In-car entertainment

Last week Ford told us the 2014 Fiesta, the smallest car in its lineup, would be offered with a new, fuel-saving 1-liter EcoBoost engine. Ford notes this week that the 2014 Fiesta will also get a new version of its MyFord Touch infotainment system, which marks the first time this model gets a navigation option.… Read more

When Apple announced the iPhone 5's new Lightning connector, a replacement for the 30-pin connector of past iPhones, iPads, and iPods, it also announced an adapter to maintain compatibility with 30-pin accessories and docks. I tested the iPhone 5 with its biggest 30-pin accessory, a Volkswagen.

Volkswagen uses the same iPod integration system as Audi, which it calls the Media Device Interface. This system consists of a proprietary port in the car with adapter cables for 30-pin iPod connector, USB, Mini-USB, and auxiliary input. As Volkswagen has not come out with a Lightning cable for its Media Device Interface, you have to get Apple's 30-pin-to-Lightning adapter, and connect it to the car's adapter cable. Not exactly an elegant solution.… Read more

LAS VEGAS--At the 2012 SEMA Show, Pioneer announced all-new lines of CD and DVD/multimedia receivers. The changes for this new generation are sweeping, encompassing nearly every product Pioneer makes; subtle, consisting mostly of moderate upgrades; and significant.

Starting with the 6.1-inch AVH-X1500DVD ($300), MixTrax compatibility comes to Pioneer's line of DVD/multimedia receivers. MixTrax, Pioneer's automated DJ and playlist software, analyzes your music library and creates custom mixes that play back while you drive. Compatibility with those mixes and control over how they're played is now baked into every Pioneer receiver with an "X&… Read more

LAS VEGAS--Scosche has been manufacturing car stereo dashboard mounting kits, wire harnesses, and installation accessories for so many years, but it has never offered a car stereo receiver of its own...until now.

At the 2012 SEMA Show, Scosche showed off the SCDBTA60 Car Stereo Receiver. This unit features an internal four-channel amplifier that outputs a maximum of 40 watts per channel and three preamp outputs for adding external amps. It's got a CD player and an SD card slot, and can connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth (HFP and A2DP), USB, or an auxiliary input. By itself, it'… Read more

Voice-command systems in cars let you make phone calls, enter an address into navigation, and even request music by an artist or album name, all without taking your eyes off the road or your hands off the wheel. Voice command over music usually works with an iPhone or iPod cabled to the car, or a thumbdrive plugged into the USB port. Most of the cars below rely on Gracenote's music database to translate artist and album names into phonetics understandable by a voice recognition system. This database includes nicknames, so instead of saying "play Bruce Springsteen," you can say "play The Boss."

Here are five cars waiting to take your musical requests. … Read more

SAN FRANCISCO--GoPro pulled the wraps off of a new generation of its line of Hero sports camera packages built around the smallest, most powerful camera that it has ever offered: the GoPro Hero3.

The GoPro Hero3 Black Edition is the flagship model that will retail for $399.99. This new model features a chassis that is 30 percent smaller and 25 percent lighter than the outgoing Hero2 model and is only 20mm thick when removed from its plastic shell. The plastic shell itself is also smaller (obviously) and features a new flat lens. The case also features a double lock … Read more

Parrot's Asteroid was one of the first car stereo systems to be based and powered by the Android operating system, but it won't be the last after the Asteroid Smart, the Asteroid Tablet, and the Asteroid Mini join the original later this month.

The Asteroid Smart will sit at the top of the new lineup, packing a 6.2-inch capacitive, multitouch screen. The unit fits into a standard double-DIN car stereo and, like the rest of the Asteroid lineup, is powered by a heavily customized version of Android 2.3 (Gingerbread). The unit features four standard USB ports (… Read more

You may already be familiar with the maxim, "Less is more." Clearly the infotainment engineers over at General Motors are, because it seems that they've taken this approach to designing the dashboard of the 2013 Chevrolet Spark LT.

There are only four buttons for volume up and down, power, and home below the 7-inch touch screen. There are only three knobs for the basic climate control system. There isn't even a CD player -- GM's betting that you probably won't even notice that last bit, because its target market carries music around on phones … Read more

During today's event announcing the new iPhone and iPod, Apple V.P. Phil Schiller spent a little time talking about the Lightning connector, the port replacing the old 30-pin port on iOS devices. Although Schiller pointed out how Apple's adapter for the port would ensure backward compatibility, some car models are not likely to work with Lightning or the new adapter.

Schiller specifically mentioned how the adapter would work with existing iPod integration in cars, showing an image of an iPhone cabled to a car. The car shown in the photo was an Audi, identifiable by the distinctive … Read more