Ford announced it will supersize its in-car screens up to 15 inches from the current 8- to 10-inches starting next year.
In addition, it announced the next generation of its infotainment platform Sync 4, will be designed to work with the larger screens. It will offer twice the computing power of Sync 3 when it launches some time next year.
Plus, Ford said its 2020 vehicles will offer the wireless version of CarPlay.
All new Ford vehicles in production by the end of this year will include cellular data modems. And Sync 4 will allow cloud connected navigation and points of interest and more timely and detailed traffic updates.
Ford will also be able to show multiple applications on the larger screens. The driver may view navigation, radio and phone information in one view, said Wired.
Users will also be able to summon Ford voice control by saying “OK Ford.” And they can benefit from over-the-air updates.
The new Sync 4 will be offered in three versions that correspond to 3 different screen sizes. The base platform works with 8-inch screens and adds new voice recognition. The mid-tier system works with 12-inch landscape style touch screens with actual physical ‘knobs’ for volume and tuning, said Forbes. It allows multiple apps to show on the screen and finger swipe control. The top system works with a 15-inch portrait display. See more details at Forbes.
Ford did not disclose which car models would receive the new systems.
Earlier versions of Sync have been placed in 30 million cars over the last 10 years.
