Wednesday, July 14, 2010

VW Passat takes the red pill, jacks into Nokia's Terminal Mode (video)


We've seen flashy concepts of what Nokia's seamless cellular infotainment initiative might look like, but it took a pair of Germans from Volkswagen to give us our first glimpse of Terminal Mode in action. At MobileBeat 2010, engineers showed off the video after the break, which shows how a prototype VW Passat might be rigged -- in this case duplicating the phone's display in its entirety (plus additional controls) on the auto's larger touchscreen. Sadly, VW said the tech's still a couple years away from commercial integration into vehicles, though they expect to see third parties selling Terminal Mode add-on kits and the like a bit sooner.



Until then, Nokia and partner companies have to figure out how to encourage developers while simultaneously restricting apps that might distract drivers; VW reps told us that while you'll download car-compatible apps from existing app stores rather than a separate Terminal Mode marketplace, compatible programs will be categorized and restricted from in-motion use based on a set of still-to-be-determined rules. Nerd-to-English translation: don't expect to watch Netflix for iPhone on the go. Sans a hack, of course.

Continue reading VW Passat takes the red pill, jacks into Nokia's Terminal Mode (video)

VW Passat takes the red pill, jacks into Nokia's Terminal Mode (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Jul 2010 06:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.


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