It appears that people find it hard to unlink from things that have an impact on their lives.
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That’s the case of technology. Today, new technology trends are redefining the way we live either at home, at work, or simply in public.
Now, it’s almost impossible to go back in time and live those days where nobody had a mobile phone to browse or contact anyone.
WiFi, for example, has become a factor that makes an impact on our daily lives. Everyone needs it and lack of connectivity could even cause disappointment to say the least.
Carmakers have signaled that expectation and have translated that ever-increasing need into a popular in-car feature.
WIFI services are now an integral part of new vehicle designs including; Audi, Chevrolet, BMW among others.
Yet, the question is: Does connecting vehicles really work? Does it improve our lives or just offer another reason to be distracted while on the road?
There’s little consensus for now, but let’s examine how in-car WiFi impacts our driving experience.
In-car WiFi access for emergency safety
Always-on connectivity has always been the norm for this form of technology. Apart from data packages and signal strengths, an standard connection allows drivers to:
- Keep in touch with their family and friends
- Contact emergency services
- Use navigation and mapping
These are the same benefits that you get from being connected at home. However, in-car connectivity provides more consistency to let drivers work on their safety in the event of an emergency.
No longer will you need to be worried about “remote” connectivity as in-car connectivity powers the experience to the next level.
Access to WiFi in your car increases productivity
You could find value on connectivity whether you carpool with work colleagues. How often do you need to solve some work issues while sitting in your car?
Of course, we are not encouraging you to work and drive, nor look at your phone for a work e-mail. You could pull out safely and perform in a way that increases productivity at work.
Just imagine what you can achieve while sitting in your car handling work-related tasks such as:
- Working on your laptop without having to register for expensive data packages
- Staying in touch and connected with work
- Accessing emails and instant messages
- Opening work files. shared content, or cloud services
In-car WiFi connection for family entertainment
Usually passengers get easily bored when it comes to family road trips. While drivers (parents) are focusing on the road, kids look for some form of entertainment to make their trip more enjoyable.
When there’s so little room for entertainment, WiFi definitely upgrades the experience.
Kids can connect their devices, contact their friends, stream shows and movies, and play games while parents have more time to enjoy the ride.
In-car connectivity poses a major distraction for drivers
Distracted driving is already on the spotlight, causing more accidents on the road everyday.
Since connecting vehicles could enhance the driving experience, very little can be done to stop drivers from using it while driving.
When drivers get more incentives to use their phones while on the road, will it has a negative effect as a distraction?
It would be difficult to answer that question since many technology evangelists have their own justifications to the use of connected vehicles whereas safety campaigners tag this new technology as mere distracting add-ons.
What’s your opinion about in-car WiFi? Does it improve the experience or jeopardizes your safety on the road?
SEE ALSO: Auto Technology: Are Self-Driving Cars Really Safe?