Volvo has announced that Microsoft’s Skype for Business will be added to its 90 Series models: the XC90, V90, and S90. This marks the first time an automaker has implanted the software in a vehicle.
Though we’d have to survey people who consistently take conference calls in their cars to validate Volvo’s claims, the premium brand said Skype for Business is the most intuitive and safe way to conduct a meeting while sitting in traffic.
“We’ve all been there. Sitting in the car trying to join a conference call. You either fumble with or drop your phone while trying to connect, or you forget the long pin code to join. It’s not the best way to start an important call in the car. On top of all that your attention is not where it should be – on the road,” said Anders Tylman-Mikiewic, vice president of consumer connectivity services, at Volvo Car Group.
This sounds a bit like the setup for a bad infomercial, but Volvo wagers this scenario will strike a chord with its buyers. In upcoming 90 Series models, people will be able to view upcoming meetings and join with a single click on Volvo’s infotainment display.
“With the dawn of autonomous cars, we see a future where flexible in-car productivity tools will enable people to reduce time spent in the office,” added Tylman-Mikiwicz. “This is just the beginning of a completely new way of looking at how we spend time in the car.”
When our attention doesn’t need to be on the road, video chatting and full-scale in-car productivity will require the right connectivity tools. We just aren’t there yet.
Apart from Skype, Volvo and Microsoft are exploring the use of Cortana, the tech company’s personal assistant (akin to Apple’s Siri), to add improved voice recognition to Volvo cars. It will be interesting to see how Volvo maintains its edge as one of the safest automakers in the world, while improving in-car technology. If done right, the two goals should go hand in hand.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.