How to Get Content from Cloud in Your Car

Automaker Honda has unveiled HondaLink, a new in-vehicle connectivity system that will debut this fall on the all-new, ninth-generation 2013 Honda Accord.

Featuring the first automotive OEM application of Aha by Harman, HondaLink will provide a personalized experience connecting drivers to thousands of cloud-based news, information and entertainment feeds from around the world, using an intuitive, audio-system based interface.

“HondaLink will enable customers to put away their phone and still stay connected to the people, music and media they love,” said Vicki Poponi, assistant vice president of product planning for American Honda. “By creating an intuitive and customizable user interface, HondaLink allows drivers to access digital content as easily as choosing a radio station.”

[ Also Read: How to Drive Digital and Social Cars ]

Meanwhile, car audio and electronics company Clarion has created “Smart Access” Cloud Telematics Service for providing drivers with a more comfortable, safe and convenient driving environment. (Read: “Smart Access” Cloud Telematics Service for In-Car Use)

Honda’s intuitive new HondaLink smartphone application allows owners to preset content on their phone. Once in the car, consumers can enjoy personalized content accessible via voice recognition, steering-wheel mounted controls and in-dash audio system controls.

With a tethered smartphone serving as a conduit to a wealth of cloud-based media, HondaLink creates a unique, connected driving experience, says the company.

Through the Aha service, for example, HondaLink users can listen to Facebook and Twitter audio newsfeeds, podcasts from NPR, location-based personalized restaurant listings from Yelp, and access internet music services such as Slacker. The service is free and instantly accessible from the cloud.

Photo courtesy: Honda