(Credit:
Kenwood)
LAS VEGAS--Yet another car audio manufacturer is testing out the CD-less lifestyle, as Kenwood announces its KIV-BT900 digital car audio receiver. Apparently, people don't just don't use discs anymore.
The KIV-BT900 drops its CD drive like a hot potato, instead focusing its attention on handling digital audio and video from USB-connected portable media players. Named among the supported devices are the iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch, and Zune. USB mass storage devices are also supported for a variety of audio (MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV), picture (JPEG and BMP), and video (MPEG4, WMV and H.264) formats.
When the vehicle is parked, the KIV-BT900 displays its menus, song data, album artwork, and video content on a 3-inch color TFT display. The KIV can also play back video while the vehicle is in motion, but only to an external monitor through its rear video output. Speaking of expandability, a trio of 4-volt preamp outputs allows for the addition of external amplification.
The BT in KIV-BT900 stands for Bluetooth, as the KIV-BT900 features Bluetooth wireless ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
LAS VEGAS--Ford CEO Alan Mulally says tech geeks will feel right at home in Ford cars.
Mulally delivered the Thursday morning keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show, where he said "smart technology" such as access to smartphones and fuel efficiency are core to Ford's strategy.
"Green technology and smart innovation are helping us serve our customers and differentiate Ford," Mulally said.
Ford CEO Alan Mulally giving a keynote address Thursday morning at CES in Las Vegas.
(Credit: James Martin/CNET)He started his talk noting the surge in usage of online applications like Twitter and Facebook in the past year. Ford's Sync software allows drivers to access these applications through smartphones using Sync's voice activation features.
"Fortunately, the connectivity that Ford chose has proven to be right because it has the ability to accommodate change...and connectivity through a mobile phone," he said.
Mulally said Ford plans to extend its pilot program, in which Best Buy will help Ford drivers become familiar
... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
OK, so the DSX-S100 technically isn't mech-free, because the TuneTray features moving parts.
(Credit: Sony)LAS VEGAS--Sony is tossing its hat into the "mech-free" digital audio receiver ring along with Alpine and Pioneer, but it's the way Sony is going about connecting portable media players (PMPs) to its new receiver that's so interesting. Sony's new DSX-S100 has an odd feature that's called the TuneTray. I know what you're asking: "What the heck is a TuneTray?"
Besides its lack of a CD drive, the DSX-S100 has all of the same features as the rest of Sony's car stereos.
(Credit: Sony)The TuneTray is a storage mechanism for an iPod or other USB device that allows users to keep their PMP inside of the DSX-S100, rather than flopping around in the glovebox or a cupholder. Internal storage eliminates loose wires and allows for a cleaner appearance.
Simply open the S100s faceplate, attach the short USB cable to your PMP, and then close the faceplate to start listening. Of ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
The iDA-X305S is one of the first car stereos to interface with the Pandora iPhone app.
(Credit: Alpine)LAS VEGAS--Regular readers of the CNET Car Tech Blog will likely be familiar with the Alpine iDA-X305, one of our favorite car stereos for iPod users that distinguishes itself by completely omitting a CD drive. Besides adding an "S" to the end of its model name, the new iDA-X305S is a real evolution of the previous model, adding Pandora Internet Radio support to the mix.
The iDA-X305S is able to control the Pandora app on a connected iPhone 3G or 3GS, streaming your user-created radio stations over a 3G data connection and out of your vehicle's speakers. Users should be able to log in and access all of the Pandora app's functions using the X305S' 2.2-inch color display and double-action rotary encoder knob, including viewing album artwork and tracking metadata, changing stations, skipping tracks, giving a song the thumbs up and down, and bookmarking songs for later access.
Using the iPhone's 3G connection ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
(Credit:
Sony)
LAS VEGAS--Built-in HD Radio tuning and iTunes song tagging come to Sony's line of car stereo receivers in the CDX-GT700HD. iTunes tagging works when an iPod or iPhone is connected. While listening to an HD Radio station, users can tag songs that they like to store the metadata to the iPod device. When the iPod is later connected to the a PC, a playlist is created from which users can purchase and download tagged songs.
The CDX-GT700HD features a front USB input for connecting an iPod or other portable storage device, as well as a CD drive with MP3 playback. Sony's Quick-BrowZer, ZAPPIN, and Jump Mode technologies allow users to browse their large music libraries, and a passenger control function allows for direct selection of songs from the iPod itself. Under the hood, there's an array of Sony audio technologies, including a DM+ Advanced sound quality enhancer for compressed music files.
The CDX-GT700HD car stereo will be available in February 2010 for about $180.
Ford gives its maps a much-needed update in the MyFord system, and stores it on SD Card.
(Credit: Ford)
LAS VEGAS - Ford built up a good cabin tech lead amongst its competitors when it adopted Sync and Sirius Travel Link in 2008, and we didn't think the company could come up with something new for CES 2010. But boy, were we wrong. Ford radically redesigned its cabin tech interface while at the same time adding new features and completely revamping its navigation systems, branding the whole shebang as MyFord.
Ford vehicles equipped with MyFord will get two 4.2-inch color LCDs, one mounted in the instrument cluster and one in the center of the dashboard. The instrument cluster display shows vehicle information such as engine speed, temperature, and trip data, and the one in the dashboard shows audio, phone, and navigation information.
This system can be upgraded to MyFord Touch, which puts the two 4.2-inch LCDs on either side of the speedometer and adds an 8-inch touch-screen LCD to the center of the dashboard.
The Ford Fusion Hybrid served as a test-bed for this new interface, as it has similar LCDs in the instrument cluster, although they don't show nearly as much information. What both allow is driver customization, letting you choose to view the tachometer as an analog gauge or as a simple bar graph, for example.
Ford's old interface was legible, but ugly.
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET)In designing the new interface, Ford aimed to flatten the menu structure, making it safer for drivers to choose music or place phone calls without having to dig through multiple screens. MyFord also uses a color scheme so the driver can easily see which function is on display, with orange for the phone, green for navigation, red for music, and blue for climate control. These four major menu areas also get a touch-screen button at each corner of the 8-inch LCD, letting driver or passenger quickly access each one.
Another big change involves switching map storage from hard drive to SD card. Ford had been an early adopter of onboard hard drives, which allowed quicker map access for the navigation system than DVDs could. But moving from hard drive to SD card, with a navigation application and maps from Telenav, will be cheaper to manufacture, make it easier for an owner to update the maps, and be more durable, as a hard drive is more likely to fail in an automotive environment than an SD card.
... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
Sony's XAV-70BT may not look like much in photos, but that's because it's nearly all screen!
(Credit: Sony)LAS VEGAS--Sony has announced a new flagship XAV-70BT in-dash AV receiver center. The unit is built around a 7-inch WVGA motorized panel display and Sony's new graphic user interface.
Behind the sexy touch screen is a reasonable amount of audio processing horsepower including Center Speaker Organizer (CSO), which aims to create virtual 5.1 channel surround from stereo sources; SensMe music software, which creates custom music playlists and channels based on the user's music library; and the Advanced Sound Engine (ASE) which is a collection of Sony's sound processing technologies. Users can connect their iPods, iPhones, and other digital media players to the rear USB input or utilize the Bluetooth wireless technology to stream audio or make hands-free calls.
Stepping down a tier, the Sony XAV-60 features nearly all of the functionality of the XAV-70BT, but drops the Bluetooth wireless technology and reduces the screen size to 6.... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
The U220 is designed to fit in a glove box or center console.
(Credit: Pioneer)LAS VEGAS--The AVIC-U220 is an add-on module that features a built-in GPS receiver, allowing you to add turn-by-turn navigation to Pioneer's AVH line of AV receivers. The detachable U220 is also compatible with Pioneer's AVIC Feeds software (but not with the iPhone app) and can be removed from the vehicle and attached to a PC to download or upload POIs and custom routes using the application.
Using the AVIC Feeds software and an SD card, users can also download the Clock and Photo View applications. These applications give users access to five different clock views and a slideshow of personal photos, complete with transition effects for use as alternative screensavers to the map view.
The jury is still out on the finer details, but with an MSRP of about $400 on top of at least $450 for an AVH receiver and no built-in capability to access live traffic data or fuel prices, we can see the U220 being ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
Pioneer drops the CD drive with its MVH line of receivers.
(Credit: Pioneer)LAS VEGAS--Pioneer is taking steps into a segment of the car audio market that up until now has been monopolized by Alpine, with its first ever mech-free receivers, the MVH-P8200 and the MVH-P8200BT.
The V in MVH means these receivers can play back video.
(Credit: Pioneer)Tossing out the often-unused CD drive, the single-DIN MVH-P8200 has no moving parts--hence the designation "mech-free." The receiver was designed to work best with Apple's iPhone and iPod, but it should play back MP3, WMA, and iTunes AAC music files via USB and SD memory card. The USB port is located directly on the front face of the receivers and the SD memory card slot is located behind the removable front face.
In the case of the P8200BT, A2DP Bluetooth stereo audio-streaming and hands-free calling are also added as audio sources. Users can browse their media libraries on the P8200's 3-inch color TFT display using Pioneer's seven-way rotary encoder, which is a knob-joystick-button ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
Has the promise of easy in-car Internet radio finally been fulfilled?
(Credit: Pioneer)LAS VEGAS--Pioneer unveiled the latest addition to its AVIC line of in-dash navigation solutions and its first Pandora Internet radio-enabled car stereo, the AVIC-X920BT, during its CES 2010 press conference.
The X920BT's navigation features enhanced ECO routing functionality.
(Credit: Pioneer)One of the most notable changes to the AVIC's software is Pandora Link, which adds the ability to stream audio and display metadata from the Pandora Internet Radio app on a connected iPhone with a 3G connection. Users are also given access to album artwork and controls such as skip track, thumbs up and down, bookmarks, and station changes from the X920BT's touch-screen interface.
The X920BT bumps the AVIC-X chassis' screen size to 6.1 inches with a WXGA resolution and a new touch interface. Features such as voice recognition, Bluetooth hands-free calling/audio streaming, and USB connectivity for iPhone/iPod carry over from our current Editors' Choice title holder, the flagship AVIC-Z110BT, as do an updated version ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
