When shopping for something new or different, have you asked yourself what automotive tech bells and whistles you'd be looking for? Would you want them built-in, or does the aftermarket appeal to you more?
The reason I ask is because the role and purpose of technology in a car is expanding at a rate that's becoming harder for the average consumer to keep up with. Where car phones led to cell phones and CD players have led to an abundance of apps and devices that do so much more than play music, wherever all of this is going in 2011 is a curious subject to wade through as we venture into a new year.
The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas - which opened Jan. 6 and runs to Jan. 9 - will foreshadow much of what we can expect from gadgets, gizmos and concepts around entertainment, function and safety, and I'll be there to cover all that. But for now, let's look at some of what 2011 might bring to us.
Hot new automotive devices unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show
Mobile connectivity
If 2011 is the year that Canada gets a 4G mobile data network, then a lot more could be possible in the car. This could include anything from streaming content stored at your home for your kids in the back seat, to turning your car into a Wi-Fi hot spot.
These things are technically already possible, but the scope and bandwidth limitations of 3G don't make the process overly seamless. The only question mark is whether or not the wireless carriers will ruin it by offering small data plans at exorbitant prices.
Voice-controlled gadgets
A lot of smartphones and, by extension, some Bluetooth headsets, already have voice-control features, but if they can be better integrated into the car's stereo system, then they would be easier to use - like Ford's Sync.
I have covered services that do that already, but improved speech recognition could be applied in other ways. What if you were able to get a diagnostic report from the car by simply asking for it? What if drivers could initiate anything from a text message to searching for the nearest Tim Horton's, all without lifting a finger to open an app? We should get closer to that this year.
Safety and tracking
There are already some cool devices in this space, but assuming something like this is built-in, or it interacts with smartphone apps, there are definite possibilities here. There are already hardware-and-app combos for remote starters, diagnostics, mileage indicators and navigation, but that's really only scratching the surface.
It will be interesting to see if manufacturers choose to start developing their own apps for certain makes and models, and then use them to work in tandem with in-dash setups to monitor everything from the vehicle's location to its overall health. The aftermarket is already all over these solutions, but OEMs might start to cut into that business too.
Keeping up with consumer tech trends
Expect tablets to be front and centre on this one. The iPad may have a challenging form to integrate into a dash, but others like the Samsung Galaxy Tab won't be with smaller 7-inch screens. RIM should be launching its BlackBerry PlayBook, while a number of other players unveil their own tablet devices throughout 2011.
One way or another, these will find a place in the car, whether it's to keep passengers entertained, or to keep you informed as a driver. Tablets could also be an intriguing competitor to integrated DIN units, but that could largely depend on the connectivity side of things with 4G.