Having already included a Google map database in its cars, BMW is now adding the capability to look at stock indices, weather conditions, and gas prices at nearby fuel stations.
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.
BMW started offering a data connection to Google maps in September 2008, enabling keyword search for points of interest.
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Google search
Here is an example of the keyword entry screen. The search history is displayed below for quick access to previous terms, as spelling keywords out with iDrive is somewhat tedious.
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Weather
Weather forecasts is a new feature BMW will be offering. Although playing catch-up with the likes of Ford and Acura, this screen shows more graphic richness with BMW's system.
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Stock indices
Bloomberg provides the current Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 for BMW's data connection into the car.
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Gas prices
The most useful data source on a weekly basis, nearby gas prices are displayed in the car. You can touch any listing to program it in to the navigation system as a destination.
