Radio Can't Afford In-Vehicle WiFi (And Neither Can Listeners)

Under that headline it may surprise you to learn that no one is more excited about a future that will include in-vehicle Wi-Fi than I am.

BUT:  buyer beware.

Having lived full time in my RV I have traveled across both Canada and the U.S., I think I know something about it, since my Leisure Van came equipped with a Sony touch screen in-dash entertainment and navigation center with DVD/ Bluetooth and multiple apps from Sirius XM, I Heart, Pandora and all points between.

I've been using it to as full as possible extent for 16 months now.

I connect with both Sprint and Verizon 4G devices and it certainly functions very well no matter where I am.

Hopefully, people purchasing the newest models with Wi-Fi built in will get a year or two of connectivity included in their car payment, so it - at first - may seem free to them, but once they start getting charged for the wireless access by their mobile carrier I have some idea of the sticker shock awaiting them.

One gigabyte of data today costs about $10.  I chose one of the carriers because they offered unlimited data at the time (after all, your new laptop needs at least a terabyte of storage!)  Their coverage was disappointing as I explored back roads and parks, so I also ultimatelty bought the other one.  Most months I pay about $120 between the two carriers to connect.

I keep it that "low" by never streaming anything I can avoid.  One month, for example, I watched a total of 60 minutes of steaming video and my charges DOUBLED.

Ouch!

I see where Clear Channel is increasing their commitment to digital now.  Ideally that will include  HD and NextRadio, the digital audio services that will still be free for users to access.

The more drivers and passengers start having to pay for programming via 4G, I predict, the more they are going to appreciate the medium which serves their entertainment and info needs at no cost.

Nash FM? Or Nash Rambler?

There are so many exciting things in development right now for the vehicle dashboard and it all appears to be coming at lightening speed that it's easy to forget - from HD Radio to the new Cumulus national country brand - how painfully long it sometimes takes for even things we take for granted now to achieve mass adoption (let alone how many never made it).

Thanks to the legendary Chuck Buell for putting it all in a proper context:

I know you know the big part the radios in our cars played back in the day with the rockin' music of our favorite local rock station turned up loud as we cruised around with a carload of friends  --- or spent some quieter in-car moments with someone special and the late night more mellow sounds of the conservative music station turned down low?

We sure took "The Car Radio" for granted, didn't we?!

So, with that in mind, I thought you might find of some possible minor interest this (under five minutes) audio narrative I recently voiced about how "The Car Radio" actually came about and how long it really took!