Microsoft Windows 10 in your car: it might happen sooner than you think.
Major car manufacturers could start integrating Windows 10 in vehicles dashboards, sometimes in the last quarter of 2016, according to sources, in the wake of Microsoft’s TechDays event in Taiwan. While unconfirmed, the prevailing rumor is that Ford, BMW and Nissan, may be planning on adopting in-car infotainment systems in 2017 vehicle models, running a modified version of Windows 10 IoT Core.
The operating system and hardware will interface with Windows Phones, and will allow drivers to speak commands to Cortana, directly on their dashboards. Plans for iOS and Android integration may also be in the works.
On this note, Microsoft Asia-Pacific Research Chief Operating Officer Samuel Shen has confirmed that Microsoft is working on a concept that allows to display Cortana in the driver’s field of view, by projecting the interface on the windshield. Similar products have been introduced, largely designed around the Android platform, with little success, due to the high-cost of creating a projection system that is optimized for most light conditions, and capable of handling glare.
“we have not launched similar products due to the high cost, but we hope to have further discussions with Taiwanese partners to jointly explore future possibilities.” Shen commented, during a brief conversation reported by Taipei Times.
In the past few years, Microsoft has undoubtedly made strides, especially since Windows 10, whose IoT Core version promises universal connectivity. With that in mind, while Apple CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto retain the majority of the market, at least for the moment, in-car infotainment is still a very complex industry, and every manufacturer tends to require software to adapt to its own individual hardware, and not vice-versa. In the past, this trend has caused ample fragmentation of the Windows operating system, which had to be heavily customized to each car’s system.
Today, Windows 10 should offer a much more flexible platform, for car manufacturers to work with, for a more cohesive user experience. As more manufacturers keep adding connected technology to new car models each years, the call for a unified standard is getting louder, especially as connected technologies allow more than just entertainment, with apps capable of controlling locks, windows, security systems and climate control, remotely, from mobile devices.