Pat Goss' Tips & Expert Advice
High-Tech Car Accessories On The Horizon
It's not uncommon these days to see someone downloading music, text messages and photos right off their cell phone. MP3 players allow music buffs to organize their music collections by category for easy listening. But, can you do all this from your car?
If you have about 600 extra bucks for an in-car infotainment system, you might be able to very soon. At 2007 car shows, new high-tech car accessories were unveiled for the first time. These systems are designed to allow interfacing through a Bluetooth or USB connection with other electronic devices such as cell phones, iPods, or PDAs.
When installed, these futuristic accessories will allow drivers to access and play music, listen (out load) to text messages and make calls via voice commands and buttons mounted on the steering wheel.
Drivers can also request their car stereo play a certain collection of music, such as jazz hits or 1970s favorites. If you visit a show room and a sales rep wants to show you this type of system, keep in mind that it's new to the market of car accessories, so follow these guidelines:
- Find out about warranties on the system should it fail.
- Find out if the system is upgradable over time.
- Determine if you are getting a fair price by conducting online and other searches.
