- HP's Shot Across Cisco's Bow
- Back Off, Regulators!
- iPhone, App Strategy the 'New Dot Com?'
- Cisco Jumps; Rest of Market to Follow?
- Call It 'Microsoft Math'
- Intel in the Anti-Trust Crosshairs, but Why?
- Apple Apps—Now More Than 100K
- WoW Fights New Front in China
- Smart Phone Competition Heats Up. Again.
- A Tale of Two Smart Phone Makers
MOST SHARED
- Hewlett-Packard to Acquire 3Com for $2.7 Billion in Cash
- USC Football Blog Leads All-Access Space
- How the Droid and Google Threaten the GPS Makers
- Dollar Trouble, Oil's Bubble Could Derail Recovery
- Addicted to Easy Money?
- HPQ to Acquire 3Com
- Shopping for Answers
- Credit Is Thawing, But Businesses Still Hesitant to Borrow
- What to Expect From Disney Earnings?
- HP's Shot Across Cisco's Bow
- USC Football Blog Leads All-Access Space
- Clowning Around At Work
- Ahead of Earnings Disney Restructures Studio
- Nov. 11: Unusual Volume Leaders
- 3 'Clear Sailing' Mid-Caps For Investors: Strategist
- Intimate Apparel Sales Heating Up: Maidenform CEO
- A Day On The USS Harry S. Truman
- Dollar Trouble, Oil's Bubble Could Derail Recovery
- Jobless, Wal-Mart to Drive Sentiment on Thursday
- Hewlett-Packard to Acquire 3Com for $2.7 Billion in Cash
- AIG CEO: I Remain 'Totally Committed' to Firm
- CNN Anchor Lou Dobbs Says He is Leaving Network
- A Day on the USS Harry S. Truman
- How the Droid and Google Threaten the GPS Makers
- Commercial Real Estate Near Disaster: Fund Manager
- This Town Will Pay YOU $10,000 to Buy a House
RSS FEED
Tech Check
![]() |
So why is GM CEO Rick Wagoner making his first-ever presentation at CES? In a word: Sync. Ford's collaboration with Microsoft to bring limited computing capabilities to the automobile has created quite a buzz.
And while it's hard to imagine people lining up to buy a Ford just to get their hands on Microsoft technology, it does give an idea which direction the auto industry is headed.
Case in point: The entire North Hall of the Convention Center this year is devoted to in-vehicle
technologies. And while a large number of those technologies have to do with entertainment and GPS, including audio, video and satellite technologies, an evolving crop of newcomers is focusing on computing, also known as telematics.
Microsoft's been talkin
![]() |
(Click for complete coverage) |
In fact, the in-dash computing system in the Intel WiMAX car was provided by Azentek, and not only did it enable audio and video streaming to and from the vehicle, the system also included a feature that monitored all of the car's components.
Low on oil? The system knows. Running low on gas? The system not only knows, but tells you where to find it. If your brakes are wearing out, it'll let you know that too, so you don't run them down to the rotors. And if you need to call the mechanic, Skype is a voice-activated number away.
![]() |
Telematics is just the kind of technology WiMAX will make more useful. The ability to be on the Internet, make VoIP phone calls, stream video and compose an email with voice-activation may seem like overkill in today's hyper-productive society. But if you can knock some of those things out while you're sitting in traffic or if you're car-pool buddies can do it at 65 miles per hour, it could actually be a case where technology does, indeed, make life better.
Editor's note: As part of our extensive coverage of CES, CNBC.com's Brian Clark and Ted Kemp will be at the event and contributing to this special edition of Tech Check.










