Streaming Internet audio hits the road with wireless broadband and embedded web services in an in-dash radio.
Two levels of tuning data subscription services are available:
The "Silver" package gives you access to a password-protected web site where you can set the preset buttons of your radio using your web browser. Find new audio streams using the service provider's library, or enter your own favorite streaming audio locations.
The "Gold" option includes web access to your radio, and automatically delivers XML channel data to the radio, which presents it as "themed" groups (rock, hip-hop, country, sports, news, etc) of individual streaming channels (much like XM or Sirius).
An optional Tivo-like "personal audio recorder" captures scheduled programs, such as live concerts, sports and news. You can schedule these recordings over the web and listen to them at your driving convenience.
"Rodcasts" are user-created programs like podcasts, but with embedded links you can capture to your preset buttons: "If you'd like to hear more music like this, press and hold one of your preset buttons to save it now."
The entire Project Gutenberg library of electronic texts, including more than 17,000 books, could be made available using text-to-speech technology for those who prefer "books on tape."-- land, Dec 17 2005 You can get services for Internet radio and there are available wireless access points.
The reason this is not baked is because of WLANs poor quality at handling Doppler shift (fast moving targets). There is also a big issue in handover from cell to cell at high speeds.
A better system might be to use an Infostation paradigm... look up the research done by WINLAB at Rutgers University. This involves downloading large chunks of data when you can and processing it when you can't connect (with the idea being that you make it to the next 'island' of coverage' before you run out of stuff to process).-- Jinbish, Dec 18 2005 Rutgers have a WIBNILAB ? well spotted [Jinbish].-- neilp, Dec 18 2005 Bursts of buffered streaming audio vs XM satellite radio?
I hate waiting on pages to download; imagine interrupted music!-- Macdaddyx1, Feb 19 2008 random, halfbakery