As Apple Car and Android Auto bring smart tech inside the car, traditional auto manufacturers are scrambling to keep up, and Ford is the latest company to develop a smartwatch app.
The Ford smartwatch app for Android Wear devices will allow users to start their car and monitor their driving from the wearable on their wrist.
Ford has been showing off the app, which is still in development at their Silicon Valley research center this week. The app allows you control your car (you can actually start the engine remotely) and gives you live information such as your mileage range and statistics to monitor how well you're driving.
"You have command and control functions, you can start, stop and precondition your vehicle before you get to it," explained Dave Hatton, global product manager for Ford. The app displays your EV range, which tells you how far you can drive before needing more gas. It also rates your driving ability, giving you scores for braking and overall driving skills.
It'll also help you out if you somehow manage to lose your car or forget where you park it. The app shows your car's location on the map and provides you with directions. The app works with Ford's connected hybrid and fully electric cars.
Both Apple Car and Google's Android Auto smart car and navigation software platforms are coming to Ford cars in 2015, but the company plans to integrate them with its own Sync AppLink platform. Ford's smartwatch app is following in the footsteps of competitors like Porsche and BMW, who have already designed Apple Watch apps.
It's all part of a larger strategy for Ford to relabel itself as a mobility company rather than just an automaker. Ford opened its new Silicon Valley research lab in January and is developing its own self-driving technology and working on interesting ideas like 3D printing replacement parts and a smart bike that can detect potholes. CEO Mark Fields first introduced his smart mobility plan, which puts more of an emphasis on the connected tech in the vehicles, at the CES conference in January. Car manufacturers are realizing that the smart technology and degree of connectivity is becoming a major factor in customers' purchasing choices.
Tech firms have such a lead in self-driving technology that it has led to speculation that all cars could run one day run on Google or Apple software, with companies like Ford just supplying the hardware. In a world of driverless cars, it's debatable as to whether people would even need to buy a car when they could just rent it like an Uber cab. That's part of why companies like Ford are trying to sell the "mobility experience" rather than just the car hardware.
