Is this necessary?

**Pal334** · 12-29-2009, 02:27 PM

What do you think? Is this necessary?

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/12/26/w....fi/index.html

(WIRED) -- Ford is making its cars into mobile Wi-Fi hot spots.

The next generation of the Sync in-car entertainment and information system will use a USB mobile broadband modem to establish a secure wireless connection capable of supporting several devices simultaneously.

The system will be available next year on selected models -- no word yet which ones -- and you won't need a subscription or hardware beyond the modem.

"While you're driving to grandma's house, your spouse can be finishing the holiday shopping and the kids can be chatting with friends and updating their Facebook profiles," said Mark Fields, Ford president of the Americas. "And you're not paying for yet another mobile subscription or piece of hardware because Ford will let you use technology you already have."

Several automakers already offer in-car Internet access -- Japanese drivers have been using it since 1997 -- and many others are rushing to bring it to us. Ford's announcement follows General Motors' promise last week to make in-car connectivity available in seven models of trucks and SUVs. They're the latest automakers to bring the infobahn to the autobahn.

Mercedes recently announced it has successfully tested in-vehicle Internet applications -- including web browsing, vehicle software updates and VOIP -- on a prototype 4G network. It follows BMW's Internet-connected iDrive system and Chrysler's Uconnect Web in-vehicle mobile hotspot. With so many automakers getting in on the action, there's a push to introduce hardware standards.

Ford is taking a decidedly different approach, opting to allow consumers to plug in their own USB modem to get connected.

General Motors, on the other hand, offers a dealer-installed system called Chevrolet Wi-Fi by Autonet Mobile. It creates a Wi-Fi hot spot 300 feet in diameter around the vehicle, and GM claims the 3G network achieves speeds of up to 1.5 mbps. The hardware costs $199 after the $200 mail-in rebate, and the service costs $29 a month.

Given how connected we are, it makes sense for automakers to put the Internet in our cars. The number of iPhones and other mobile devices being used to connect to the Internet jumped 75 percent in the third quarter of this year, according to JiWire Mobile Audiences Insights Report.

Letting people log on from the road will be a big selling point among 20-something buyers, the so-called Millennials who have propelled much of Sync's success. Millennials will make up 28 percent of the driving population next year, a nine-point increase from 2004.

Kids aside, Ford says interest in in-car connectivity is high among the general public, with one-third of people surveyed by the Consumer Electronics Association expressing interest in being able to check e-mail or surf the Web from the car.

**Rick** · 12-29-2009, 02:34 PM

The world today is about information exchange. At one time it was power. Today, it's information. I can see legitimate uses for college or work. Think of the capability that it would bring to a SAR effort if several laptops could be working simultaneously. Headed home from vacation? The wife can be checking email while the kids finish their homework so they are ready for school on Monday.

**2dumb2kwit** · 12-29-2009, 02:46 PM

They may as well get into the computing business.......they can't build a diesel engine worth a $^%&$, anymore!

....and who is the brain dead moron, that got Ford to do away with the 7.3 diesel???

(Sorry about venting. I'm having issues with my truck.) LOL

**BENESSE** · 12-29-2009, 03:06 PM

Originally Posted by Pal334

What do you think? Is this necessary?

I wish it weren't but in today's economic/business environment one has to stay competitive. In my world the unspoken expectation is being available 24/7. Those who are, have an edge and sometimes that's all you need to survive another wave of lay-offs.

**Rick** · 12-29-2009, 05:04 PM

I used to complain that cell phones and pagers and gps didn't make our life easier. Those things just made us more accessible. (Didn't you get my text?) Blah!

**Pal334** · 12-29-2009, 05:26 PM

I guess Benesse and Rick are right. I do yearn for the old days, when a person had to be a good manager of their time and work load. I question constantly the need for 24 / 7 access to business info. Over the Christmas break, I recieved 5 texts and 6 voice mails (Christmas eve and Christmas day ) from managers at work with non emergency questions. When I went in Monday morning, they were all over me about not answering them. Being a curmudgeon as I am , I directed them to Wally World where they could buy a life. Did not go over well with them, but did get my point across. But I did make sure that they realized that I was billing them 30 minutes for each text or voice message that I did check. They seem to use the alledged need for 24 / 7 access as a crutch for not being good managers of their time.

**2dumb2kwit** · 12-29-2009, 05:57 PM

I sometimes have to deal with a project manager, that is in an uproar, because it took an hour or two, to get a hold of me. While they're all ticked off, I normally tell them that if what I'm doing is that dang important, then I'm not charging them nearly enough money. That usually breaks their fit, and makes them see the bigger picture......even if only for a minute! LOL

**Rick** · 12-29-2009, 06:02 PM

Poor planning on your part does NOT constitute an emergency on my part.

**2dumb2kwit** · 12-29-2009, 06:12 PM

Originally Posted by Rick

Poor planning on your part does NOT constitute an emergency on my part.

To quote a wise man.....'zackly!

**Pal334** · 12-29-2009, 06:15 PM

Originally Posted by 2dumb2kwit

I sometimes have to deal with a project manager, that is in an uproar, because it took an hour or two, to get a hold of me. While they're all ticked off, I normally tell them that if what I'm doing is that dang important, then I'm not charging them nearly enough money. That usually breaks their fit, and makes them see the bigger picture......even if only for a minute! LOL

That is a good example. I sometimes think they try to give themselves an over inflated feeling of importance.

Rick: that is exactly true!!! Technology allows the managers not to plan. The phrase I hear alot is "Just in time" for services and supplies!!! In my experience that has been a failure to understand and anticipate needs. I know there are times when a true emergency (that definition varies by the industry) does occur, and I always respond promptly to them

**2dumb2kwit** · 12-29-2009, 06:31 PM

LOL...that reminds me.....I ticked off a project manager one time, because when he told me that it was an emergency.....and I told him that he should have dialed 911.