Cars getting modular upgradable computers

[Gummy]

Audi's MMI Goes Modular: Swappable Chips Will Help Cars Keep Pace With Processing Advancements

 

 

If you simply can't imagine life on the go without an internet connection, you're probably keen on the recent news that Audi's new A3 will be the first vehicle in the U.S. to offer in-car 4G LTE connectivity. The system, which taps into AT&T's cellular network to power the car's built-in features like Google Earth, weather forecasting, and fuel price info, will also enable Wi-Fi hotspots with blazing download speeds of up to 100 Mbps-- faster than most home internet connections.

 

But as with all things electronic, the NVIDIA chip that powers the A3's multimedia system and the Qualcomm chip that handles Audi Connect will some day go the way of the Nintendo 64, only to be replaced by even quicker and more efficient hardware. Anticipating the inevitable antiquating of such systems-- and the resulting need to redesign the hardware architecture that handles those duties, Audi has created its first ever modular system intended to help car design keep pace with ever-evolving cellular and multimedia technology.

 

Audi's in-house multimedia guru Mathias Halliger says of the so-called MIB housings (seen above) that, "Modularity was the key requirement for the [MMI hardware] design," adding that his team worked around the clock to make the futureproof system a reality. 

 

The process of designing a car typically follows a slug-like pace compared to the lightning fast evolutions in chipset advances, which leads to inevitable lags between the evolution of sheetmetal and the updating of multimedia systems. Even the NVIDIA Tegra processor in the brand spanking new Audi A3 is two generations behind the company's most recent chipset unveiled at this year's Consumer Electronics Show.

 

As cool as the swappable chipset may be, don't get fooled into thinking the modularity will keep your car's multimedia system eternally up-to-date: the new MMI platform is intended to make Audi's future products easily adaptible to emerging chip updates, rather than enabling current owners to endlessly upgrade their existing hardware.

 

Source: http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/auto-blog/audi-mmi-?src=spr_FBPAGE&spr_id=1457_48909586

[Thunderjolt]

This is pretty cool. I just hope they don't charge an absurd price for upgrades.

[helping]

This is pretty cool. I just hope they don't charge an absurd price for upgrades.

it's an Audi, unless you can remove the computer and buy the chip yourself, they will. 

[Thunderjolt]

it's an Audi, unless you can remove the computer and buy the chip yourself, they will. 

 

Yeah that's what I hate about Car manufacturers. "I see you want cup holders, let me add another 1K onto the price of your car!"

[LAwLz]

Oh good.

This was one of my biggest worries when I started seeing things like Tegra 3 SoCs in cars. What the hell are you going to do in 3 years when it's outdated as hell? This solves that problem.

I saw some Tesla car with Tegra 3 processor that was used to power things like a web browser and it was already lagging when doing certain things. I don't even want to imagine what it would be like in a few years when you want to do even more advanced things. It would be like a slide show, and no way of upgrading (other than buying a brand new car).

[JAKEBAB]

Yes now I can play crysis while I drive my car

[Logan2012]

Look at that dinky little fan, probably like a 30 mm fan

[HexaGuy]

Every time I read about things like this, I wonder how upgradeable the future will be...everything is turning modular, from phones, to smartwatches, and now, even a car. Amazing to think about how technology is evolving. I still remember the days when 1080p was an emerging technology, and it was crazy expensive. Can't wait to see what the future holds.