ON Your Smartphone, IN Your Car - The Connected Car Race Ensues

 

The long-promised demolition of the barriers that separate drivers from the information and entertainment available through smartphone apps is finally shifting into high gear.

 

Driven by consumer gripes—and by visions of new streams of revenue—auto makers and major players in the smartphone and apps industry dug into their software and hardware to remove a variety of obstacles to smooth integration of vehicle displays and the output from apps.

Apps, the little software programs that make our phones so indispensible, are quickly becoming part of our cars, too.