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A Wireless Hotspot For Your Car — Why Not?
nk497 writes "UK mobile operator 3 has unveiled a wireless hotspot for cars. It's essentially a repackaged version of their MiFi wireless router, which lets users create their own wireless hotspot using the 3G network. While drivers will hopefully steer away from using the web at the wheel, 3 predicts the mobile hotspot will let passengers entertain themselves as well as offer a hookup to email, music and traffic data."
Been doing this for years.
1. Plug HTC WM phone into charger outlet.
2. Activate WMWiFiRouter app to share out Sprint 3G over USB, wireless, or bluetooth.
3. ?????
4. Profit!
Da Blog
This has been available for a year and a half or so on Dodge vehicles as an option: http://www.dodge.com/en/2009/ram_1500/innovations/uconnect/
Just because I can hook a shark from a boat, I do no offer to wrestle it in the water.
1. RVs
2. Passenger
If you are in a car with a bunch of kids it may be useful for them to entertain themselves.
Also when my wife and I evacuated from Hurricane Frances it would have been great if one of use could have hit nhc.noaa.gov to get updates.We where in a panic that some friends of ours where going to get trapped in their cars by the storm. It would have been a comfort to know that it slowed way down and weakened. Frankly the radio wasn't a lot of help with info.
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
I never said driving requires one's full attention,and I agree that under some certain circumstances, distraction while behind the wheel is not a significant risk as it is at other times. But this is not the issue.
Just because you have the basic motor functions down pat doesn't make driving a trivial task. It is a very intsensive activity. Ask any professional driver, an inner city truck driver
People regularly underestimate the complexity of the task. I saw a survey once where respondents where asked to answer if they were above or below average drivers. Over 70% said above average. Given that mathematically only 50% can be above average, it demonstrates that a significant number of people are overconfident and complacent behind the wheel of a car.
With all due respect, your comparision to aircraft pilots is nonsense. Maybe aircraft are sophisticated machines (my understanding is that modern craft pretty much fly themselves), but it is only half the picture
. How would you feel if the air traffic controllers were busy facebooking and texting away and not keeping their eyes on the task at hand?