Autoblog

iON introduces Speed Pro action camera for motor and marine sports [w/video]

Jonathon Ramsey — Sat, 12 Jan 2013 10:58:00 EST

Filed under: CES, Etc., Technology, Videos

Meanwhile, back at the Consumer Electronics Show, iON camera announced its new Speed Pro camera that it says is specifically tailored to high-speed motor and marine sports. Retailing for $299, the Speed Pro offers up to a 170-degree viewing angle and mounts to affix it to cars, motorcycles and boats and other vehicles. Recording at 1080p the field-of-view drops to 127 degrees and the only frame rate option is 30 frames per second. At 960p and 30 fps you get the full 170 degrees, at 720p you can choose 30 fps or 60 fps for its 150-degree field-of-view. Still photos are captured at 5MP and remote control of the camera requires the purchase of the $99 Wi-Fi PODZ.

Alongside the Speed Pro, iOn also announced the $249 Air Pro 2 with an upgraded 14-megapixel sensor and 180-degree lens, and the $349 GPS-equipped iON Adventure with its lens on the side of the body, dual SD card recording and a motion-detecting sensor designed for adventure-seekers that move a little more slowly.

Samples of Speed Pro footage can be found in the two videos below that feature World Rally Championship driver Petter Solberg. Closer to home, you can see them in operation if you visit the Miller Motorsports Park in Salt Lake City, Utah where the iON has been named the exclusive action camera supplier. The press release below lays it all out in words.

Continue reading iON introduces Speed Pro action camera for motor and marine sports [w/video]

iON introduces Speed Pro action camera for motor and marine sports [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 12 Jan 2013 10:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Logic3 classes up headphones with Prancing Horse

Chris Tutor — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 16:59:00 EST

Filed under: CES, Ferrari, Design/Style

White earphones too bland for you? Black too slow? Your otherwise high-end cans just not expensive enough? Logic3 hopes to remedy your plight with its new line of Ferrari-branded earphones and headphones.

Logic3's Cavallino line is intended for the well-heeled audio enthusiast with aluminum housings covered in hand-stitched, lambskin leather. The Scuderia collection is also built with aluminum but instead of leather, the earphones' colors closely match those of the Ferrari F1 team. Yellow badges and aluminum grilles complete the look.

Both lines also include over-the-ear headphones and Bluetooth compatible dock station speakers. The Scuderia line headphones mimic the look of hearing protection worn by F1 pit crews.

In Ferrari's online store, Scuderia earphones are $166. Cavallino shoppers will pay between $220 and $249 for earphones. Performance specs look to be the same between the different lines as well as price levels. Headphones start at $334 and cap out at $441 in the Scuderia lineup while entry into the Cavallino headphones is $389 and goes up to $481. Sound performance is the same as that for the lower-end lineup.

Ferrari also lent its brand to three speaker dock models. A Scuderia-level speaker without Bluetooth is $667 and $835 with the wireless technology. The Cavallino model gets better performance specs, a different looking shell and $1,017 price tag.

Logic3 classes up headphones with Prancing Horse originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 11 Jan 2013 16:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Audi takes cars that park themselves to a whole new level

Jeffrey N. Ross — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 10:01:00 EST

Filed under: CES, Technology, Videos, Audi

Autonomous cars are impressive displays of in-car technology, but what exactly would the benefit of such systems be for the average driver? Audi has answered that question by showing off its Piloted Parking system for the Audi Connect at CES 2013.

Installed on this Audi A7, Piloted Parking allows a driver to drop themselves off and have the car autonomously drive away on its own and find its own parking spot. The car can then later be retrieved by "calling" it back with a specially designed smartphone app. We'd be lying if we said this didn't bring back memories of Michael Knight summoning KITT with his wristwatch. The most impressive part of this car might be the fact that the car is fully autonomous but doesn't have any obvious sensors or monitors on the exterior of the car like many other self-driving cars have.

Check out a video of the this innovative technology in action after the jump.

Continue reading Audi takes cars that park themselves to a whole new level

Audi takes cars that park themselves to a whole new level originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 11 Jan 2013 10:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Inrix introduces first global system to guide your car to empty parking spaces

Jonathon Ramsey — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 14:01:00 EST

Filed under: CES, Technology

When the book The Secret and the law of attraction was all the rage, one of the most common examples we heard of how people used their innate ability to create whatever they wanted in the world was some variation on, "I envisioned there being an open parking spot." Now you can skip the book and the visualizations with the global parking navigation service launched by Inrix at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show.

Tapping into the databases of ParkMe and Parkopedia, and using Kenwood Wi-Fi-equipped in-dash receivers also introduced at the show, Inrix provides drivers with real-time information on 18,000 off-street parking facilities in North America and 42,000 throughout 36 countries in Europe. That means not just if there's an empty spot, but "detailed location information," such as how many spaces there are and how much it costs to park in a particular facility.

There's a press release below with more information. It doesn't quite explain the in-dash integration of parking navigation shown in the image above - some info on those Kenwood units would help - but no matter, help finding a spot is coming your way, somehow, soon.

Continue reading Inrix introduces first global system to guide your car to empty parking spaces

Inrix introduces first global system to guide your car to empty parking spaces originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 09 Jan 2013 14:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toyota and Lexus show off advanced safety research vehicle [w/video]

Jonathon Ramsey — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, CES, Japan, Safety, Technology, Videos, Lexus, Toyota, Luxury

While Google and Audi explore the possibilities of autonomous vehicles, Toyota and its Lexus division are studying the intermediate step of vehicles equipped with a deep suite of technology that help drivers make the best decisions. Introduced at this week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the Lexus advanced safety research vehicle is an LS sedan fitted with three high-def color cameras to detect objects up to almost 500 feet away, 360-degree Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) lasers that can detect objects up to 220 feet away, three radar units to keep track of other vehicles at intersections, a precision odometer on the rear wheel, GPS that estimates orientation and an accelerometer.

Currently testing at a purpose-built 8.6 acre urban testing ground at the Higashi-Fuji Technical Center in Susono, Japan the Toyota research vehicle is being used to study how to make better drivers, as well as figuring out how to reduce crashes as the industry's journey through passive and active safety systems progresses. In the event of a crash, new rescue systems are also being tested.

Further investment is being put into the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) that would use shortwave signals to harness information from the car and from other vehicles on the road, as well as roadside infrastructure and even pedestrians. Toyota reasons it could then build a picture of interactions and, for instance, alert the driver to a potential collision at a blind intersection.

Toyota's says its research "could lead to a fully autonomous car in the future," but for now, the point is that "a driverless car is just a part of the story. Our vision is a car equipped with an intelligent, always-attentive co-pilot whose skills contribute to safer driving." Improving driver education in this country would probably be a lot cheaper, but hey, we're for anything that helps make the roads safer places to be. There's plenty more tech-speak in the video and press release below.

Continue reading Toyota and Lexus show off advanced safety research vehicle [w/video]

Toyota and Lexus show off advanced safety research vehicle [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 08 Jan 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ford announces app developer program

Chris Tutor — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: CES, Technology, Ford

Ford used the occasion of CES to announce that the Ford Developer Program, the automaker's own app developer program, would be open to anyone wanting to participate. Ford will provide its software developer kit to registered software writers who will then have access to code libraries and documentation to allow them to write apps to "enable two-way communication between mobile apps" and Sync-equipped Ford vehicles "including voice commands from the driver."

Several apps have already been developed by a select group of beta-testing code-crunchers. Some of the more interesting ones include the Amazon Cloud Player that will allow users to access music stored in Amazon's cloud, USA Today which will provide audio versions of the national newspaper, and BeCouply, a new app that gives entertainment suggestions to couples looking for date ideas.

Got an idea for an app but no idea how to write it? Ford has teamed with Michigan-based jacAPPS to be the "recommended mobile app development house." Read the entire press release below.

Continue reading Ford announces app developer program

Ford announces app developer program originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 08 Jan 2013 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ford and Glympse hook up to give Sync location-sharing technology

Jonathon Ramsey — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 10:45:00 EST

Filed under: CES, Technology, Ford, Infotainment

Among the numerous apps that Ford has added to its Sync AppLink system is the location-sharing service Glympse. After The app is installed on a smartphone and the phone is paired with the AppLink interface either through Bluetooth or USB, a driver just presses the Sync button on the steering wheel and says, "Send Glympse." With that, the vehicle's location is sent to the other parties he has enabled in the app.

Any 'Glympsers' can keep track of the vehicle on their own phones or on a map in a web brower and get updates via e-mail, text, Facebook and Twitter. There's a time-limit to 'glympsing' so that after a pre-set time the app will cease updating its location.

The app was introduced to the Mercedes-Benz A-Class last summer, but we won't be seeing Stuttgart's little hatch in our country for a while. The partnership with Ford gives US drivers a way to experience another OEM integration of what is sure to be our always-in-contact future. The press release below can tell you more about it.

Continue reading Ford and Glympse hook up to give Sync location-sharing technology

Ford and Glympse hook up to give Sync location-sharing technology originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 07 Jan 2013 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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