FutureWire - futurism and emerging technology

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

PCs in VWs

Volkswagen is developing an onboard PC for its vehicles, allowing drivers to control entertainment devices such as iPods, send e-mail messages from their smart phones, and even manage household appliances remotely. Dubbed "Gypsy," the PC has a touch-screen, driver-friendly interface.

This video summary on CNET suggests that VW has barely touched on some of Gypsy's potential, covering low-hanging fruit such as an MP3 player interface (one wonders if they will make the OS source code available to developers). Critics, however, will surely question the necessity or wisdom of such onboard computing, citing it as an one more distraction that drivers don't need.