GM To Include Smartphones Wireless Charging In 2014 Cars

GM To Include Smartphones Wireless Charging In 2014 Cars

General Motors Co. (GM), the largest U.S. automaker, will start offering wireless charging for smartphones in some vehicles next year, said Ran Poliakine, chief executive officer of Powermat Technologies Ltd.

Charging your smartphone in your car can be annoying, to say the least. Wires are in your way, getting wrapped around your car’s shifter and anything else within reach.

Wireless charging technology allows users to simply set the phone down in a certain area of the vehicle console or dash to recharge without having to deal with wires or adapters. The wireless charging solutions use a coil that receives electricity from a magnetic field when placed on the Powermat-enabled surface. However, one catch to adding wireless charging inside vehicles is that the phones require special cases in order to charge.

However, plenty of smartphones and tablets, ranging from the new Nexus 7 to the LG Optimus G Pro and Galaxy S4 (with a special battery cover) use Qi wireless charging, which was developed by the Wireless Power Consortium. A4WP, the Alliance for Wireless Power, is another competing standard that is trying to offer similar technologies to auto-makers.

The one roadblock to the problem, is that users’ smartphones will have to have their own built-in wireless charging technology. The vast majority of smartphones on the market do not include such a feature, so users will likely have to opt for a wireless charging case if they want to use the charging pads.

GM isn’t the first automaker to offer wireless charging technology in its cars. Toyota is already selling a similar feature in its 2013 Avalon, while Dodge made it available in the 2013 Dart. As more handset makers begin including wireless charging technology with their devices, you can expect to see the number of vehicles with installed charging pads to increase exponentially.

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Write by: RC - Saturday, August 24, 2013