Power & sustainability: the cars of CES 2015

mirai-toyota

The mega event CES 2015 wasn’t just about gadgets, but car companies also took the stage to show their new technology, which is as sustainable as it is cool. Check out the best cars of CES 2015.

Toyota & hydrogen cells

Toyota shared their vision for the future at CES 2015, especially for those vehicles we use inside of cities, which consume fuel. One of the ideas they are moving forward with is liberating thousands upon thousands of patents related to hydrogen usage as a power source for vehicles – not only they’d be able to use this themselves, but any other manufacturer interested in it might too.

But that wasn’t all Toyota introduced, and their commitment to a better, greener planet doesn’t end there. The Japanese giant announced the product of their collaboration with Hino Motors, Ltd, a bus that rus entirely off of these hydrogen cells. This uses the same patents mentioned above, and ended up in a hybrid bus that does not require any traditional fuel sources. It’s already circulating Toyota City in Japan, at that, and who knows which city might be next.

Audi and interactivity

The team at Audi, on their end, started out collaborating with LG to show a smartwatch capable of unlocking cars, but also revealed their Audi Tablet. This is a product meant to become a middleman in between mobile phones and the vehicle to ease communication in between the two of them. The concept, according to Audi is that cars are slowly becoming phones with four wheels and they can’t be left behind in the past. This is the vision that inspired the Audi Q7, a car from the future that connects to any and all of your gadgets, while bringing new functionalities like self-driving and intelligent navigation to avoid traffic jams.

Just like the Toyota team, Audi plays their part in saving the planet. Their collaboration comes in the form of electromobility, hybrid cars, and wireless recharging. Audi means to turn their engines electric, and improve the recharge times and means so we don’t need cables any more. Their innovations in the fields of potency, comfort and functionality became a reality in a new prototype called Audi prologue piloted driving concept, and it has all of the functionalities mentioned above plus connectivity that would make any iPhone or Android phone tremble with lust and envy.

Mercedes Benz: luxury in movement

Germany wasn’t happy with winning the Wolrd Cup in 2014, they also had to win CES 2015. They introduced the new Mercedes Benz F015, a fantastic concept vehicle created around the idea of “luxury in movement”. The idea behind this car is that it’s not necessary to drive it, but users can leave the computer to perform these tasks for him. These automatic cars are already legal in some states of the USA, and users can now pick exactly when they want to drive or not. Also, this is a car that combines high performance batteries with hydrogen cells that would give it an autonomy of over 1,100 km.

BMW and the i3 System

Another spectacular concept came via the BMW team, who came up with a solution to parking in big cities and reduced spaces. The i3 system lets vehicles park on their own, without users doing anything, and guaranteeing that they won’t touch any other car. This shines amongst every other concept at CES 2015 as it gives it a very specific function, particularly relevant if you live in the city.

Hyundai and Android Auto

Hyundai introduced their ecologic systems and new models at CES 2015, but their big bet was all about interaction and Android Auto, a system that turns your Android device into a screen that displays your car status at any time. Users can activate and deactivate stuff from the phone or do things like regulate AC, turn on or off lights, or unlock doors. At the same time, Android Auto is not the main system of the car, but it can also operate on it’s own. You lucked out, iPhone owners.

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