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By Mel Duvall
Ford is looking to make it possible for drivers to keep up with their Facebook friends and stay on top of the latest tweets without taking their hands off the steering wheel.
The automaker has announced that it will introduce new features -- first in the 2011 Ford Fiesta -- that will allow hands-free voice control over a range of popular smartphone apps. The SYNC AppLink upgrade will allow drivers to connect and interact with their Android or BlackBerry smartphones via voice commands and vehicle controls.
"The growth in smartphone mobile apps has been explosive and Ford has worked hard to respond at the speed of the consumer electronics market," Doug VanDagens, director of Ford's Connected Services Organization, said in a statement. "AppLink will allow drivers to control some of the most popular apps through SYNC's voice commands and steering wheel buttons, helping drivers keep their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road."
SYNC is being jointly developed by Ford and Microsoft. The automaker said the first SYNC-enabled apps will appear later this year, including Pandora Internet radio application "Stitcher" and the Orangatame OpenBeak app for Twitter. OpenBeak is a mobile application for posting and receiving updates from Twitter.
The mobile application development market is expected to blossom into a $4 billion industry by 2012, Ford said, prompting the need for a platform to safely access popular applications while on the road. "Brought-in" apps residing on a consumer's smartphone also eliminate the need for automakers to install another piece of hardware in the vehicle. Ford also expects that once application developers see that the interior of the vehicle has been opened up, it will spur a new wave of development tailored to the in-car environment.
Earlier this month BlackBerry maker Research in Motion said that it was purchasing QNX Software Systems, a Montreal-based company that is developing mobile applications for vehicles. QNX has developed an operating system that can be embedded into vehicle entertainment systems to allow Internet surfing, video streaming and navigation services.
To spur its own application development, Ford said it has activated a new developer network on its SYNCmyride Web site. Interested developers can submit ideas and sign up for information on the SYNC application programming interface and software development kit.
Ford said AppLink will first be introduced on the Ford Fiesta, but will be rolled out onto most SYNC-equipped vehicles next year. While the automaker is beginning with BlackBerry and Android smartphones, it said it plans to provide interoperability with other smartphones.
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