Along with the release of its Focus electric car, Ford is releasing a smartphone app with functions to alert drivers to remaining range, best times to charge, and car location.
Wayne Cunningham
Wayne Cunningham reviews cars and writes about automotive technology for CNET's Roadshow. Prior to the automotive beat, he covered spyware, Web building technologies, and computer hardware. He began covering technology and the Web in 1994 as an editor of The Net magazine.
Ford's new MyFord Mobile app will let owners of the Focus electric car get a variety of telematics functions, from the basic, such as remote door unlock, to trip planning software that takes the car's remaining range into account.
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MyFord Mobile includes smart charging settings. Ford worked with Microsoft to develop a system that takes advantage of low electricity rates. The system asks owners when they expect to need the car, then picks a period of time when electricity is cheap to charge up the batteries.
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MyFord Mobile uses MapQuest to find charging stations. It shows the car's current location and nearby charging stations. It also indicates which charging stations are in range.
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The trip planning feature lets drivers enter multiple destinations, indicating if the car has enough range to reach all of them. Drivers can decide on different routes based on how much range the car has left.
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The app gives tips to help drivers maximize their range. For example, it checks the outside temperature and suggests pre-heating or running the air conditioning while the car is plugged in, so the climate control system does not impact range as much.
