As automobiles continue to advance and take on more and more technological features we see more and more of their presence at this year’s CES. The Consumer Electronics Show held annually at the Las Vegas Convention Center is only our second favorite show of the year.
The usual suspects were large and in charge, from Ford’s new Focus and hybrid models to Audi’s tech showcase, the 2015 CES show had something for everyone.
Of course Ford is not the only one at the party, as evidenced by Audi and BMW’s strong showing. But it wasn’t until we got to the BMW booth till we saw what interested us the most at the 2015 CES show.
We’ve covered the iDrive technology before and BMW is putting in the due diligence to make sure that this technology is here to stay. Highlighting the self-driving technology was the BMW i3 which had a self parking display for everyone to see. Not completely sold on self drive, but it doesn’t look like it’s going away any time soon.
The BMW i3 uses the ActiveAssist autonomous technology that utilizes several highly accurate positional sensors, including a bevy of laser scanners that help guide the car into it’s parking spot. BMW flexed it’s Active Assist muscles, having the i3 park in a difficult multi-car garage. But that’s not what stole the 2015 CES show for us.
No what caught our attention was the inventive lighting technology that BMW had on full display, named the Iconic Lights.
The M4 at the BMW display had everything that you could expect from the new lighting technology. Based on the laser headlights from BMW and Audi, these taillights looked stunning on display and we can only imagine what these laser lights will bring us next.
Coupled with BMW’s advanced lighting functions that help increase driver safety and comfort. These laser lights work in conjunction with the rest of the vehicle, pre-lighting corners before you take them, warning you of objects more than 300 feet away.
Here’s a few more advances we thought were pretty nifty at the 2015 CES show.
2015 CES – BMW Card Keys
Chances are you’ve seen the technology these new keys from BMW feature at your local supermarket. Using integrated Near Field Communications (NFC) chips, BMW is taking credit cards to the next level, and allowing them to unlock your car.
2015 CES – BMW Infotainment
In what is increasingly becoming a popular platform, infotainment took center stage at BMW’s display. With the ability to allow rear seated passengers to control, charge and wirelessly sync their remote devices with your vehicle, it’s not long before little Timmy can stream his favorite cartoons on the way home from school.
2015 – Green Charging
Fulfilling our daily eco-green quota, the BMW iChargeforward program could change the home-charging rules for good. Taking solar panels and storing the charge until your car is plugged in, BMW’s new charging program gives you yet another way to minimize your carbon footprint and help the earth.
The Bavarian automaker also released details on their contact-free power charging technology which is a big step towards inductive charging. Capale of charging in the wet as well as the snow, this flexible system gives you the tools you need to charge your car quick.
While they didn’t spill all the beans, we are willing to bet it’s every bit as awesome as it sounds.
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