New Year: New Technology
I know this site promised to keep things as simple as possible for all of us non-techies, but I just happened upon something that I thought I should share with you before you hear about it elsewhere and be floored by it as we all race to keep up in our effort to not be lapped in the race of technology. Anyway, most readers have probably heard of or seen OnStar advertised over the past several years you know, the in-vehicle security and remote diagnostic system. Well, it seems that OnStar announced their latest claim-to-fame at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. When released, their newest gadget will allow customized voice messages to be transcribed into text messages and posted as Facebook audio clips all while driving! Yes; you read that right. Facebook while driving. Drivers will also be able to set up automatic replies to text messages like “I’m on my way to the grocery store but will be available after 2:00.” Important information, eh? Reviews seem to be along the lines of “great.now I’ll get rear-ended by girls updating their Facebook pages” to “staying alive on the road is far more important than updating a stupid Facebook status.” We’re not sure how you feel about it, but it seems to be a sign of the times that technology will continue to march forward. And with that, perhaps it’s time to take a definitive stance on what might truly be considered excess when it comes to supposed streamlining. Still, as we said, this technology was delivered as an announcement only and is not yet actually in vehicles as of this writing. We’re hoping that with the focus being placed on hands-free cell phone laws (such as those in California) that this Facebook hookup will either falter as it enters the starting gate or at least be regulated to the point that OnStar sees it as the nuisance that it truly might become.