The 2012 International CES conference is in full swing.  Exhibitors from different sectors of the tech world flocked to Las Vegas to show off their soon-to-be launched products.  But of all the various products showcased at this year’s CES, there’s one thing in common: connected devices.  There’s a push in the tech world to connect all devices, from your home appliances, to your mobile devices and even your automobiles.  We’ve tackled the first two categories extensively so this time we’ll be focusing on the automotive category of the tech industry.

Ford

Ford Motor Company introduced an update to its Sync platform, a factory-installed, integrated in-vehicle communications and entertainment system that allows users to make hands-free telephone calls and control music and other functions using voice commands.  Since its launch in 2007, apps have been constantly added to the system which were made by Ford and other third-party developers to maximize user experience.

Accorrding to SiliconANGLE’s chief editor, Mark “Rizzin” Hopkins, Sync is the most comparable Siri-like technology that’s consumer-ready, since they both use Nuance for voice recognition as well as natural language processing.  The only difference is that Sync is made for automobiles while Siri was made for general use.  This enables Sync to deliver more accurate answers to related queries.

At this year’s CES, Ford unveiled apps that consumers would really enjoy and use.

SYNC Destinations is a free mobile app for SYNC Services subscribers, giving Ford vehicle owners the ability to easily send destinations to their vehicle using their smartphone.  It enables drivers to use simple voice commands to get on-the-go traffic reports to any of their favorite destination points. Users can report traffic incidents to share with the entire SYNC Destinations community, get to-the-minute incident reports, and leverage their smartphone’s data network to download turn-by-turn directions and destinations directly to their vehicle.

“SYNC Destinations is an indispensible tool that cuts travel times and helps Ford owners save money by using less fuel,” said Doug VanDagens, global director of Connected Services, Ford Motor Company. “The app not only makes the SYNC experience better, it makes it easier than ever to navigate with SYNC Services.”

Users simply speak the commands “Mobile Apps,” “SYNC Destinations,” followed by “Traffic to” and the name of a saved destination to instantly get the fastest route to their destination. The command, “Directions,” followed by the name of a saved destination enables users to download voice-guided turn-by-turn directions into the vehicle

Roximity, a new location-based smartphone app that provides real-time deals and specials, is one of five new smartphone apps compatible with Ford’s Sync AppLink announced at the CES,  The app was created by Denver-based ID345, and was the winner last year’s Ford Sync App Developer Challenge.

NPR also announced that streaming news is coming “straight to the dashboard” with their new Sync AppLink compatible app that allows users to set their favorite stations and programs in the app to be browsed later using the car’s steering wheel controls.  Users can easily navigate the app just by saying “Hourly News,” so users can call up a 4- to 5-minute audio stream of the latest news of the hour. Then there’s “Stations,” which will enable the driver to select a live stream of his or her favorite local NPR affiliate, and “Programs” to quickly access specific program streams such as Car Talk or Fresh Air. Users can browse and hear stories about specific topics, just by saying “Topics” followed by a category like “Science.”

Pandora

Personalized radio service Pandora came to the trade show boasting of updated metrics that illustrate the company’s remarkable momentum and growth.  Pandora is now deployed on more than 450 consumer electronic devices, up from 200 products the same time last year. The automotive partnerships have likewise grown from four automotive brands and five aftermarket manufacturers to 16 automotive OEM brands and seven aftermarket manufacturers today. Pandora now has more than 125 million registered users and the average listener time has increased to a record 18 hours per month. A newly released Internet Audio Top 20 Rankers report by Triton Digital gives Pandora a record 68% market share.

Pandora also announced new partnerships in the automotive sector with Acura, Kia, and Audiovox (aftermarket) and another partner in home entertainment, Dish Network, a satellite TV provider.

Tim Westergren, Pandora founder and chief strategy officer said, “Growth of this magnitude reflects a fundamental shift in radio. As more and more people are discovering the joy of personalized radio automotive and consumer electronics companies are innovating to meet consumer expectations and demand. It’s an incredibly exciting time for our business, and music lovers everywhere.”

Audiovox

Audiovox Electronics, a leading global supplier of mobile and consumer electronics products,  announced the launch of its Care Connection and Car Connection products, both location based service systems (LBS) that will utilize Sprint’s Nationwide Network in the U.S.A.

Car Connection is a new plug in On-Board Diagnostic (OBDII) device that will allow consumers to monitor, manage and maintain not only their own and other family drivers habits, but also vehicle performance and maintenance. It is a DIY solution that simply plugs into the vehicle’s OBDII port, a standard feature on all vehicles since 1996.  It features the ability to disable text messaging in the vehicle as well as the ability to monitor drivers to detect reckless driving habits, a vehicle locator, geofencing and speed alerts.

“Today’s technology allows us to take our responsibility for caring for our families…whether old or young, to a whole new level. That same technology puts in the hands of the consumer the ability to monitor and manage their vehicle like never before,” said Tom Malone, President of Audiovox Electronics Corp. “Tracking the movements of our aging parents or young children…and monitoring the driving habits of our teenagers are just some of the peace of mind features available with these products. In addition, the Car Connection is an On-Board Diagnostic device that allows consumers to tie directly into their vehicle to make more educated decisions on personalized fuel saving and maintenance.”

Texas Instruments

Texas Instruments announced a full system solution for connected automotive infotainment at the CES which includes C6000 “Jacinto” automotive infotainment processors and automotive-grade OMAP mobile processors fuel top-notch visual computing and entertainment capabilities for drivers and passengers alike.  There’s also WiLink 7.0 (WL128x-Q) and BlueLink 7.0 (BL6450-Q), combo connectivity solutions that are the optimal choice for automotive designs. The WiLink 7.0 solution is reportedly the industry’s first and only to integrate Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and FM technologies in a true single chip for a variety of automotive connectivity options.

“The road ahead is paved by the demands of on-the-go consumers who are already accustomed to always-connected, multimedia-rich lifestyles fueled by smartphones, tablets and other mobile products,” said Matthew Watson, product line manager, audio and infotainment, TI. “As similar features move to the automotive market, TI is uniquely positioned to be a single source for technologies that will pioneer the next generation of consumer-demanded automotive infotainment capabilities. Our full solution – complete with feature-rich processing, wireless connectivity and optimized software – helps automotive customers stay ahead of the curve with compelling, trusted products.”

Porsche

QNX Software Systems Limited showed off their QNX CAR 2 application platform, running on TI’s C6000 Jacinto and OMAP processors, will enable high-performance multimedia, robust interfaces with accelerated HTML5 Web browsing, and a high level of automotive integration, including innovative applications, connectivity, and software-defined radio (SDR) in the very sleek Porsche Carrera.