Hasta La Gadget!

LAS VEGAS — It isn’t just geeks who want connected cars. By 2016 mainstream buyers will base much of their buying decisions based on the car’s ability to communicate to the outside world and also to connect phones and entertainment devices. So says the keynote speaker at the Consumer Telematics Show conference held each year before the start of CES. Within six years, says Thilo Koslowski, the automotive practice leader at the Gartner consultancy, “Connected vehicle features will be a critical buying consideration criteria for the average consumer … Product differentiation must extend beyond mechanical engineering [of cars to] include software, service, and application distincton.”