Mobile to hit the road

With mobile apps being developed at blistering speeds, it was only a matter of time before the mobile eco-system met the automobile industry, and infected smartphone addicts with a new kind of love bug.
As years go by dependence on mobile devices is steadily increasing – to the point where even being able to continue using mobile devices safely while driving has become an issue – and something which many companies are attempting to find fixes for.
Indeed, smartphones now contain practically our whole world and enable us to carry everything that’s important to us in the palm of our hands, so realistically, it was only a matter of time before the cell-phone and car merged.
Now, reliable sources tell us Google will be partnering with automobile giant GM, to bring it’s Android OS to the firm’s OnStar car service.
The as of yet unconfirmed rumors describe the Android-OnStar alliance as one bearing a close relationship to Microsoft and Ford’s MyFord Touchsystem team-up, including all the things one would expect from a car infotainment system; dashboard-based phone controls, media playback, and GPS navigation. It would also, apparently, allow customers to use their phones as a sort of car remote control.
This would mean punters could potentially lock and unlock their doors, roll down the windows, and even start the engine – all via a few taps of the touchscreen.
Chevy too recently announced that its upcoming Volt car would also boast Google Android integration.
Of course, Google and Microsoft aren’t the only ‘phone’ firms wooing the automotive industry of late. Finnish phone giant Nokia has not only made a point to join the Consumer Electronics for Automotive (CE4A) consortium – which develops standards for phone car integration/interaction – but has also partnered with Fiat.
Keeping it classy, RIM has a deal with BMW for its “ConnectedDrive” system and it’s no secret that the firm is in the process of buying QNX, which also makes car infotainment software.
As an observer watching from the side of the road, it certainly seems the mobile revolution is coming to the automotive industry and is providing opportunities that neither the tech nor car behemoths can ignore.
Navigation, media library, internet services, applications and much more will soon be at our fingertips, not only as part of our handsets, but at the wheel too. The road ahead is looking increasingly ‘appy.