Ford Trucks To Offer In-Dash Web Browsing

(CBS)  Ford Motor and Opera Software have announced a collaboration to add Web browsing to the Internet-enabled in-dash computers that Ford is installing in some of its trucks and vans.

The built-in Ford Work Solutions computer, which is being marketed to contractors, farmers, construction workers and business owners, is equipped with Microsoft Auto, a version of the Windows CE operating system.

In addition to accessing the Web through the Opera browser, the computer can run LogMeIn to enable remote access to office and home PCs. The computer also includes Garmin GPS navigation and is integrated into the vehicle cell phone. Internet access, through Sprint's 3G network is available for $25 a month for a 25-megabyte plan or $50 for up to 5 gigabytes of data, which should be more than enough for the vast majority of users.

The computer costs $1,125. It has a 6.5-inch screen and comes with a wireless Bluetooth keyboard. Ford sells an optional wireless Hewlett-Packard printer. The device also has an AM/FM radio and a CD player.

You can use the radio, CD, navigation system and phone while driving, but for safety reasons, the computer and Internet access work only while the vehicle is parked. Also, the system does not allow you to stream Internet audio or video, even while stationary.

Ford says it's the first vehicle manufacturer in North America to offer an installed Internet device, though there are several in-dash aftermarket devices and, of course, it's long been possible to use an Internet-connected laptop in a car.

It makes a lot of sense for Ford to offer this to its business customers, many of whom spend the better part of their day in and around their vehicles. Before the economy put a damper on construction, it wasn't uncommon to see contractors and construction foremen pull out a laptop to get or send information vital to the job.

And having a Web browser makes sense, given the vast amount of resources it makes available. The Ford device also lets users send and receive e-mail and text messages. A message from the office with an address of a job, for example, can be pasted into the GPS application, making navigation a bit easier.

As someone who doesn't own a truck and probably never will, I'm not a potential customer for this system. But I'm sure Ford and other automakers have considered a consumer version for passenger cars.

If they do offer one - and I'm sure it's inevitable - I hope they include a media player with the ability to stream audio while the car is in motion. I support not allowing the driver to surf the Web or watch video while driving, but I see no harm in enabling it for passengers.

Drivers can now listen to Internet radio on an iPhone plugged into a car audio system using iPhone apps such as Pandora, Tuner and AOL Radio. Shortly after the iPhone 3G came out, I drove around Silicon Valley listening live to East Coast stations and overseas radio and streaming music via Pandora.

While it worked, there are some problems with the iPhone solution. Not only are the phone and service expensive, the device is not designed to be used safely in the car. It's okay to listen but not safe to tune-in a station while driving, even though I'm sure people do it. It would be equally dangerous to use a Web browser to tune into Internet radio while driving.

But it would be nice if future versions of products like this let you use the browser to configure your preferred stations while stationary or from home or work and put up a push-button interface on the screen that lets you tune into your favorite online stations as your car radio now let you access AM, FM and satellite stations.

I think Internet radio could strike a deathblow to satellite radio and present challenges to terrestrial radio stations and networks, including those of CBS (which owns CBSNews.com). Of course, broadcasters are already streaming their programming online (most CBS stations are now available on the iPhone through AOL Radio). But in an online world, they will have to compete with anyone who invests as little as a few hundred dollars in a PC, some audio gear and a Web site.

Today, people get live audio in their cars by listening to terrestrial stations that have FCC licenses and expensive transmitters, or to satellite radio with really expensive satellites floating around in space. Competition will be good for consumers as it pressures stations and networks to be more competitive.

Aside from building Internet media players in the dash, the auto industry needs to persuade cellular carriers to lower the cost of data plans. Sprint's $50 plan, which is $10 less than the plan offered for laptops, is a good start. But I'd like to see prices come down further - perhaps to $19.95 a month.
By Larry Magid

[BayAreaBiker]

I think the reason today's cars have many unnecessary features is because the manufacturers think they will sell. That might be true if most of the buyers are teens or twenty-somethings, a very impressionable age group. I myself can do just fine without a radio, CD, or MP3 players, and could cope without climate control. However, a GPS would be useful when travelling in unfamiliar locations. The problem is that we expect too much. The earliest cars were basic transportation, something buses, trains, and bikes are fully capable of. Now we expect cars to be mobile living rooms.

[hetup-2009]

The transmission has to be in park to use the system so no worries.

[rf35]

'My mama always said, "stupid is as Ford does."'

I noticed there wasn't a comment area available for the GM/Segway PUMA article. That is the kind of thing the other American car companies need to be looking at. I would still prefer something with 4 wheels and longer between charges (better yet, a fuel cell) but it's a step in the right direction. Heat, A/C, GPS, and maybe a radio with iPod attachment are the only extra accessories I would like in a car. Give me better milage, not silly add-ons. Give me less maintenance, not computers that tell me when I need maintenance. Do this without forcing me into debt for the next 5 years. Offer the $90k "status SUV" for those who really want it and the giant diesel pick-up for those who really need it, but don't base your company around those sorts of vehicles. Build a car for the rest of us and watch your company thrive.

[rf35]

What, no BluRay player?!?!

[swin5]

And you wonder why American car companies are doing so bad. Add this one to tail fins, vinyl roofs, hidden windshield wipers, astro-ventilation (remember that?), 20 inch wheels, radio antennas buried in the windshield, pick-up truck gas tanks located right under the door, the top heavy Ford Exploder suspension complete with the best? tires on the road - Firestones, and of course, Edsels, Citations, Excursions, Volare's and Aspens, Corvairs, Pintos, and Vegas and you might get a hint as to how these companies think and how they always get it wrong. Just make a safe reliable car that is comfortable to ride in and doesn't cost a year's salary.

[displeased]

I hope the relatives of the first person who dies due to an inattentive driver surfing the net sues the freakin' PANTS off Ford... And collects.
Posted by Henri_Rochard

The internet works only when the car is parked. They would have a hard time collecting on that one. But again, people can do a ton of things to distract themselves while driving. If they are irresponsible and negligent and kill somebody, say while texting and driving, then the driver should be sued, not the cell phone company.

[Henri_Rochard]

This is just great.

Now that airhead broad I saw this morning smoking a cigarette while driving with a cell phone hunched up on her shoulder can now simultaneously surf the net.

I hope the relatives of the first person who dies due to an inattentive driver surfing the net sues the freakin' PANTS off Ford... And collects.

[johnstossel]

Cool - surfing porn while you drive!!!

[lloydbest1]

Posted by debinok1 at 4:56 AM : Apr 7, 2009

Dang! There's always a spoilsport around isn't there just :)

Seriously, though, Ford could do worse than listen to those like "debinok" who believe we really need to hit the "reset" button and concentrate on building reliable products that don't have the frills we don't really need and do not self destruct three days after the warranty expires.

[mtcolquitt]

Another stupid idea. We need less bells and whistles and more MILEAGE stupid!!