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Another awesome announcement from the Google I/O Developers Conference yesterday was the ability to attach and send money via Gmail using Google Wallet.
Look for this feature to be introduced to all users over the age of 18 during the next few months. This may be met with some initial skepticism from some users but this has the makings for becoming a major force in the online payment ecosystem. Security and trust will obviously be at the core of any debate. Watch this develop quickly as individuals and business explore new opportunities.
Imagine being able to take deposits for a vehicle via email. That's disruptive.
Dubai remains a city known for its wealth; built off the back of the oil industry, it now flourishes in tourism, real estate, and financial services. All that cash floating around evidently means one thing: lawbreakers drive highly expensive, fast cars. So, in response, the Dubai Police Department added an even faster car to its fleet – a 700-hp Lamborghini Aventador.
News surfaced of the acquirement on Twitter, with tweets stating “Only in Dubai” and “Officer, please cuff me in the Aventador and throw away the keys.” Additional sports cars are set to join the fleet too, with machines being designed according to police specifications in an effort to “facilitate policing on highways.”
Here in the U.S., we now focus on fuel efficiency from our cop cars rather than brute strength; philosophies between the two countries couldn’t differ more wildly. A recent study of several Ontario, Canada based police departments found the “average police car spends two-thirds of a 10-hour shift idling.” That translates to more than six gallons of fuel wasted over two shifts each day. Imagine how much fuel the Aventador will burn. Dubai has been burning through oil quickly enough as it is.
No word on which lucky Dubai cop gets to pilot the beastly machine, nor if they require special driver training. One thing's for sure, if we introduced a 217 mph Lamborghini into the U.S. police fleets, applications to become a cop would be at an all-time high.
Automakers are racing to make driving less distracting for those who want to stay.
Automakers including Chrysler, BMW and General Motors are racing to make driving less distracting for those who want to text, e-mail and even check social media behind the wheel.
"Integrating certain apps into a vehicle limits eyes off the road and will remove the temptation to hold, look and manipulate the phone," says Tom Baloga, the recently retired engineering VP at BMW. TEXTING IN TRAFFIC: Adults worse than teens
Among automakers' text/voice initiatives:
Several Chrysler models, including the Dodge Dart, can turn text to voice or allow drivers to read messages on dashboard screens. Drivers can respond with a few select responses, such as "I'm on my way," says spokesman Eric Mayne. Some vehicles with higher end radios, including the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Ram 1500 pickup, can send more "free form cloud-based text messages," Mayne says.
GM announced last month that 2013 Chevrolet Sonic and Spark vehicles with the Chevrolet MyLink communications system can translate voice to text and text to voice for drivers with compatible iPhones with iOS 6. The company also plans to add 4G LTE WiFi in some 2015 models but hasn't announced what commands will be voice-enabled.
When phones are paired with BMWs, drivers can get e-mail messages on dashboard screens that are limited to three lines. Text-to-speech will read the whole e-mail back. BMW's 7-series has a dictation function that turns speech into text that can be forwarded by e-mail or text.
Audi, which uses voice recognition for "points of interest" and full street addresses, is working on voice-enabled features that will allow drivers to send or receive text messages or use social networks in the car "without having to handle a device," says Anupam Malhotra, Audi of America's manager of connected cars.
Focus group research by the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers late last year found that 90% of drivers with smartphones keep them in their hand, lap, cup holder or on the passenger seat.
"So, clearly, having access is really important to them," says Alliance spokesman Wade Newton.
Nearly three quarters of respondents also said the government shouldn't ban the use of hands-free, voice activated phone systems. If the government did ban these systems, almost half of those with smartphones said they'd use their phone or GPS device instead.
"Voice operation can allow them to do it in a way that's safer than it would be to have them behind the wheel fumbling around with something they bought at an electronics store; and was never even designed to be used in a car," Newton says.
Baloga agrees: "Lack of cup holders doesn't separate drivers from their coffee. Expecting all drivers to endure smartphone withdrawal is unrealistic."
But some safety advocates warn that the new technology may not solve the problem.
The safety benefits — or detriments — of these technologies are still largely unknown, says David Strayer, a University of Utah psychology professor who has studied in-car technology and distraction for about a decade. AAA and Strayer are working on new research due in June that measures how mentally distracting in-vehicle communication use is while driving.
"We've seen there is all this functionality put into vehicles, but what we don't know is if it is an activity that is or isn't safe," says Strayer. "There hasn't really been any formal analysis of the efficacy of these kinds of technologies."
Clay Skelton, inventor of a system that won't allow a car to be started unless cell phones are in a docking station, cites a study by Virginia Tech Transportation Institute researchers that concluded the riskiest behaviors with cell phones are "texting, typing, reading, dialing and reaching for a phone." Technology such as his OrigoSafe and voice to text "takes away the dangerous visual and manual" distractions, Skelton says.
The new auto safety app can tell you about car crash test ratings and recalls.(Photo: Mark Humphrey, AP)
Federal regulators released a mobile app Thursday with car safety information including vehicle safety ratings, searchable recalls and complaints and help with child seat installation.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's iOS SaferCar app for iPhones and the iPod Touch will also let users file a vehicle safety complaint and subscribe to automatic notices about vehicle recalls. It also provides directions to the nearest child seat installation location.
"Timely, accurate, and accessible safety data is the lifeblood of our agency's work," said NHTSA chief David Strickland. "The new SaferCar app literally puts the latest in vehicle safety information directly in the hands of consumers so they can make the appropriate purchasing and other decisions for themselves and their families."
The announcement is the first phase for the SaferCar app, which can be downloaded from Apple's iTunes Store. The agency is still working on an Android version of the app. Earlier this year, NHTSA updated its www.SaferCar.gov website to allow consumers to quickly locate information on safety defect investigations, complaints and vehicle recalls.
The app launch coincides with the release of NHTSA's Application Programming Interface (API), which will provide software developers with better access to safety data for analysis and integration into consumer-friendly web and mobile apps.
NHTSA also plans to release an online course to teach developers how to use the APIs.
Volkswagen says it plans to unveil its 261-miles-per-gallon XL1 plug-in hybrid, a two-seat sports machine that it will begin offering for sale this year, at the Geneva auto show on March 5.
The automaker, since at least 2002, has been experimenting with the idea of a vehicle capable of using only one liter or less of fuel to travel 100 kilometers. That would be the fuel economy equivalent of about 235 m.p.g., the company said; in tests, the XL1 has managed to achieve even better numbers than the original goals.
“The 261 m.p.g. fuel consumption figure is a record that has not been achieved by any other vehicle to date,” the company announced in press materials on Thursday, “showing that Volkswagen is redefining what is technically feasible in the automotive industry.”
Concept versions of the car, called the L1, have been shown in the last decade as a tandem two-seater. With the XL1, a concept version of which appeared in 2011, the cockpit has been widened to allow driver and passenger to sit more or less side by side.
The production version, Volkswagen says, still is able to achieve a low 0.189 drag coefficient, despite its wider body. Other aerodynamic aids include fully covered rear wheels and rearview mirrors that are integrated into the door panels. It has a curb weight of 1,753 pounds. The body is made principally of plastic, with an underlying aluminum frame.
Its powertrain is comprised of an 800-cc 2-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine, with an output of 47 horsepower, which works with a 27-horsepower electric motor and a lithium-ion battery. The vehicle can travel up to 31 miles on electric power. Under full power, VW says the XL1 will accelerate to 60 m.p.h. in about 12.7 seconds and can achieve a top speed of 99 m.p.h.
VW says it will hand build the XL1 at its plant in Osnabrück, Germany, where the Porsche Boxster and VW Golf convertible are also built. After an initial production run of 50 vehicles, VW says it will adjust further production plans according to demand.
The Honda Accord has continued its reign as the used car pulling in the most online traffic for Kelley Blue Book, and though there were some moves on the list, much of the 25 most-researched used vehicles on KBB.com this month held steady from December.
Same as last month, the Honda Accord and Honda Civic took spots one and two, respectively, and were followed by the Toyota Camry (No. 3), Ford F-150 (No.4) and Toyota Corolla (No. 5).
The Chevrolet Silverado 1500, which was No. 8 in December, moved up to sixth this month. It switched places with the Nissan Altima. Placing seventh again was the BMW 3 Series.
Also swapping spots were the Ford F-250/F-350/F-450 Super Duty (moving from No. 10 to No. 9) and the Ford Mustang.
These were two of the eight Ford models on the list; no other automaker had more.
Honda was represented by four vehicles, while Chevrolet and Toyota each had three. Jeep and Dodge combined for three spots.
There were two Nissan models to make the list; Volkswagen and a BMW each had one.
First installed in London by a railway engineer in 1868, traffic lights are used in just about every city on the planet today. In the most basic sense, drivers have learned that red means stop, green light means go and that yellow indicates that caution is due as the signal is in the process of change. Even an elementary school child understands that traffic flows through a green and yellow light, but running a red light is not only dangerous, but it is against the law.
Yet China has now rewritten the rules.
On January 1, 2013, it became illegal to drive through both red and yellow lights in the Asian country. Those cited more than once will likely lose their driving privileges. The aggressive rule follows a crackdown by Chinese authorities aimed at reducing the estimated 250,000 road traffic fatalities the country experiences each year – a figure that makes road accidents the leading cause of death among residents between the ages of 15 and 44, says the World Health Organization.
The physics behind the law are flawed, as many in China have already criticized, as it is impossible to legally stop for a light without knowing when the signal is going to change. Many argue that the new regulation will grind traffic to a halt, as drivers are scared to proceed through even green lights. Despite the controversy, China's Ministry of Public Security continues to defend its odd ruling.
Another awesome announcement from the Google I/O Developers Conference yesterday was the ability to attach and send money via Gmail using Google Wallet.
