Car Tech

  • NYT tests Google's autonomous Toyota Prius

    Last month we brought you news of a car controlled by nothing but the brain, through use of a "neuroheadset." Today, we have two videos of Google's self-driving robotic car in action, at speed. The BrainDriver car is a cutting-edge concept, and interesting for potential mobility solutions for people with limited physical motion. But Google's robotic autonomous car could push mobility in an entirely different direction. Imagine hopping into the back seat of your car, telling it to take you to work, and actually getting something done on the commute--without risking your life or those around...

  • Chevrolet Cruze 2.0 VCDi turbodiesel (Europe)
    Chevrolet Cruzes To SXSW To Hype MyLink And New Models

    Whip out your backpack and groom your mustache: it's time for America's favorite festival for interactive, film, and music, South by Southwest. And just like last year, Chevrolet will be tagging along with lots of new goods, including Chevy MyLink. The company will also host a shuttle service, a...

  • Mercedes-Benz mbrace Drive2Friend feature
    Video: Mercedes-Benz mbrace Locates Friends With Text Messages

    When we first heard about Mercedes-Benz's new Send2Benz service, we were slightly underwhelmed: sending a destination to your car's navigation system? That seems so 2009. A number of automakers -- including GM -- already offer similar services that facilitate communications between smartphones...

  • 2011 Saab PhoeniX Concept
    Video: Saab IQon Turns Your Car Into An Android Smartphone

    As we reported earlier, Saab is working on a new telematics and infotainment system for its future cars called Saab IQon. The new system, previewed this week in Saab’s striking PhoeniX concept, is essentially a new car communications platform based on Google’s Android operating system...

  • 2011 Hyundai Equus with Apple iPad
    2011 Hyundai Equus iPad Owner's App Gets Rage Digital Treatment

    We've known for many months that the Hyundai Equus would get an iPad (perhaps even an iPad 2 now that the release of that model is looming) in the glove box, pre-loaded with the owner's manual and an app to handle service and other customer interaction. Today, Hyundai released a little detail about...

  • MountMe Freedom mount for the Apple iPad
    MountMe's Portable 'Freedom' iPad Cradle: The Good, The Bad, The Mildly Ugly

    When Steve Jobs unveiled the iPad, a lot of people got angry. "What are we supposed to do with that?", they asked. "It's not a computer, it's not a phone, it's just another expensive gew-gaw!" Then came iPad apps and magazines and a slew of competitors using the Android platform, and today it's...

  • Barnes & Noble Nook Color modded to become in-dash stereo and more

    There are lots of gizmos on the market -- gizmos designed to meet the needs of nearly every consumer. And yet, a handful of consumers are never satisfied. They take matters into their own hands, poking, prodding, and modding until they get what they want, just as they've done for millennia. Now, one clever hacker has set his sights on a Nook Color from Barnes & Noble, and the results are pretty impressive. The nifty thing about the Nook line is that it's built on Android -- an operating system that's far more open and flexible (and accessible) than, say, iOS found on the iPad. That means...

  • Garmin Nuvi 660
    Personal Sat-Nav Devices No Longer A Hot In-Car Gadget?

    Not so long ago, companies such as Garmin and TomTom were enjoying strong sales in the PND, or 'Personal Navigation Device' market. Offering inexpensive personal satellite navigation systems for use in your car, they were a popular choice for those not willing to spend sometimes ten times the price...

  • Maverick Sport flying car
    Traffic Jams? No Problems With FAA-Approved Flying Car

    There's always an irony to dual-purpose vehicles - amphibious cars, flying cars - which is that in the quest to master two disciplines, they usually end up being heavily compromised, and often just totally useless at both. Amphibious cars are generally passable in the water provided they don't...

  • Brain Driver - image by Raúl Rojas/Freie Universität Berlin
    BrainDriver: A Mind-Controlled Car

    Imagine you could drive your car using only your thoughts. German researchers have just made that possible -- and they have the video to prove it. Following his recent interview on the Robots Podcast about autonomous vehicles, Raúl Rojas, an AI professor at the Freie Universität Berlin...

  • 2012 Volvo V60 PHEV
    Watch: 2012 Volvo V60 Plug-In Hybrid Comes With A Smartphone App

    Just yesterday, our colleagues at All Cars Electric gave readers a sneak-peek of the 2012 Volvo V60 plug-in hybrid, an intriguing new wagon that promises to earn up to 745 miles on a fully charged battery and a full tank of diesel. But of course, no high tech ride would be complete without the...

  • 2011 Nissan Leaf
    Consumers Want Simpler Gadgets; How About Simpler Cars?

    They say that the simple things in life can bring the most pleasure. Though not everything simple automatically brings happiness to your life, there's certainly a joy to be had from machines and gadgets that operate with economy of movement. A recent survey by Accenture has revealed that more than...

  • Citroën E-3POD Antistatic concept

    The Royal College of Art in London, England has produced some of the auto industry's top design talent for 40 years now and attracts budding car designers from all around the world. On occasion, they hold competitions for their top talent to design vehicles of the future, mixing the best in car technology with fresh design and innovative ideas. The prizes for winning can lead to the opportunity of a lifetime, and MA student Heikki Juvonen is getting just such an opportunity with a six-month contract to work at the PSA design center in Paris. PSA are the group who control French marques...

  • Audi A8 with broadband Internet connection
    Audi Rolls Out A8 With LTE Broadband Internet In New ‘Audi Connect’ Initiative

    Audi has fired off its latest offensive in the world of automotive mobile technology, revealing this week its new A8 flagship sedan fitted with a broadband Internet connection. While this is nothing special, the connection is based on the newer LTE mobile connectivity standard. Developed in...

  • 2006 Chrysler 300C, Beijing Auto Show
    In-Car Entertainment Is A Real Pane With Window Subwoofer

    Audio firm Magna International Inc has come up with a novel way of improving your car's sound system: using the rear window as an enormous subwoofer. The concept is fairly simple, turning the entire rear window into a speaker with two exciters sited at the bottom of the glass, using the window...

  • Chevrolet MyLink preview event, New York City, February 2011
    Chevrolet Launches MyLink Infotainment System on Volt, Equinox

    Tonight, Chevrolet unveiled its new Chevy MyLink in-car infotainment package, which lets drivers control integrated online services like Pandora internet radio and Stitcher SmartRadio using either touch-screen menu options or voice commands to control smart phones via Bluetooth connectivity. While...

  • Powermat
    Powermat Car Charger Rolls Out To Other Cars (Not Just GM Models)

    Last month, we told you that GM cars would soon feature built-in charging devices from Powermat and that the Chevy Volt was first in line for the goods. Now, Powermat has announced that it'll soon offer a version of its wireless charger for cell phones and other mobile devices that will fit any...

  • Facebook mobile app for Android
    Fatal Accident A Result Of Driver Updating Facebook Status?

    Only a few weeks ago we were speculating on the wealth of distractions the modern motorist has to face. Phone calls, texting... even updating your Facebook status. The latter is alleged to be the cause of a recent road accident in the Chicago area in which a woman has been accused of hitting a...

  • Slacker Personal Radio

    On-demand entertainment is all the rage these days. You can fill your personal MP3 player with playlists and video clips or use your smartphone to watch television clips wherever you are. Personal radio is doing the same, with companies like Pandora and Spotify allowing you to create your own radio playlists, even recommending songs to you once the software has figured out your music tastes. Slacker is another such service, providing music personalization with internet radio, a desktop music player and a portable music device. Now, Slacker has raised $3 million in funding and industry experts...

  • 2012 Audi A6 all-LED headlights
    2012 Audi A6 Gets All-LED Headlights

    Audi’s R8 supercar pioneered the way with the first production all-LED headlight units and now the technology is filtering across to more affordable models like the new 2012 Audi A6 sedan. This will be the first time that all-LED headlights will be used on a sedan--the units on the Lexus LS...

  • Audi Adaptive Headlights
    Maintenance-Free All-LED Headlights For 2012 Audi A6 Sedan

    Following the lead of Audi's other models the R8 supercar, A7 Sportback and A8 luxury sedan, the 2012 Audi A6 executive sedan now comes as standard with all-LED headlights and LED daytime running lights, the latter a feature familiar to most modern Audis. The all-LED lights were first seen on...

  • 2012 Ford Focus
    Ford Counting On In-Car Technology For New 2012 Focus

    Ford is aiming to prove that you don't need a big car to enjoy big car technology when it launches the 2012 Ford Focus in March. We've already taken a look at Ford's 'Torque Hole Filling' auto transmission which should make the six-speed auto quicker, more efficient and more refined than ever...

  • Porsche Boxster E electric car prototype
    Porsche Unveils Boxster E Electric Prototype

    Last year Porsche made the startling announcement that the company was looking into the concept of an electric sports car and had already built three prototypes based on the mid-engine Boxster, with an aim to eventually develop a production version. Today the automaker has revealed the first of its...

  • TRON Legacy Light Cycle
    Light Up The Streets: TRON Light Cycles Now For Sale

    One of Winter's most anticipated films was TRON Legacy, the follow-up to 1980s science-fiction film TRON. In the original, a hacker played by Jeff Bridges gets absorbed into a perilous virtual world and in Legacy, his son falls to the same fate. For tech fans the plot is really just a sideline to...

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