Ford VS GM WiFi Offerings
Ford, the giant car maker announced Monday the next generation of the Sync in-car entertainment and information system. Just by plugging a USB modem directly into a car’s built-in Wi-Fi,it will create broadband Internet access to all passengers. The system will be available next year on selected models.
This factory-installed capability will be available on certain Sync-equipped cars and that no extra hardware or subscriptions will be needed outside of an existing broadband modem, which the customer supplies. Ford’s Wi-Fi system will include WPA2 security, ensuring that only people in the car will be able to hop onto the network.
Wi-Fi in cars will be helpful in searching for restaurants, online maps, movie times. Ford says the system will work by inserting an air card, that mobile broadband modem that are used with laptops into the USB port.
Ford is opting to allow consumers to plug in their own USB modem to get connected. General Motors, on the other hand, offers a dealer-installed system called Chevrolet Wi-Fi by Autonet Mobile. It creates a Wi-Fi hotspot 300 feet in diameter around the vehicle, and GM claims the 3G network achieves speeds of up to 1.5 mbps. The hardware costs $199 after the $200 mail-in rebate, and the service costs $29 a month.
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