Ford isn’t the only car maker that can boast an in-car entertainment system that connects with the mobile phone. Toyota today unveiled its Entune multimedia system at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
Toyota says Entune is compatible with most smartphones and feature phones with a data plan. It uses the phone to create rich in-vehicle services that include upgradeable entertainment, navigation and information.
After downloading the Toyota Entune mobile application and pairing a Bluetooth capable phone with their Toyota vehicle, customers can start accessing a variety of personalized content and services. The service will be in select vehicles this year.
The system is debuting with a bevy of mobile apps that include Bing, iheartradio, OpenTable, Pandora and MovieTickets.com, plus services like real time traffic, fuel prices, weather, stocks and sports.
Nuance Communications is powering the capabilities that will allow users to search, retrieve, play and navigate content and services using their voice. Nuance says its one-shot voice commands allow drivers to keep their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel.
Toyota, which is still dealing with lawsuits related to crashes blamed on sudden acceleration issues, says its Safety Connect provides an added layer of more personalized features. Safety Connect includes automatic collision notification, stolen vehicle location assistance, emergency assistance and roadside assistance on select models.
Toyota Entune also includes support for read-back and replay capabilities for text messages.