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Nokia CK-20W Car Kit promises to bundle talk, tunes, and nav
In what seems to be a brilliant marketing maneuver, Nokia is hyping its new CK-20W Car Kit as the "first integrated hands-free solution to combine high-quality communication, music, navigation and push-to-talk in the car," when all you're really getting is a dash-mounted dock and a remote. According to Nokia, you need to supply your own GPS Bluetooth receiver if you want navigation functionality (they suggest the forthcoming Nokia LD-2 Navigation Pack), although music streaming and hands-free chatting are achievable right out of the box. The kit is compatible with most Nokia phones and even standalone MP3 players if all you want are some tunes, but adding the nav pack requires you to own a S60-powered device to run the Route 66 mapping software. Prices have not been announced yet, but both the car kit and GPS receiver are expected to be available next quarter.[Via Wired Blogs]
Mitsubishi i (eye) Play car for iPod nano fans
We've seen big iPod cases, small iPod cases, cheap ones and expensive ones. But at about $15,000, with seating for four, the Play edition of Mitsubishi's i (eye) Car has to be one of the most expensive and biggest iPod cases we've ever seen. Eschewing the typical dock-based iPod/car integration scheme, the car includes a dash-based slot designed specifically for the iPod nano. And, if you want your case, er, car to truly match your nano, you can get it in white, for a mere $190 more. Considering that Apple wants about $150 to paint a MacBook black, that may not be such a bad deal. As long as it includes a scratch proof coating, that is.
Ok, who owns this car?
I thought I was cool with the one Apple sticker I have on my car's rear window, but now I've been shamed. The owner of this vehicle (I'm guessing by the door handles that it's a Saturn?) really, really likes his/her Apple stickers. Just don't drive that thing in Redmond.
Sirius execs confirm video service will be live
In an announcement that is being described as a victory for couch potatoes worldwide, Sirius execs at the recent Morgan Stanley Global Automotive Conference claimed that despite rumors to the contrary, Sirius Video will indeed be a live, streaming service (as opposed to delivering cached content). Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin gave the example of a Nickelodeon-loving rugrat -- whose traumatic Spongebob-downtime will soon be mercifully limited to the short walk between couch and minivan -- as the type of customer who will benefit from live broadcasts. Although we've known that Sirius was planning to roll out a video service for well over a year now, this is the first time anyone has been able to pin down the suits on a launch window, with Senior VP Bob Law citing a "post-CES 2007" target for the initial rollout.
Toyota's self-parking car coming soon to US
While we may be stuck waiting until 2008 to see GM's self-driving car, US drivers may soon be able to sit back and let Toyota's Prius do the parking for them, as drivers in the UK and Japan can already do, using a $700 "parking assist" option. With the option, drivers need only sit back and control the speed of the car with the brake pedal while the car takes control of the wheel and maneuvers itself into place. According to Toyota, 70% of the vehicle's owners in Britain have chosen the option. Availability in the US hasn't been announced yet, only that it should arrive "soon." We -- and the owners of cars parked in front of and behind ours -- can't wait.[Via Slashdot]
Mac mini with integrated iTrip
No, you haven't missed a joint announcement from Apple and Griffin. However, you might have missed this post on Make which links to ZapWizard's Flickr set detailing how he put a Mac mini, with accompanying LCD screen and mouse/keyboard, into his car.I know, there have been tons of stories like this, but this is the first one that includes a little product cross mating. Since he didn't have enough money to get a new car stereo the Wiz decided that he would just integrate an iTrip directly into the Mac mini.That's talent.[Via Make.]
iTunes Users Prefer VW and Audi Over Other Car Brands
In keeping with our poll theme today, a Nielsen/NetRatings survey found that users of iTunes and the iTMS are more likely to buy VW's or Audi's. Maybe this shouldn't be much of a shock seeing as both of those brands are set up for iPod integration. My favorite quotable from the post about this poll on edmunds.com is:While it may seem like a small market to corner, iTunes users are seen by many ad firms as one of the most desirable segments as they tend to be young, educated and flush with disposable income.Why thank you! *blush* Oh wait a minute, that means they're going to market to me. I guess I'll just avoid those pesky commercials by getting my TV from the iTMS.[also at the BBC NEWS thanks iFelix!]
Crazy Eastern European G4 Car Mod
If there was ever a doubt about Eastern European Mac fans, let that shred of uncertainty be squelched. Today on MacMod one of the most amazing car installs of a Mac I have ever witnessed was posted after being translated [from Czech?].Jiri Jirout first created a custom housing with waterproof-yet-breathable Gore-Tex ports for his 450MHz G4 (codename Sawtooth). The Sawtooth model is near and dear to my heart, I am writing this post off my 400MHz Sawtooth which was upgraded to 2GHz with a Powerlogix CPU. Next, he modded his Eastern European Tatra brand car to include: An ethernet network Wifi for hotspots GPRS to internet for the car in cases where one is too far from Wifi GPS with a Garmin module and Route 66 mapping software Custom front end software written in Cocoa for car data Custom movie player software Scripts for iTunes so that back seat passengers can listen to different music than in the front And much more... The fact that the original article from which this is translated dates from the winter of 2003/2004 makes this mod all the more amazing. Huge props to Jiri Jirout and his crew of microcontroller designing and software writing friends.
Dock your iPod in your ashtray
This is great if you don't smoke and you drive a car (Yes on both counts here. w00t!). You no longer have to use the ashtray as a coin recepticle. You can now actually use the little coin roll recepticle in your car! Now, you can dock your iPod in your ashtray! Ah, humanity! Is there any place you won't try to dock your iPod? I guess not...
iPods and Macs taking over cars
Woops, I take my "Macs aren't going anywhere" post back, as they're certainly going one place in a big way lately: cars. I have a double dose of iPod/Mac in-car news coming at you from our sibling site, Autoblog. First up: they caught wind of a projection from the Telematics Research Group that by 2011, 73 million cars on the road could have iPod integration. I'm no professional, but I'll toss my own prediction into the hat: by 2011, a lot of un-burned blank CD's are going to be lying around.Next on the list is probably the slickest "Mac mini in a car" setup I have seen to date. As if one Mac mini feeding two screens in a 2006 Infiniti M45 Sport isn't enough, the creator is also using a Palm Treo 650 and Salling Clicker to run the setup, as well as Rsync X and an AirPort network to keep the mini's library in tune with a PowerMac G5 in the house. Oh yea, how could I forget the Mac mini also seems to be running Front Row? Maybe that's why this setup wasn't featured on that new "Big Ideas" page Apple just put up.
6 ways to stick your iPod in your car
Over the weekend, our sibling blog, Autoblog posted about a cool article from Technoride (part of PC Mag) covering six ways to pair your iPod with your car. FM Transmitters are nice, but you can also go the cassette adapter route, or even use a line in, if you have the proper connection in your car.I personally prefer to just race around town with my noise-cancelling headphones on ignoring all sounds from the road. Is that wrong?
