The race for launching India¡¯s first connected car has finally seen an end as Hyundai took the veil off its Venue, a sub-compact SUV launched at a starting price of Rs 6.5 lakh. Hyundai Venue was one of the most anticipated car launches of the year in the country, mostly because of its ¡°connected car¡± status. Prior to this, British auto maker MG Motors had unveiled its SUV named Hector as a contender for the race. The car has not made it to the markets though, neither is it up for pre-bookings for now.
The Venue and Hector will not compete in the same segment as they are not expected to be similarly priced. The common link, however, is the fact that both will offer connectivity features for the first time in the Indian market. But what are these connectivity features and what makes a car ¡°connected¡±? We try to find out here.
What Hyundai Venue offers?
The USP of the Venue is the embedded eSIM in the SUV that enables it to offer connected technology features to the users. Hyundai uses the umbrella term - ¡®BlueLink¡¯ for these connected functions. As to what all is included in this, know that climate control, remote start, remote door lock/unlock, geofencing, SOS alert, voice assist system and find my car are just some of the total 33 functions on offer.
Hyundai Venue BlueLink Technology (Image: Hyundai India)
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What does it mean?
In the most basic sense, the ¡®connected¡¯ status lets you remotely control as well as monitor your vehicle, meaning you can operate certain functions even when you are not around your car. Leaving from office? Switch on the engine and the AC of the car right from your desk 5 minutes before you leave.
The same connectivity can also be used to check on your vehicle in the time of need. Features like ¡®Find my car¡¯ can help you locate the Venue in a parking lot or in the case of theft.
So how does it work?
In simple terms, these functions can be treated as a transfer of data from your vehicle to an interface of your choice and vice-versa. This interface is usually a smartphone app or a web portal. The hardware needed for this is simply a GSM module integrated in the car¡¯s IT system.
Hyundai Venue, in this case, will use eSIMs powered by Vodafone-Idea. The company says that the internet data with these eSIMs will be offered for free for the first three years.
Hyundai Venue (Image: Sarthak Dogra/ IndiaTimes)
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What can we expect in the near future?
Connected cars are essentially a real-world application of Internet of Things, where multiple devices work in conjunction, exchanging data along the way. So as this data sharing keeps increasing to other interfaces, to other vehicles for instance, more and more coordination can be observed on the roads.
A prime example of this can be considered in a scenario where only self-driving cars operate, exchanging information with each other on the road. This would let the vehicles know about impending intersections, average speeds, traffic blockages and much more of such information on the go.