Car Gadgets 2024: The Top Innovations for Your Vehicle
Kamilya
Many useful extras are already included in new cars and, in addition to increased safety, also provide extra comfort and entertainment for passengers. If you don't want to buy a new car for this, you can also retrofit a number of these gadgets. We at CARIFY will tell you which ones make sense and which ones will enhance your comfort on the road.
The Latest Car Gadgets
Some things are purely cosmetic - such as an LED starry sky on the vehicle ceiling or eyelashes for the headlights. Others are now standard in new cars or are even mandatory in Switzerland. We are talking about driver assistance systems such as the tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) or the European e-Call emergency call system. Incidentally, both can be retrofitted to older vehicles. And then there are the smart gadgets that make your life easier, provide entertainment on the road or increase safety.
New products for cars are constantly coming onto the market, and they are getting smarter and smarter. This means the same as with smartphones or smart homes: these tools turn your car into a smart car through connectivity. The vehicle connects to the internet via the gadgets and can exchange data, for example about traffic jams or danger spots. This is referred to as the 'Internet of Things' (IoT). AI (Artificial Intelligence) is also used to control electronics - keyword autonomous driving. Of course, networked data exchange also harbors risks, from the possibility of creating movement and user profiles to vulnerability to hackers. This is because many software updates, whether for the on-board systems or the entertainment electronics, are now carried out wirelessly via the internet. This is precisely when criminals can break in and steal the car or, in the worst case, even take control of it. Only sophisticated security systems can put a stop to this.
But there are also gadgets that are simply fun or make your life easier. We at CARIFY have taken a look at the latest innovations. In this article, we introduce you to various useful gadgets for the car and also take a look at upcoming developments.
Car Gadgets for Comfort and Practicality
Practical benefits and added safety go hand in hand with many new car gadgets.
Dashcams: The dashboard cameras placed behind the windshield record the entire journey and see what you see when you look ahead. This makes them incorruptible witnesses to an accident, providing information in case of doubt as to whether you really had the green light or were cut off by another vehicle. Dashcams are not permitted everywhere, but they are in Switzerland. At least if they do not impair road safety, i.e. they do not restrict your view, distract you with sounds or visual signals and cannot fly around inside the vehicle in the event of a crash. They must also comply with data protection regulations. In detail, this means that they only record while you are driving. Motion sensors ensure this. The recordings are encrypted or continuously overwritten. However, such dashcam recordings do not have to be admissible in court, but they can be.
GPS tracker: They transmit the location of your car. This helps you if you can't find your car again, for example if you get lost in the countryside or can't remember where you parked it. In the event of theft, the vehicle can be located and thus recovered. They are already included with expensive cars, but you can also retrofit GPS trackers.
Jump-start power bank: Power banks have been around for some time as compact power storage units for on the go. Not much bigger are jump-start power banks, which provide your vehicle with the decisive kick to start in the event of a flat battery with 8,000 mAh.
Reversing camera: Older cars usually do not yet have a parking aid. Maneuvering in tight parking spaces quickly becomes a stressful and time-consuming maneuver. With a reversing camera that can be retrofitted to the rear license plate, you can see exactly how far you can reverse on a display in the car.
There are also innovations for your comfort that we would like to introduce to you.
Electric ice scraper: How often do you have to clear your car windows of ice during the cold season? It takes a lot of time and energy. The electric windshield scraper uses rotating blades to remove ice from your car windows in an instant without scratching the glass. And your fingers won't freeze either.
Refrigerator for the car: On long journeys in summer, you can look forward to wonderfully cool drinks or sandwiches with a sausage topping that doesn't already look grayish. Compact mini fridges can be connected to the socket in your vacation home or to the cigarette lighter in your car. Some appliances can even do both: keep warm and cold.
Bluetooth FM transmitter for the car: This useful gadget for the cigarette lighter also equips older vehicles with Bluetooth and allows you to use a wide range of Bluetooth-enabled devices and gadgets in the car, such as your entertainment system or stereo speakers.
USB charger: You can also simply plug this adapter into the cigarette lighter and have a compact solution for charging smartphones, tablets or other devices on the go. Equipped with different sockets, the devices are usually suitable for USB-C and USB-A connections.
Smart Technology in the Car
Bluetooth makes it possible: you can use the wireless internet connection to connect your entertainment electronics to the car's infotainment system or make hands-free phone calls while driving. What is already standard in modern vehicles can be retrofitted to older cars (see above).
However, Bluetooth is not enough for some features. Then you need a Wi-Fi network to receive the latest traffic information via the navigation system and even to charge your smartphone wirelessly. This is possible if your car has corresponding charging boxes on the center console and your cell phone has the Qi standard for wireless power transfer.
OBD 2 access is a prerequisite for retrofitting Wi-Fi and Bluetooth in older cars.
Numerous remote apps allow you to access some vehicle systems remotely via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, for example:
Charging control for the battery of an electric car,
Call up fuel consumption information,
preheating the interior.
The networking of cars now also includes access to data stored in a cloud. This means that your navigation device always has access to the latest maps and can even warn you of traffic jams in real time. This is made possible by Car2X communication, in which vehicles transmit data about the traffic flow and make it available to other drivers via the cloud.
Modern navigation systems can do much more than just calculate your route:
They set up a Wi-Fi hotspot that connects all smart devices in the car with each other and the internet.
They monitor the charge level of electric car batteries and indicate charging stations in the vicinity.
They use AI for optimizable voice control and are gradually developing into personal assistants for all kinds of areas such as route planning, volume control of the infotainment system or appointment reminders.
Voice control in particular increases safety when driving because you don't have to look to turn down the music or change the station.
Future Trends in Car Gadgets
In the future, connected gadgets will have more and more applications. By using AI, they will be able to adapt precisely to your needs and give you access to their functions via voice control without having to use your hands or take your eyes off the road.
At the same time, car assistance systems are also evolving. Smart vehicles are already capable of assisted or even semi-automated driving. They monitor your driving style and warn you if you leave your lane without signaling or if your eyes close. Thanks to adaptive cruise control, you no longer have to pay attention to the speed limit, and distance sensors and emergency brake assist ensure the necessary safety distance, warn you or support you in the event of emergency braking.
One of the hot trends in car gadgets is the integration of augmented reality (AR). Information is projected into the driver's field of vision, such as the maximum permitted speed or the distance to vehicles in front. The driver's own speed or fuel/battery level can also be viewed without having to look at the dashboard. This is already made possible by head-up displays, which you can retrofit for little money. You can also view information about places of interest and stores along the way.
The goal of development is autonomous driving, where you can sit back and relax, take a nap or read the newspaper because the car drives itself and uses assistance systems to monitor the route, lighting conditions and much more, and adapts its driving style automatically.
Conclusion
Even developments in infotainment systems contribute to road safety. If you can keep your children entertained with their favorite films on long journeys, they will be less fussy and won't argue in the back seat. Good reasons to retrofit your old car with Bluetooth or even WLAN. In new vehicles, many of the modern gadgets are already available as standard or can be purchased as optional extras. Do you want to drive a car with all the extras without spending a lot of money? Then take a look at CARIFY's car subscriptions.
All our cars are new or young used and have all the prescribed assistance systems. With our practical filters, you'll not only find your dream car from our huge selection in no time at all, but also exactly the extras you're dreaming of. All of this is included with us, as is our comprehensive insurance and service package.
