LAS VEGAS -- Pioneer announced a partnership with Aha Radio to bring voice-activated social updates to vehicle dashboards.
Drivers will be able to listen to a constant stream of status updates from Facebook, tweets from Twitter, restaurant recommendations from Yelp and a slew of podcasts, all compliments of the on-demand, interactive radio capabilities of Aha, Pioneer said today (Jan. 5) at the CES.
The robotic voice uses text-to-speech technology to read back content on the Internet.
Aha Radio will be available on two Pioneer in-dash models, the AVIC Z130BT and the X930BT navigation units. Pioneer said pricing will be announced later this year.
In another announcement, Pioneer said it is expanding its Pandora Radio integration to nine models in 2011, seven more than last year, with an entry-level unit priced at $150.
The company also unveiled the Smart Cradle for the iPhone, which enhances all iPhone GPS apps with a built-in GPS, a gyroscope and an accelerometer of its own, resulting in more-precise location readings on the phone. The Smart Cradle includes an Auto Sound Leveler that automatically adjusts the volume of the speaker in response to ambient noise.
"If you've ever tried to use your smartphone as a navigation device sitting on the seat, you know how difficult that can be,” Ted Cardenas, Pioneer’s director of marketing, said. "The Smart Cradle's secure mount solves that problem."
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