A Third Of New Cellular Customers Last Quarter Were Cars (recode.net)

Ina Fried, reporting for Recode: With the U.S. smartphone market saturated, most of the growth in the cellular industry is actually coming from other kinds of devices including tablets, machine-to-machine connections and lots and lots of cars. In the first quarter, for example, the major carriers actually added more connected cars (Editor's note: amounting to a 32 percent capture) as new accounts than they did phones.

Comments

Don't use a cellphone while driving

[penguinoid]

Don't those engineers know anything?

Re:Don't use a cellphone while driving

[The New Guy 2.0]

This is something I wanted for a while... a dedicated device number that maps to my car and not something I carry with me. If people want to reach me and think I'm driving, the car can ring and I don't have to set up Bluetooth. If somebody wants me to do something on the way home without bothering me during the workday, my car can carry the message when I get there.

Re:Don't use a cellphone while driving

[cashman73]

and the remainder within reach of your girlfriend.

I think you are forgetting that this is Slashdot you're posting at.

Every Parents' Worse Nightmare

[__aaclcg7560]

They were allowed to drive themselves. Now they have cellphones. Won't be long before they're at the drive in, making out and having babies.

Re:Every Parents' Worse Nightmare

[jeffb (2.718)]

I bought my car new 17 years ago. I think it's about time for it to start producing grand-cars.

Why?

[cashman73]

My car automatically connects to my phone via Bluetooth every time I get in. I can listen to mp3 music over the car stereo, talk to someone via hands free, or even listen to pandora over the phone's LTE connection (though I have enough mp3s that I don't have to). I can even use the phone's GPS to tell me where I am and give me instructions through the car stereo on where I need to go. I don't need an extra monthly bill so that the car has its own connection. But capitalists love connected cars because the auto manufacturers can advertise the next generation "connected automobile" and the wireless companies get another monthly revenue stream. They're also hopeful on marketing this to parents so that they can have an internet connection available for their kids to watch Netflix or play games on long family trips instead of actually having to ***gasp*** socialize and interact with them.

Re:Why?

[Anonymous Coward]

So the car can send telemetry data back to the manufacturers to let them know what you're doing to the car so they can reject warranty claims. (See the story about the Tesla that auto-drove into a truck.)

I mean, to enable exciting new features like live updated maps and traffic in the in-car navigation system and things like in-car wifi! Totally not to constantly spy on you and everything you do!

Re:Why?

[NatasRevol]

If I had a Tesla that could update itself (ludicrous speed!) over its data connection, I'd think that's awesome.

Re:Why?

[tlhIngan]

They're also hopeful on marketing this to parents so that they can have an internet connection available for their kids to watch Netflix or play games on long family trips instead of actually having to ***gasp*** socialize and interact with them.

Basically this. Look at any ad that shows a car having WiFi - it's all about your passengers updating their facebook or playing games while on the move, and kinds playing games or other entertainment/distraction for the family road trip.

it ain't free, so

[jabberw0k]

How much of that new car will be broken if I do not agree to pay maybe a thousand bucks a year extra for the privilege of being spied on by the friendsy overlords?

Re:it ain't free, so

[HumanWiki]

For my car, a 2016 Camaro SS, there's little that will be broken. The only things you would lose are the ability to make/take call on the car's phone number, you can still pair your BT phone just fine as with most modern cars. If you bought the Nav system, that is independent and will function just fine, but you don't get Directions and Connections from OnStar anymore.

Your XM channels and traffic are a fully separate thing you can choose to continue or not.

Honestly outside of the remote diagnostics and the OnStar App functions, you don't lose much. (for me, anways).

Re:it ain't free, so

[wile_e_wonka]

I bought a used car in which the original cell subscription ran out. The only way to continue service was through the car company (which provides the service through T-Mobile) for, I think it was $30 per month or a lump sum of $450 for 3 years. It takes a T-Mobile sim card.

I tried getting the $10 per month T-Mobile sim card, but it didn't function in the car.

Since I am not up for paying that kind of money for the services, I didn't subscribe. If I ordered the service it provides:

Google maps in the navigation interface (though without the cell connection, the navigation interface is fine--it even shows speed limits)
Makes a mobile hotspot available in the car (which I can do from my phone for free)
Probably the only useful thing is: the car would be connected to the internet even when I am not in there. So, I could control some things about my car from my phone and also send a Google Maps route to the car from my home computer or my phone.

It seems to me that some of the features could be made available by better utilizing the bluetooth connection with my phone, but then I wouldn't have as much incentive to pay $30/mo. Which is a rip-off in my mind, since the data connection they want me to buy costs $10 directly from T-Mobile. Anyway, so far so good without paying the subscription. I don't feel like I'm missing out on much.