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The iPad As In-Car Entertainment System Killer
theodp writes "Cars.com's David Thomas speculates that the iPad could prove to be a serious problem for automakers that charge a ransom for rear entertainment systems. The base iPad, Thomas notes, costs far less than most DVD options offered by automakers. Ford charges $1,995 for a dual-headrest-mounted DVD system in its Flex crossover. In the Acura MDX, its single-screen system, with three wireless headsets and a 9-inch screen, costs $1,900. At $500 a pop, giving two kids their own iPads would cost far less than what the automakers charge for an ICE system. The Cars.com article mentions some of the advantages of ICE, including being weather-tested to work from -5 to 160 degrees F (-20 to 71 C), and being far less prone to breakage."
I thought mounted entertainment systems were killed by portable $100 DVD players already...
I do not believe in karma. "Funny"=-6. Do good and forbid evil. Yours, Oft-Offtopic Flamebaiting Troll.
Really. I am sick and tired of seeing posts on /. on the Ipad. It's a waste of our time. Wasn't /. supposed to be "news for nerds, stuff that matters"? Ipads are not news for nerds, nor are they stuff that matters. Yuck.
Religous speak to God. Insane are spoken to by God. When all shut up, one can finally hear Shostakovich in peace
Can someone explain the appeal of these "in car entertainment" systems? Seriously, this sounds like another way to not pay attention to your kids, even while you are within 2 feet of them.
Palm trees and 8
...to steal the factory installed DVD system than they are to grab the two iPads in your back seat.
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Automakers still seem to charge ridiculous amounts for integrated navigation systems - the fact that you can pick up a GPS unit for under $100 doesn't seem to prevent them from charging $500-2000 for nav systems. Somehow I doubt they'll change anything here either. I figure that the thinking is they can charge a huge premium for the benefit of having a system integrated vs. just a separate device.
i figured that out when the iPad was first announced. $2000 for a glorified $300 DVD system vs $500 for a dumbed down computer that can play movies and games and you don't need to take shiny discs with you that scratch easily
and you can use the ipad outside the car as well. and if you're an IT geek with kids, the App Store has tons of IT management apps to give you console and any kind of remote access to almost any platform from anywhere. just in case you get a call while on vacation that something is wrong
Unlike the iPad, they too can play DVDs!
"National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
Though it doesn't have a key element for kids: A DVD drive or a suitable ability to play the same movies they watch at home.
Anyone who has a kid knows if they like their kids movies then there's got to be a easy way for them to watch it. Most parents aren't going to be ripping their kid's whole collection of DVDs and putting them on an iPad. There needs to be a connection here for this to be even semi-viable for parents. That or iTunes is going to have to try to get some more kid's videos than I believe it has.
I don't think Jr is really going to be all that excited about all the apps.
Really... its starting to be annoying.
ICEs and GPSs are overpriced and have horrible UI. Factory headunits too. Fucking ugly, overpriced, and lacking in options. Worst of all, they sometimes are integrated to the point that you can't remove it.
I did not notice that this toy has a DVD player...
laugh at Apple customers.
I always used laptops in car. They have a DVD player (which is the #1, if not the only function of car entertainment systems), and the screen holds vertically by itself while on your lap. Two criteria that makes any $500 laptop better than an Ipad for in-car usage. I also setup an ad-hoc wireless network to play games or stream the movie to a second laptop.
...to steal the factory installed DVD system than they are to grab the two iPads in your back seat.
Maybe one day Apple will develop an iPad which is portable so that it can be removed from the vehicle? One can only hope!
Want to improve your Karma? Instead of "Post Anonymously", try the "Post Humously" option.
I know some mini-itx boards support quad cores. That would be enough to do just about anything you can think of. Emulators, movies, etc. And if your worried about bumps boot from a usb stick. Or if your hard core about storage, SSD.
Restore the madness of youth's lechery
As soon as I heard about the iPad 3G, the first thing I though of was velcro-attaching it to the dashboard to use as a GPS unit, with full true Google Maps functionality ("My Maps"). A couple of 3m Command Jumbo Hook "velcro" strips should hold an iPad on the dash just fine, until some company makes a decent suction mount.
For the price of an iPad you could just buy a laptop, with a bigger screen, an actual keyboard, a decent non-restricted OS and maybe even an optical drive.
Most parents aren't going to be ripping their kid's whole collection of DVDs and putting them on an iPad.
That's assuming they know how. And, I wonder if the MPAA will go after said parents who do rip DVDs for their iPads? That was a dumb question: sure they will.
RIP America
July 4, 1776 - September 11, 2001
This is ridiculous. Why say that the Ipad will kill the $2000 DVD player when.... The $100 DVD player has already killed it????
After all, for $100-$200 you can get a fine portable player which can: 1. Connect to car or home electricity (with Ipad you need to buy more power supplies). 2. Play physical dvd's and/or movies on flash disk or memory cards (Ipad only has internal memory), 3. hang on the front sit's head rest (the ipad doesn't come with any solution for that), 4. Sit comfortably on your horizontal lap while the display is tilted (you can't do this on the flat ipad).
So what is so new with the ipad in this sense?
Now that's funny. Too bad I'm fresh out of mod points.
So the kids are going to bring their iPad into the store/mall/whatever every damn time it parks?
The Cars.com article mentions some of the advantages of ICE, including being weather-tested to work from -5 to 160 degrees F (-20 to 71 C)
Great! Glad to know the ridiculously expensive option allows the little tikes to enjoy their Disney fare while dying of hypothermia or heatstroke.
Village idiot in some extremely smart villages.
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2010/04/20/website-warns-south-park-creators-face-retribution-depicting-muhammad/?test=latestnews
I was going to say the same thing. ICE systems are less nickable and harder to resell than the iPad. Also it's harder to accidentally leave it in a hotel room or forget to bring it with you. Not that I'd pay for an ICE system anyway. A cheap portable DVD seems like a better bet.
We have two vehicles - one with an integrated dual-screen entertainment system (screens fold down from the ceiling), and another vehicle with a $100 DVD player strapped to the back of the seat (actually came with two screens, but the wires going between them got in the way too much so we only use one screen).
Let me say there is no comparison. Having an integrated system is so much better it's not even funny. There are audio IR blasters integrated into the ceiling which allow 4 people to listen to the movie simultaneously via wireless headphones. If the movie is piped through the car's sound system then it is in full surround through the Bose audio system. My HTC Touch Pro 2 has video out, so I can plug it into the car and play Youtube, encoded videos, etc, right through the integrated system. Wired headphone jacks throughout, DVD controls on the ceiling in addition to standard IR remote.
And the best part is the screens fold flat into the ceiling and totally disappear. Out of sight, out of mind, can't be stolen, scratched or have crap spilled on them.
The BEST option, if money was no object, would be to purchase a vehicle with a fully integrated entertainment system, then add an "automotive" PC that can play back through that system as a secondary display (with the primary display being a touch screen in the front).
Better known as 318230.
I play cube roots with my 5 year old and spelling with my 3 year old. My 1 year old can not talk very well at the moment, but he listens to classical music.
Quit bitching or go somewhere else. Lots of Apple fans read _and contribute to_ Slashdot. There are a variety of subjects I don't care about but I know numerous Slashdot readers are passionate about them so I know I'll continue to see those subjects in submissions. I just skip them. The content I want to read is interesting enough that I can just skip over the content I'm "sick and tired" of seeing. So, seriously, you have a choice - quit bitching about it or go read your geek news somewhere else. It isn't going to change so you might as well complain about death and taxes while you're at it.
So the kids are going to bring their iPad into the store/mall/whatever every damn time it parks?
No, the parents are or they can take the risk of locking it out of sight such as in the trunk. Further, the kids don't need it for short trips to the mall and can leave it at home. Do you start playing a DVD on the in-car entertainment system for 10 minute drives?
Want to improve your Karma? Instead of "Post Anonymously", try the "Post Humously" option.
It seems you could buy 4 iPads.
That allows you 3 spares in case they do break.
Most likely, the $500 price will go down in the future, also.
However, until you can insert your existing DVDs into an iPad and play them or Apple provides an alternative, the iPads are likely not a huge threat against DVD player systems.
The marketplace failure of this turd of an Apple product, the iPad, is making the Apple TV failure look tame in comparison.
Apple, and the marketing drone working for them, are getting more and more desperate trying to salvage this piece of unwanted junk.
The more these Apple SPAM stories get posted, the worse it gets for Apple and its piece of crap tablet. The iPad has become synonymous with 'overpriced and useless piece of technology' just like the Edsel was for the automotive industry.
Apple really needs to cut their losses with the iPad fiasco. Move on. There's nothing they can do to save the turd of a product.
Are we still trying to figure out what this thing is for ?
So far the only, day to day, use case i'we heard people going on about, is to use it as a portable emailer and wordprocessor. I think that's very naive, cuz once youwe had it in your hands, and tried doing some actual typeing, you quickly realize that thats never going to happen.
Because I just came across a blatant advertisement on Slashdot trying to convince me that buying an iPad instead of an in-car entertainment option was something I would be stupid not to do. I'm guessing the convenience factor of an ICE system is one of the big selling points and the fact that the components are generally designed for a decent amount of abuse. Did Steve Jobs leave this story laying on a bar somewhere?
...to steal the factory installed DVD system than they are to grab the two iPads in your back seat.
Maybe one day Apple will develop an iPad which is portable so that it can be removed from the vehicle? One can only hope!
Perhaps even so portable, it can fit in your pocket! They could call it the iPad Nano! REVOLUTIONARY!
Better put a file server in your trunk (loaded with DVD images) that the kids can access from their iPads with Wifi.
The only motivation to buy such an expensive integrated DVD player is ... because it's integrated.
You don't have LCDs loosely attached to the back of your seat, sliding slowly from the head rest to the floor, with ugly and cumbersome straps. You don't have dangling wires going from the player to the screen, with the kids feet in between. You don't have the DVD player resting on the middle seat or on the floor, sliding from far right to far left every time you change direction. You don't have a 12ft power cable going the nearest power jack to the DVD player, running all around your car. And you don't have to lean back and grab the player itself to skip/pause/navigate the DVD.
So, YES, this is VERY expensive but they are people who give a price to simplicity and ease of use.
PS : I've custom build a headrest fixture in which I can bolt (1/4" camera thread) the screens of my Philips PET712. Now I need to find a solution for the cables. But I would gladly have paid 2 or 3 times more to get it integrated. The problem is that it's much closer from 10x times.
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Buying an in car entertainment system is like buying RAM from Apple. You're either ignorant or brain-dead to do so.
Seriously. Why do people willingly pay to get something installed when we're inventive enough to do it ourselves... a LOT cheaper.
This article was up what... 2 days after the ipad launch. Meanwhile I still can't walk into an apple store and buy a case for mine.
http://thedidenizen.com/2010/04/diy-ipad-car-holster-free-pattern-download/
Or at $300 a pop, you can give them each a netbook which can do everything an iPad can and can also be closed to protect the screens when not in use.
Can anyone tell me how to hide Apple-section stories from the front page?
On my preferences I can hide them from the classic index, but not the dynamic one.
Yeah, but the kids won't throw the in-car system on the ground and break it, or take it to school and have it taken away for looking at porn on the neighbor's Wi-Fi. You DO know that portable DVD players are about 80 bucks at Wal-Mart, right? Any parent willing to spend 500 bucks to shut their kids up during a car ride needs shot in the face.
With the 42" flat panel in the backseat of his candy apple red Cutlass with the 21" spinners and 2000 watt subwoofer....crazy thing plays music videos going down the street...and crumbles buildings as it goes by...lol
At $500 a pop, giving two kids their own iPads would cost far less than what the automakers charge for an ICE system.
And the only drawback being they can't play DVDs at all? Why not replace the ICE system with a shiny rock they can look at, even cheaper than the ipad and it can't play DVDs either.
the iPad becomes the iMissile. INtegrated systems are crash tested extensively.
Timo's Audio Software http://www.esseraudio.com
...to steal the factory installed DVD system than they are to grab the two iPads in your back seat.
Maybe one day Apple will develop an iPad which is portable so that it can be removed from the vehicle? One can only hope!
The great thing about that is that portability is tied into the unit. It cannot be moved from an iPad, to a home PC, for example. It is the ultimate DRM!
That would be great to have just a "Interaction Unit" (screen + joystick/ok/cancel + antenna) that can be plugged in GPS boxes from multiple vendors so you can pay for the integration while keeping your freedom to upgrade for the GPS unit of your choice.
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People who pay the ridiculous prices for stuff like premium sound and integrated video are suckers anyway. For a little more effort (i.e., being without your vehicle for a day or two) you can get three times the entertainment system in your car by going after-market.
And before anyone says it, yes I'm aware that most people don't need three times better system. Still, you can get the exact SAME system for probably a third of the cost if you go to your local car stereo shop.
Please PLEASE PLEASE STOP POSTING THIS CRAP
YOUR KILLING slashdot.......No gives a flying f***ball about your inability to find real news....
STOP MAKING FAKE NEWS STORIES UP TO PROMOTE THE PAD.
You don't have LCDs loosely attached to the back of your seat, sliding slowly from the head rest to the floor, with ugly and cumbersome straps.
You can get a pair of LCD-equipped headrest replacements for $200 these days, if you look around. $400 for something that won't make your car look like you accessorize at the dollar mart. You can get bare video LCDs under $100, and integrate them into your headrest pretty easily; you lay down the display, mark an area to cut, cut the area, dig out some foam... you get the idea. You can even buy 'em with a bezel, or you can add a touch overlay that has one, if you really wanna spend money. The intrepid DIYer also has the option to buy someone else's used headrest replacements that don't match anyone's car, and gut them for parts to install into the factory units.
You don't have dangling wires going from the player to the screen, with the kids feet in between.
It's under $200 to buy an in-dash DVD player that replaces the head unit. You can also just install one of these in some arbitrary location; a variety of kits up to and including complete enclosures are available in the aftermarket.
You don't have a 12ft power cable going the nearest power jack to the DVD player, running all around your car.
It's fairly trivial to run power down the length of most vehicles; it's not that much harder to get it through the firewall. Tapping the battery is usually positively trivial. Even before I knew my way around auto body and interior parts (through a combination of trial and error, and training, more or less in that order) I found it pretty easy to do things like install a stereo (which for any modern car is a plug and play affair, if you purchase the right cables) and to weasel a CD changer wire up under plastic parts and such and get it to the back of the car without showing anywhere but alongside the drive line tunnel in the back seat area someplace. And frankly, for no more than the price of installing an ordinary car stereo, you may have installed an entertainment and navigation system. Car stereo shops do this kind of thing all the time, and it's a lot cheaper than a factory integrated system. Flip-down displays are under $200 new now, and replace the dome light (they have dome lights on 'em) so the hardest part of the install is fishing the leads down.
PS : I've custom build a headrest fixture in which I can bolt (1/4" camera thread) the screens of my Philips PET712. Now I need to find a solution for the cables. But I would gladly have paid 2 or 3 times more to get it integrated. The problem is that it's much closer from 10x times.
Touch is spendy. Personally I'm thinking of the Asus EEE tablet, which is under $500. I also have a DT Research DT360, which is a Geode/WinCE tablet which can also run Linux. I need to put some more effort into that, I suppose. It only has USB2 and 802.11b as configured, but it has 512mB SSD + 8GB CF, so it ought to be able to handle basic navigation if not entertainment.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
The iPod touch, with Handbrake-ripped content, has been serving this purpose for my kid for a while. It's been upgraded to an iPad lately.
:q!
Actually, it's more appropriate to say that it can WITHSTAND those temperature extremes. While your kids may not be in the car when it's 120+F, those players still are. Try leaving a iPad out on the seat for about a year in Arizona and see if it still works (direct sunlight at the height of summer here can melt most common plastics outright). That "ridiculously expensive" DVD system is so priced because it's built to last and survive over the long-term in an environment with extreme temperature variations and to handle daily jarring movement/vibration.
SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
How does this not work? "I swear to God, if you don't stop poking your sister, I am pulling this car over and comibg back there."
Tell your kids to shut up, sing songs, play 'Volkswagen' or give them a benadryl. Why must they be continuously entertained?
I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
Apple really needs to cut their losses with the iPad fiasco.
Why? Since when is moving a half-billion dollars of new product in the couple months, with a very high profit margin, a bad thing?
Can we get a "-1 Wrong" moderation option?
The easy solution is to hide them. There's no reason to break into a car to check for iPads if they don't know they're in there.
An extra thirty seconds added on to your wait to get into your hotel isn't too much of an inconvenience... especially not for a thousand dollars.
while(1) attack(People.Sandy);
Do a Google search on the phrase, "Disney largest shareholder" and you will also answer the question of who has the keys to the "Disney Vault."
Seth
$5 / month hosted VPS on linux = awesome!
you can buy an after market portable DVD player designed to use in a car...
Thanks to file sharing, I purchase more CDs
Thanks to the RIAA, I buy them used...
Okay, for any of you in plastic or silcon fabrication, tell your engineers to design a housing for the iPad that includes a strap system to mount it to a headrest, or to hang it from the ceiling of the vehicle (I'll let them worry about how to mount it, but the mounting armor/sleeve should snap onto the mount and allow the display to tilt/hinge). Then design an accessory kit that includes wired or wireless speakers or headphones, and you can make a nice tidy sum selling to the iPad lovers.
I use irony whenever I can, but my shirts are still wrinkled...
I don't mean to be a smart-ass here, but an Archos 404 has a 3.5" screen. The viewing experience on a small screen is something less than that of the iPad. Not to mention the inevitable stream of educational games that will be developed for the iPad. Hopefully, some young backseat passengers will use the iPad to read books, but if they were going to read, maybe actual books would be a better choice due to the lower distraction potential.
Seth
$5 / month hosted VPS on linux = awesome!
Wow, my ICE starts to melt at 32 degrees. That's amazing!
I agree, but women have secrets, water is wet, people are lazy...
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ZuneHD
All the movies I have are either recorded from TV or ripped from a DVD that then sits unused in the case. This way my kids can have their movies at home both on the big tv via ps3 or on the computer screen via vlc. I can also copy them to my ipoh touch or my psp so they can watch in the car on long trips.
Why anyone would prefer DVDs is beyond me just like getting a discman in the era of the mp3 player makes no sense to me.
Now if only the media lobby would allow scientific atlanta to enable a feature to copy from my PVR to my computer I would be all set.
In my day, entertainment on long drives was looking out the window and making up games as we went. Kids are already exposed to enough television and other mindless entertainment. Do they really need to have their own iPad for the occasional long drive? Maybe they should try looking out the window and experiencing the world in which they live.
Typically the car isn't subjected to those conditions while occupied.
However it might be for a short while immediately after becoming occupied.
Doesn't the exact same thinking apply to any personal computer that isn't bundled with the car? If a $500 iPad is trouble for Ford, then a $400 laptop that can do anything, even things not approved of by Apple, is even more trouble for Ford.
As copyright owner of this comment, I authorize everyone to defeat any technological measure which limits access to it.
Further, the kids don't need it for short trips to the mall and can leave it at home. Do you start playing a DVD on the in-car entertainment system for 10 minute drives?
Sadly, some people do. My sister was one of them. The only reason she stopped was because the DVD player broke after being abused by a 3-year-old.
I wish I were kidding.
If this article actually had some new and useful information about iPad I might agree, however this article (like most recent iPad articles) is nothing but fluff. I'm an iPhone user and had some interest in the iPad when it came out but even I am sick of the constant stream of non-news about the iPad. It's even drowning out more important Apple news like iPhoneOS4.
Support Right To Repair Legislation.
No, the parents are or they can take the risk of locking it out of sight such as in the trunk.
yes they can, and nobody is perfect and it seems the one time you are an imperfect human and forget to do so, is the one time that another imperfect human comes along and sneetches your stuff.
Good point.
Although if we are comparing that to the iPad option, it's still not really a selling point, as you'd be pretty unlikely to leave a nice shiny toy like an iPad sitting unattended in a car. I mean you don't leave your phone or wallet or other valuables in there do you?
So I don't know about you, but I prefer people who are driving to be, you know, concentrating on the road. Lack of concentration is a big cause for accidents. When people give their full attention to driving, they are much better equipped to be able to respond to, and avoid, problems.
Now with kids, this is an additional challenge. See most kids, in particular younger ones, aren't entertained by simple chatter. They don't want to talk to you for hours on end. They want to do something, they want you to interact with them. That is not at all safe when driving. You do not want to be turning around taking your hands off the wheel and so on just to pay attention to your kids.
Hence the need for things to keep kids entertained. For older kids, video games (maybe a portable like a DS, perhaps an X-box 360 hooked to an ICES) can work pretty well, as can books. For younger kids though, movies are generally the best choice. They tend to engage them quite well.
"The Cars.com article mentions some of the advantages of ICE, including being weather-tested to work from -5 to 160 degrees"
That is only a handy feature when the device is permanently attached to the car. Besides...
iPad Environmental requirements:
Operating temperature: 32 to 95 deg. F (0 to 35 deg C)
Nonoperating temperature: -4 to 113 deg F (-20 to 45 deg C)
The iPod classic (disk-based) shows the same specs, and I've been leaving mine in the glovebox for years, and I live in Florida.
Anyway, this article is dumb. Is the an viable alternative to expensive built-in systems? Yes. Does it have some other advantages? Yes. Does it have some disadvantages too? Yes. Will the iPad kill the whole industry? No. Hell, it's been the case for decades that aftermarket stereos are better and cheaper than their ridiculously-overpriced dealer-installed counterparts. Did third-party stereos kill dealer-installed units? Of course not.
Dear Slashdot: next time you want to mess with the site, add a rich-text editor for comments.
Would you be so worried about extremedly high quality of video and audio DURING A CAR TRIP? I seriously doubt you'd notice the full fledged details when you're not in optimal condicions of silence and lighting.....isn't it?
Perhaps I will be punished by slashdot owners...but in many replies, the former comment labeled as 'insghtful' ad given 4 points, was shown to have more holes than swiss cheese....... Isn't this place supposed to be for very intelligent nerds and geeks, more likely to prefer some objetive evaluation rather than a subjective one?
I have a 2005 Prius with a built-in navsystem (bought it used - someone else got the initial screwing).
Toyota wants $300 for a DVD with updated maps. That level of overcharge makes the torrents look attractive.
To a Lisp hacker, XML is S-expressions in drag.
look at the Apple customer get all huffy!
Since Apple insists on supporting only a subset of video playback codecs out there. This reminds me of Apple TV vs WD live media player: Apple TV has a beautiful interface but does not support DIVX (avi) format files, unless you want to start hacking it with perian, which will probably not help since it stutters etc. I think Apple learned the wrong lesson with the ipod touch: people buy it to play illegal downloads (MP3s) and the video playback is a nice bonus, even if it requires using handbrake or whatever to convert each file. Even without the ability to play DIVX (avi) files a DVD player is way better than an Apple device that can only play x264 video that must be converted for each file.
look at the Apple detractor get all puffy!
Maybe one day kids will keep up with their stuff. Oh wait that will never happen.
There is this stuff called clothing that can be used to prevent hypothermia.
I'd like an even lower temperature rating. We get down below -40 pretty much every winter and the car lives outside. The rated temperature means you have to drive for half an hour before the car warms up enough to use the integrated system.
So, cars.com never of netbooks before? play movies, music, do homework, balance your budget, browse the web (today) with 3g, more storage for the buck and even skype with video, which you can't do with an iPad for at least a couple more years.
You are giving iPads too much credit when netbooks have had more power for more than a year.
Though it doesn't have a key element for kids: A DVD drive or a suitable ability to play the same movies they watch at home.
Sure it does, in two ways.
One, the parents could simply buy stuff from iTunes instead of the DVD. The great thing is the digital copy never dies, and you know kids watch movies a million times so even though the cost is sometime slightly higher, it's amortized over a great number of plays and you'll never have the movie accidentally destroyed. Or, another option is some Blu-Ray discs now (Disney at least) come with versions you can load into iTunes to play on portable devices.
Two, if you bought iPad 3G units, the kids could watch any kids movie on Netflix with the Netflix client. My sister has a Roku box and her kids pretty much just watch stuff from Netflix now instead of buying DVDs. It's $30/month for the iPad unlimited data plan, but that's the same as buying three DVD's a month...
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
still looking for a niche market?
by TheSpoom (715771) Uncaring Linux user here. I have nothing to add to this but please continue. *munches popcorn*
Auto accessories and options are more expensive than their non-auto counterparts?!? You could buy your own leather and make an interior or your own carpet to make floormats but those options haven't mysteriously gone away, in fact you can spend hundreds on a set of floor mats.
Perhaps even so portable, it can fit in your pocket! They could call it the iPad Nano! REVOLUTIONARY!
You've just gave me an idea.
I suspect they not only already thought of it, but actually are timing the release such that the demand will be high when they release it.
(Releasing today's big form factor, will create desire in people who will wants an iPad but finds it too big. Thus creating a new market of people who wants and are willing to pay for a medium form factor.)
Bring it into mainstream auto production.
- Provide a docking system that allows the device to use larger displays and sound system
- Capitalize on the lack of space restrictions that a portable device is limited to and boost wireless capabilities
- Partner with a wireless provider for the car's wireless network access.
- Charge a monthly access fee that would probably net them more in the long term then the profit from selling high end entertainment systems
- Net more buyers because a small initial outlay plus a subscription is an easier sell than the high end entertainment system
I've lost all my marbles except one & It's fun to test angular & centripetal acceleration in my skull
Don't forget that lots of stuff can be streamed from hulu, netflix, amazon
Oh, wait, the ipad doesn't do flash.
Why does that matter (the Flash)?
There's already a Netflix iPad app. There's soon to be a Hulu iPad app.
Amazon, eh if Netflix works. But Amazon will probably follow suit (after all they have the expertise, having an iPad Kindle app as well).
Most other sites already switch to feeding you h.264 directly if you are browsing from the iPad, and major producers of Flash video players are altering the products to have external code to detect iPads and swap out the Flash player for an HTML5 one.
You flash supporters can't see the winds of change, no matter how hard the trees bend in front of you...
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
For the price of an iPad you could just buy a laptop, with a bigger screen
With lower resolution (the iPad is 1024x768)
The iPad also has an IPS display, so you could enjoy it from off angles and just have one in the middle of the car. How is that laptop display going to work when you are not in the 1 degree field of view?
Lastly, a laptop hanging around inside a car is a death trap if you have to brake at all hard. The iPad can easily be secured.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Why yes; make an account, and uncheck the Apple stories.
Don't forget, he's an AC - he fundamentally lacks the intelligence required to figure out how to create an account, or use a checkbox.
Not that YOU are not an intelligent AC - although you don't seem to have an account either... hmm.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Right dipshit? You fucking piece of shit actually walked into the local Hipster Central Apple Store and wasted 500 bucks on the laughingstock of the computing world.
No wonder you sound so fucking bitter and desperate to defend your idiocy. Someone needs to smack the shit out of your fucking Hipster Douchebag face.
I have a late model Honda Pilot with all the entertainment (and nav) bells and whistles. The dash is a horrible amalgam of buttons and knobs. If a car maker wanted to get the jump on the competition, they would make a deal with Apple for them to design the dashboard.
People own/rent DVDs right now, lots of them. There is no easy, legal way to rip DVDs to iTunes for use with the ipad. Easy would basically mean built-in functionality like CD ripping. Since realdvd got shut down, I don't think we're ever going to see Apple go that way. Besides - Apple wants you to buy (overpriced) movies on iTMS.
The best video options for the ipad now (Netflix, ABC player) require an internet connection, so aren't very useful in a car (I doubt most 3G data connections have the bandwidth to use it).
"The universe seems neither benign nor hostile, merely indifferent." --Carl Sagan
If you're drunk and happen to drive into a lake or river, your children can use their iPads as flotation devices.
... doesn't this belong in the article about that poor woman with her DoD implanted microchip(s)?
I hope Steve Jobs approves the movie you wanna watch (or whatever you want to do with the ipad), otherwise "no entertainment for you!" (soup nazi voice)
I don't understand what the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) has to do with on-board entertainment.
That and, you know, a dvd player can play dvds. Two iPads and a digital copy of all your kids favorite cartoons for each one will easily end up costing more than the dual built-in dvd players.
When did the acronym ICE in reference to vehicles switch from Internal Combustion Engine to In-Car Entertainment anyway?
Nevermore.
Inverters aren't terribly expensive. Plug one end into the cigarette lighter, plug the laptop into the other end.
iPads can be infected with spyware, also. Doesn't happen often, but it happens. They can also (I hope) be locked with a password...
And laptops can be had with SSDs.
Don't thank God, thank a doctor!
You believe Kensington won't sell a locking dock?
-- Terry
Yeah, you probably don't want to install it yourself - but for add-on equipment like DVDs and sound systems you can still save a significant amount by going to a car audio shop as opposed to paying hopelessly inflated car-dealer prices, and get a much broader choice of equipment as well. I don't know if that also applies to in-dashboard integrated systems or not; depends on whether any car-info systems are open (or at least licenseable by vendors), which I don't know.
Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
When Nvidia built the Tegra 2 the car entertainment market was one of there largest predicted areas of profit. That’s because it can be done for dirt cheap now, one chip the size of your palm with dual core ghz chips. 3 usbs for some one to customise whatever storage solution they want (hard drive, dvd, digital radio). 1080p resolution so you can have 50 inch monitors running if you want. And if you’re not smart enough to disassemble a cheap tablet with the chip in it, I’m sure a manufacturer somewhere would charge you less than $500 for a professional version (whether they use Tegra or develop there own (given a reasonable time for the market to adapt). also any of you people that think you’ll get anything similar in function with the ipad without buying 10 accessories at an absorbitant price and a dozen or so ‘apps’ are kidding them self. The Ipad wont kill the car entertainment market it will just make it cheaper; but that’s bound to happen as we are using less and less materials to do more and more.
Rocket Surgeon.
what happened to my last comment i'm sure the fact that a lot of car entertainment units will be powered by tegra 2 in the near future drasticly reducing the price and increasing functionality and performance is quite relevant. also i'll say it again anyone that thinks you'll get anything like a car entertainment system without buying a bunch of accesories and apps is kidding them self.
Rocket Surgeon.
Innovatek HR-907DVD
9" Headrest Hi-Resolution TFT LCD Monitor
Headrest Monitor with Built-In DVD Player /MP4/JPEG/CD/VCD/CD-R/CD-RW/DVD-R+/DVD-RW /DIVX etc.)
Disc Format: MP3/WMA/DVD/DIVX/MPEG1/2/4
Built-in USB/SD/MMC Port (File Format: MP3/WMA/JPEG/MPEG1/2/4
Built-in FM Modulator (87.7, 87.9, 88.1, 88.3, 88.5, 88.7, 88.9 & 89.1 Mhz)
extra RCA output to playback the DVD/USB/SD/MMC Player on other monitors.
$179 / headrest
http://www.mp3playerstore.com/stuff_you_need/special/HR-907.html
If Chaos Theory has taught us anything, it's that we must kill all the butterflies.
There's no 'safe' way to mount an iPod in a vehicle for GPS use IMHO. The iPad is way too new to make a dent any way. When it does mature, it'll more than likely be used for digesting larger maps and travel info, an electronic TRIPTIK of sorts.
This is a foolish story, is Apple going to hang the iPad on the back of the headrest. Its not a transformer, its barely a computer. Everyone is talking like this thing is changing the world. Its a giant iPhone, which is cool for some. I have an iPhone and it is the best device I have ever had. Having said that, the iPad has little real world applications at this time. If this were Star Trek, and we were carrying around touch screen computers in our hands daily to complete our work. Then iPad is the Sh*t - but were not and it's cool, but lacks real function. At least right now.
he'll buy anything with an Apple logo.
If you think ADB was somehow superior to USB I've got a box of ADB crap that I'll send directly to your door..
Although if we are comparing that to the iPad option, it's still not really a selling point, as you'd be pretty unlikely to leave a nice shiny toy like an iPad sitting unattended in a car.
Yeah, this. You'll probably take the iPad with you. Some built-in seatback entertainment system, you might not be able to take with you even if you wanted to for whatever reason.
Village idiot in some extremely smart villages.