Soon you'll never have to leave your car while on business out of town. Starting in March, Avis will make any one of its rentals a potential Wi-Fi hot spot using a service from a San Francisco-based start-up called Autonet Mobile.
For $10.95 a day, according to The Raw Feed, customers can rent a portable "In-Car-Router" that provides wireless high-speed Net access. The main challenge will be dropped signals, which have bedeviled other mobile access products, but Autonet told the International Herald Tribune that it has overcome that problem with a new "wireless router" technology. The laptop-sized device also plugs into the car's power supply, reducing the need for batteries.
But if you try this service, we advise against surfing or IMing while driving. That could seriously cut into your ability to talk on the phone or watch TV while behind the wheel.