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Palm Pre Touchstone dock hardwired into BMW 3 Series

An enterprising BMW 3 Series owner has taken it upon himself to mod a Palm Pre Touchstone charger dock into the vehicle's center console.

Antuan Goodwin Reviews Editor / Cars
Antuan Goodwin gained his automotive knowledge the old fashioned way, by turning wrenches in a driveway and picking up speeding tickets. From drivetrain tech and electrification to car audio installs and cabin tech, if it's on wheels, Antuan is knowledgeable.
Expertise Reviewing cars and car technology since 2008 focusing on electrification, driver assistance and infotainment Credentials
  • North American Car, Truck and SUV of the Year (NACTOY) Awards Juror
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Antuan Goodwin

An enterprising BMW 3 Series owner has taken it upon himself to hard wire a Palm Pre Touchstone charger dock into his vehicle's center console. The Touchstone charging system is a pretty awesome bit of tech. Essentially, this charging base magnetically holds the smartphone in place while it wirelessly charges the battery using an inductive electromagnetic field.

Palm Pre Touchstone mod
The Pre's Touchstone looks right at home in this 3 Series' interior. iSmashPhone.com/bretov

The install itself seems pretty straightforward. The power adapter is hardwired into the the vehicle's 12-volt system, then the Touchstone is secured to the center tunnel with the wires hidden from view. Instead of fumbling with chargers and dongles, the owner just hops into the car, places the Pre on the magnetic stone, and drives off.

In a vehicle that supported Bluetooth hands-free and audio streaming, this would be a tremendous jump in convenience. Perhaps in the future, more phone manufacturers will support inductive charging and Bluetooth standards so that automakers will be able to implement solutions like this at the OEM level.

I wonder how the Touchstone's magnetic grip holds up under serious lateral g-forces?

Check out more images and details at iSmashPhone.