The story in the New York Times came with a sensational headline: “Couple in Car Survive 300-foot Fall into a Canyon.” The canyon in question was Monkey Canyon in the Angeles National Forest outside Los Angeles and the couple survived, so the story goes, thanks to their satellite-connectivity-enhanced iPhone.
This is the kind… Read More
One of my pet beefs with the car industry is that car makers, on the whole, have failed to agree among themselves as to what basic vehicle connectivity ought to consist of. From car maker to car maker prices vary, bundles vary, free periods of service access vary and the variations get worse between model years as offers change and … Read More
For 20 years the concept of emergency response has been one of the most tired, uninteresting sectors of the automotive industry. General Motors introduced OnStar automatic crash notification 26 years ago and that application has long been considered the end of the story.
The shutoff of 3G wireless networks and the resulting … Read More
In the season 6 premiere of Showtime’s “Billions,”, financier Michael Prince and his lieutenant are remotely monitoring Wags’ heart rate thanks to an Oura-like smart ring as he works out on a Peloton stationary bike. The remote observers conclude Wags is having a heart attack and dispatch emergency medical technicians to his… Read More
Connecting cars remains one of the most unnatural acts in the world of IoT. “Connected Car” headlines might make you think otherwise, but the reality is that precious few cars on the road today are connected with a live, provisioned and functioning wireless connection. That being said, General Motors claims 16M of those cars
After years of travel and computing remotely while on the road I have found that there are two magical experiences for the business traveler. One of those experiences is the hotline support I get from my preferred airline – United. The other is the live remote assistance I periodically receive from my company’s in-house IT department… Read More
There is a vast amount of hubbub in the automotive industry regarding the onset of 5G technology. Industry excitement is manifest in the 5G Automotive Association (5GAA) which is facilitating collaboration (among 120+ member) between the automotive industry and the wireless industry, possibly for the first time ever.
For … Read More
There was a time when General Motors’ OnStar offering was readily and clearly understood by consumers for the fact that it did one thing incredibly well: summoning assistance in the event of a vehicle crash and airbag deployment. This now-23-year-old connected car solution still stands strong as a powerful brand-defining … Read More
When SpaceX launched 60 satellites into orbit last month – the first of a planned fleet of 12,000 such satellites which will ultimately deliver terrestrial Internet access in concert with earth-bound stations – astronomers were alarmed at the apparent impact on earth-based observatories from light pollution.… Read More
The Washington Auto Show, one of the largest auto shows in the U.S., has a problem and it is a problem shared by other auto shows in the U.S. and around the world. It is a problem that plagues the entire industry and it may spell trouble for connecting with car customers.
I visited the Washington Auto Show last week. The event closed on … Read More
