The world is poised to take a leap into the 5G internet era. The wider availability of high-speed internet has changed the way we live our daily lives. The Internet has become a go-to destination for most of our daily needs, be it shopping for groceries or clothes, watching movies and playing games, or searching for the best online betting sites.
Like the internet, the auto industry also has taken big strides in the last few years. Electric cars have become greatly popular in countries like the USA, and now, auto manufacturers are preparing to take a big step forward, in the form of self-driving cars. 5G internet will be a vital cog in the gears, as self-driving cars need a stable and fast internet to communicate between themselves and to make self-driving possible. Manufacturers like Tesla are giving finishing touches to their self-driving technology, and have achieved close to 100% perfection in terms of safety and reliability of self-driving cars.
One of the biggest beneficiaries of automated cars and the high-speed mobile internet seems to be in-car entertainment.
Intel predicts that in the future, due to autonomous driving, more than 250 million hours a year, spent on driving through the major cities of the world, will be available for consumption of in-car entertainment, a market that will be worth more than $200 billion.
Thanks to the fast Internet, it will be possible to stream high definition movies in cars, on the go, and the passengers can enjoy them while the car drives them to their destination. Various manufacturers have come up with concepts that they feel will be best suited for the future of in-car entertainment.
Car manufacturer Audi has teamed up with Disney to develop a new in-car entertainment system, known as `Holoride´. Passengers can don VR headsets, and turn their car into a virtual theme park. Passengers can enjoy adventures that are tailor-made to match the time taken to reach your destination. The gameplay during the adventures will be synced to your vehicle’s movement.
Hyundai had showcased their version of the `car of the future´ at CES 2019, where the whole windshield of a car doubles up as a screen. Drivers will be able to use gesture-based controls to switch between manual and autonomous driving modes. Once the autonomous mode is selected, the whole windshield transforms into one big screen, and passengers can enjoy movies and shows, on the go. The car will also feature facial recognition technology, which will detect the driver’s state of mind, and change the car’s interior lighting automatically to alter the mood.
BMW’s Vision iNext promises to turn your car into a living room, complete with a wooden table, and carpeted seats, and you can control most of the car’s functions by touch-based controls. The car will also feature an intelligent voice assistant system that connects seamlessly with your other smart devices. It will help you carry out tasks like shopping, or you can ask it to switch on or switch off your smart gadgets at home, through voice commands.
Even game developers are gearing up to take advantage of automated cars. Vehicle to vehicle gaming will be a possibility in self-driving cars. Games will be designed specifically to enhance in-car gaming experience and will foster new innovations.
Conclusion
Autonomous driving, which seemed to be fiction just a decade ago, has become a reality, thanks to the constant research and development by car companies. Level 4 autonomy is imminent, and it is only a matter of time, that we will be having a traveling experience like never before. Gone will be the days of long mundane drives, and an exciting road trip will have a new definition.
