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Connected car's shines in emerging applications.

What can you actually do in a connected car?
December 2, 2014 by Tara Tabib

This year millions of Americans have joined the trend to extend their computers and other electronic devices to expaned use in their cars in what is being termed the Connected Car.

A connected car is a car that is equipped with internet access, and usually also with a wireless local area network. This allows the car to share internet access with other devices both inside as outside the vehicle. Often, the car is also outfitted with special technologies that tap into the internet access or wireless LAN and provide additional benefits to the driver. Examples include: automatic notification of crashes and notification of speeding,

What applications can you use in a connected car today? AT&T (NYSE: T) CEO Randall Stephenson actually said his company thinks about the connected car as "a big smartphone on wheels." He adds: "The connected car will become just as routine as people carrying a smartphone."

While the industry segment is still evolving, here are five emerging applications that consumers who own a connected car could use. 

 
Representatives from carriers, car makers, components suppliers and analyst firms agree that the market is on the verge of a boom. Indeed, according to research firm Analysys Mason, auto makers will ship around 11.5 million connected cars this year, but will grow that number to around 170 million in 2023.."One thing is for sure: We are on the precipice of almost all new cars coming off the shop floor with a SIM card pre-installed” analyst Morgan Mullooly said.

However, the connected car, despite all the hype, is still a somewhat nebulous concept. Wireless carriers have talked up the benefits of bringing cellular connectivity into the car as if it were self-evident that consumers would not only find connected car services useful but would be willing to pay for them. Yet there still has not been a great deal of explanation of what a consumer can actually do in a connected car environment.

Here we have reviewed the most popular current uses  and applications for the connected car as well as what will be coming down the pike in the next few years. This list is certainly not comprehensive but does give an indication as to where the market is heading. Please let us know what you think in the comments.  

• 1 Safety and security - connected car
• 2 Navigation / concierge - connected car
• 3 Entertainment / hotspot - connected car

• 4 Diagnostics - connected car
• 5 Next generation / vehicle to vehicle - connected car

Safety and security - connected car

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Safety and security, which has been the driver of connected car business models for years, remains a critical application for both consumers and automakers. The most well-known example is General Motors' OnStar service, which has been in place for 17 years and now counts more than 6 million customers. The safety and security features of the service include the ability to contact OnStar representatives for emergency services, vehicle diagnostics and directions. The services also provides the ability to track stolen vehicles, among other features. These types of services do not take up a lot of resources on carriers' networks, but provide customers with peace of mind.

Remotek allows drivers to unlock car doors with their phone:

"They don't require a lot of bandwidth," said GMs Paul Hedtke, senior director of business development for automotive at Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM). "But really what they drive is the need for ubiquity [in network coverage]."

In February, GM announced it will replace Verizon Wireless' (NYSE:VZ) CDMA service with AT&T Mobility's (NYSE:T) LTE service for OnStar starting in 2014. Tim Nixon, executive director and CTO of applications delivery at GM's global connected consumer division, said that upgrading to LTE will improve data transmission, call processing and give OnStar customers the ability to simultaneously use voice and data.

Nixon also talked about GM's recently introduced upgrade to its OnStar RemoteLink app, which lets customers remotely unlock doors and start their vehicles. The service will be on all OnStar-equipped 2014 Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac models, even if the customer decides not to pay for other OnStar services.

Of course, all of the players in the industry noted that any connected service must be implemented in a way that won't distract drivers.

Chris Penrose, senior vice president of AT&T's emerging devices unit, said enhancing driver safety is a "resounding common theme." To that end, he said the carrier isn't just looking at specific safety services but is instead concerned with how connected car apps are architected so that they won't interfere with motorists' attention. Penrose said that apps should be optimized for touchscreen displays within cars to make them easily accessible, and that voice-activated apps and services that provide spoken feedback will let drives "keep their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel."