Toyota Entune in-car infotainment system interfaces with your smartphone, does everything but drive

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Ford and Microsoft have been all over the smartphone-car integration
scene with their SYNC system, but now it's Toyota's turn. The outfit
is launching a major initiative here at CES to make your vehicle more
than just a mode of transportation, with the Entune infotainment
system offering Bluetooth, a host of mobile apps and the ability to
read-back and replay text messages. Entune is expected to launch as an
option on "select models" later this year, with featured apps
including Bing, iheartradio, MovieTickets.com, OpenTable and Pandora,
not to mention location-based services such as personalized traffic,
fuel prices, stock alerts, weather reports and sports scores. It'll
rely on voice commands and in-vehicle controls, enabling users to be
informed and empowered while traveling. Aside from giving motorists
the ability to reserve a table as they're en route to an eatery and
order a movie ticket for later, it's also a fully-featured
entertainment center -- you'll get access to HD Radio, a CD player,
USB connectivity and Bluetooth audio streaming. Best of all, the
entire setup is firmware upgradable via OTA updates, so the risk of
obsolesce is lessened a good bit. We're hoping to get some hands-on
time with an Entune-equipped whip here on the show floor, and we'll be
sure to share our impressions just as soon as we do. For now, feel
free to get a closer look in the gallery below and the video after the
break.