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Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
By Doug Newcomb of MSN Autos
The Consumer Electronics Show is an annual, four-day sensory overload, as the tech world brings its best gadgets to Las Vegas to wow attendees and the worldwide media. As part of the one-upmanship that inevitably occurs, CES exhibitors roll out everything from ridiculous displays to capture the attention of convention-goers to future concepts to show clients what they're capable of creating. While some of the car technology and features we spotted and highlight may not ever make it to market — and that could be a good thing — others are just down the road.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Big-screen Bentley
Automotive software mavens QNX used a Bentley Continental convertible to show off the company's programming prowess. The custom infotainment system the company created features a massive screen in the center of the dash that can be configured to show a 3-D navigation map, audio displays, climate controls, vehicle information and more. And that Breitling clock at the bottom — a Bentley trademark — is part of the screen's realistic animation, not an analog timepiece.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Harman's 3-D high fidelity
At the 2013 CES, three-dimensional visual and audio products were all the rage. Not to be outdone, automotive audio supplier Harman displayed its own three-dimensional sound concept. Called QuantumLogic 3-D, it employs the company's patented digital processing technology to deliver three-dimensional surround sound from virtually any source, ranging from low-bitrate MP3s to CDs. To deliver the sound with some muscle, the QuantumLogic 3-D system on display included 2,000 watts of power and 25 speakers, including five integrated into the headliner. Talk about high fidelity.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Hyundai's wild Blue yonder
Hyundai brought its slick Blue2 concept car to CES 2013. It's been trotted out at auto shows before, but for its CES debut Hyundai redid the interior to make it even more futuristic for the tech crowd. It features a curvy, blindingly white dashboard accented by cool blue lighting. But we find it odd to think that we'll still be using smartphones in the future. And that they will still have to be wired to the car.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Panasonic screen crazy
Crazy concept automotive interiors are as common at CES as comely booth models. We found this one in Panasonic's massive booth. It features three touch screens and another screen that makes up the instrument panel. We're not sure why anyone would want so many screens in view of the driver, and it would never pass government regulations anyway. It has a steering wheel that looks like it belongs in an airplane.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Mood music, a la Gracenote
Gracenote supplies most of the metadata that's seen when listening to music in the car, such as song and album title, artist name and album artwork. At CES, the company showed new ways to easily access music in a car, including a "mood grid" that matches the tempo of music to your frame of mind. It can be used to build automatic playlists from your music library on a portable device or from streaming music services. We think it's cool, but wonder what "Midwestern rap from the 2000s" sounds like.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Delphi's distracting dash display
Every year at CES, automotive supplier Delphi shows off a collection of concept dashboards and displays. This one at the company's CES booth allows the driver to reconfigure the displays on the instrument panel, change the colors and even add an animated picture of the car. And when a call comes in, the caller's picture can appear in the instrument panel. With so much going on in front of the driver, this would inevitably lead to distraction. So don't expect to see it anytime soon.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Livio's new-school FM
In terms of technology, FM is old school, but it's outlasted most other forms of mobile music, including 8-track, cassette and now it's on pace to outlive CD. At every CES some company promises to improve FM, and this year Livio introduced what it calls FM Connect that allows broadcasters to create a two-way link with listeners through a connected Bluetooth smartphone. Livio says the benefits of the technology, which will be available through the company's application, include customized weather, traffic info, social media updates, coupons and advertising. Or maybe just more advertising.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Kicking golf cart
The car technology exhibits at CES are mostly consigned to the North Hall, aka The Boom Room, since that's where all the aftermarket car audio companies show off — and sound off — their wares. This subwoofer-laden golf cart spotted in the Kicker booth is an example of the outrageous vehicles found at CES, and could be good for Tiger Woods' links transportation when he wants to drown out whispers behind his back. Or drive away the paparazzi.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Pioneering custom car and stereo
Usually a stereo system is built around the car, but this pint-sized replica of a Scion vehicle we saw in the Pioneer booth is instead built around the stereo. But even though it's tiny, the custom display includes more car stereo gear than a vehicle three times its size could hold, and also accommodated these two large guys who were thoroughly enjoying the cute car's tunes.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
MTX's bed full of bass
This car stereo subwoofer is so massive a truck is required just to carry it around. A crowd-stopper and ear-popper in the booth of car audio supplier MTX Audio, we're not sure what kind of vehicle anyone would mount this in and how you could get enough amplifiers in it to power the huge speaker. Or maybe the truck is sold as an accessory for the subwoofer.
Craziest car tech at 2013 CES
Boss sounds
If you have an armored car full of audio equipment, what else can you do to impress the crowd at CES? How about your own DJ to make even more noise outside the vehicle? This monstrosity in the Boss Audio booth could be heard from halfway across one of the massive halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center. And it was just one of dozens of crazy cars that make CES a spectacle that must be seen — and heard — to be believed.
Doug Newcomb has been writing about automotive-related topics since 1988. His work has appeared in Consumers Digest, Road & Track, Rolling Stone, Men's Journal and many other publications. His book, Car Audio for Dummies, is available from Wiley Publishing.
