used by Apple for GPS navigation are both delivered via cellular connection, which would imply that a driver would lose all voice recognition while driving outside the range of cellphone towers--e.g. through the mountains. The GPS navigation is a similar problem. Since the navigation data is delivered via cellular data, you would lose navigation in the mountains.
Much as I hate to admit it, I would prefer the Microsoft self-contained automotive voice recognition system to getting Apple iCars. Ford has demonstrated those in the past. I've also seen a reasonable implementation (non-Microsoft) on an Acura about five years ago. I'm not sure that this is a market where we should care about fragmentation. Just don't buy a car with a UI you don't like.
Re: (Score:2)
I presume you haven't seen the $20 Navtec app for iOS? You can download and store all the maps you've bought (or coast-to-cost) so that no internet connx is required for use. Not only is it like having the most awesome standalone GPS in the word (a 10" one for those of us with iPads, btw), but it has lane assist, subscription content for map updates, huge POI database, Google Local search integration (for when you're on line), and a whole host of preferences. I'm pretty sure it has real-time traffic when y
Lockin??? (Score:3)
>"offer more than a car stereo want to lock you into their interface and services"
>"The answer in one word: iCar."
Yeah right. Because Apple is a paragon of openness and anti-lockin combined with low prices and choice! No thanks.
How about at least AndroidCar? Or maybe LinuxCar. Perhaps then at least other manufacturers can be involved.
Apple isn't going to help. (Score:2)
There are excellent in-car media and stereo systems out there, it all depends on what automaker you're looking at. The Japanese generally pack their cars full of buttons in an attempt to account for every little function. Americans are decent, but it depends on the car and the automaker. They generally suffer from cost-cutting measures and insufficient thinking about how a driver interacts with the car. It's worse when the automaker goes through third-party vendors for their hardware. Too many of those comp
Voice activation, anyone? (Score:2)
Already exists... (Score:2)
The article expresses the same lament that car buyers have had since the invention of the automobile, every manufacturer does things differently. A car is the ultimate closed ecosystem. Each manufacturer has unique parts, control layouts, maintenance codes, etc. This is done on purpose to generate additional cash flows from maintenance and repairs.
As for integrating the car entertainment and video systems, I recently bought a Kenwood DNX9990HD eXcelon 2-DIN Multimedia DVD Receiver With Navigation/Bluetooth/
meh (Score:2)
Hope there is a movement for change (Score:2)
Spot on; I had a rant / post about this back in 2009 (that I had drafted years earlier)... hoping Apple would take over this market:
http://tronsterhartley.blogspot.com/2009/01/starting-to-clean-out-my-many-drafts-of.html [blogspot.com]
While it doesn't specifically have to be Apple, it seems that none of the established brands really understand what consumers need in a great car stereo. The Alpine model I mention in the above post included: a remote? Required holding a button for a few seconds to active a feature... in a
Oh god (Score:2)
Revolution in your Car (Score:2)
Why Apple's Next Revolution Should Be In Your Car
Excellent, I already Drive Different! Although I'm sometimes told I'm holding it wrong (the steering wheel wrong [slashdot.org]). Can I get my car equipped with free Apple rubber numbers? I wonder if Apple will start a campaign to get me to "switch" from my Ford Sync-powered vehicle?
This can only happpen one way - Apple does OEM (Score:3)
Yes, the market is ripe for revolution, but it won't happen unless Apple convinces the car makers to let them do it, or build their own car.
The percentage of people who replace factory stereos today is the lowest it's ever been, and that's because the quality and features included in factory stereos has never been higher. Also thanks to integration game, most factory stereos do more than just play music. If you remove your factory stereo you might lose other important features in the process.
Unless Apple makes a move to offer a scalable, mufti-function OEM solution that car makers can customize and ship with pride, the best that's going to happen is people will continue to use the iPod/iPhone integration already included in many factory decks.
Re: (Score:2)
Which would still be a hell of a lot better than the way autosound works now.
Re: (Score:2)
RIM is actually leading here. QNX is already in millions of cars on the road and they have a strong relationship with manufacturers like Porsche. Both Porsche and Renault have shown-off concept cars with PlayBook integration.
While I doubt we'll see auto manufacturers agree to anything close to a standard, open or not, I don't mind having a company like RIM, with a fantastic security track-record, and an OS as stable and reliable as QNX leading the way. RIM has always allowed "side loading" (we just call