No, not Waldo. Radio.
In the MyFord Touch video below, you’ll see a 1:50 walk-through of their SYNC system – climate control, the USB port, turn-by-turn directions, etc.
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But do you see radio anywhere in this demo?
Hint: At the :30 mark, there’s a shot of the entire screen (that resembles Bloomberg News), and on the left-hand side, you’ll briefly see the AM/FM and Sirius – along with the other array of entertainment options. Watch quickly because it’s not on for long.
To win the consumer’s share of mind in one of these vehicles, radio is going to have to work hard to get and hold her attention.
In your first car, the entertainment “module” probably looked more like this:
Those were the days.
P.S. Thanks to Radio-Info for featuring us in their series. In this guest column, I talk about “best practices” for going to school on mobile. Hope you like it. You can copy and paste the link here: New Media: The Future Is Now
https://www.radio-info.com/new-media/the-future-is-now/think-mobile-first?utm_source=Subscribers&utm_campaign=5beb405027-TRI_02-18-2011&utm_medium=email
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Waldo asks, “Where’s HD Radio?” I looked at images of Toyota’s Entune, and there is no indication of HD Radio. Also, I checked out Entune’s homepage, and still no mention of HD Radio. I haven’t checked out MyFord Touch, yet. For the Sync, I believe one has to get the optional, expensive Clarion nav system, then get the optional, expensive HD Radio tuner. Of course, dealerships won’t even mention the HD Radio option, because they don’t want to get stuck with bring-backs of “defective” HD radios, like with Volvo’s and BMW’s TSBs against HD Radio. Where’s HD Radio?
I only remember one video from an automker concerning HD Radio, ad that was from Ford a couple of years ago. I don’t think I’de advertise a non-working technology, either.
HDRadioFarce = Greg Smith in Maryland
Greg/Farce, Ford offers HD Radio as part of a premium package. I have tested it and it looks good and sounds great. It’s not in the video I used for the blog, but is available on Ford vehicles, including the Edge.
Did you test it in Detroit, where the HD Radio signals are surely primed for the automakers? If it works great, then why do BMW and Volvo have ongoing HD Radio Technical Service Bulletins / recalls, and why then are iBiquity and the automakers under investigation?
I remembered my “push button radio”!
Ford vehicles did offer HD Radio but only on a premium package. Costs more but I think it is worth it.
No denying we live in the digital age with many possibilities but the radio is still very easily accessed (first screen, button on left) which implies in user/ focus groups they wanted Radio, & wanted it very easily accessed. Just something to think about….
Jacquelyn, you are right that AM/FM is well positioned. It’s just now among several other options in the driver’s face. But there’s presence, so may the best content win.
And Brad you are correct that it’s in a premium package. And Greg, I honestly don’t believe they tweak Detroit models. Nor do I believe the “birthers” or the 9/11 conspiracy theorists. But hey, that’s just me.
So many options these days; hd radio, sirius and then Pandora now too… My daily commute is only 3 miles every day (5 min); I only have time to listen to a song and a half before I pull in!
It’s true. We’ll are killing ourselves to make you happy on your little commute. (Hopefully, we’re playing a song when you’re listening.) Thanks for commenting.