Hyundai's Future Death To Key Fob Thru Cell Phone
 

Your Smartphone Will Replace Your Car Keys by 2015 | Autopia | Wired.com

This is great. I am all about tech. Hyundai is impressing me lately. Yes, I said it.

They have credit cards, debit cards, and so on attached to smartphones. Why not let the phone start the car!

Interesting, I know people would argue battery issue or security, but honestly with more tech it makes the 'average' thief less likely to steal your car.

I lose my keys in my bed, in my jeans, in my shoes, etc. I rarely lose my phone.

Granted there will probably be ways of hackers getting control of a master-key or some sort of software to hack the scanner and open the vehicle, but you never know..

Nowadays people tend to get their phones stolen more so than their keys (iPhones anyone?), so personally to me, this seems like it doesn't help much.

You can just leave a smartkey in your pocket, why add the extra step of having to swipe your phone? I think it's GM that already has a similar App that allows you unlock your car with a smartphone. Viper already sells an alarm to do everything that article say. I'd be impressed if there was a system within the car that recognizes me and I don't have to carry any kind of key at all.

This is one step closer to what I have lately been wondering: "A world without keys!" :) Personally, I would love to just have a phone in my pocket that would act as a payment, an ID card, a house-key, and a car key (for all of my cars). Now, in addition to these features, there should be some form of a backup and a feature to disable phone immediately.

I see this being easily abused to steal cars.. and I mean easily.

What would Sarah Connor say?

Do I have to take my phone out of my pocket, then start an app then press a series of buttons?
Will it work while my talking on the phone or do I need to hang up?

If so, I'm out...I like not digging for my current key.

Very interesting possibilities. My cellphone spend almost 100% of the time in the cubby, so I'll not be an early-adopter, but still very interesting.

Wow sounds pretty cool.

But just another gadget to breakdown :ugh2:

If a smart phone does everything, when it's out of order then everything will be falling apart. Do I have to fully charge my phone everyday? What if I forget and run out of battery? What if I am on the phone? Will I have to hang up? If my phone is lost or stolen, not only I can't call for help nor can I drive my car away. And in this case, I have to rush into store buy another smart phone and re-program EVERYTHING ASAP? I'd imagine a smartphone would be more expensive then a keyfob... Since I have to bring my other keys, I don't bother to grab a little keyfob as well.

that's how it is in korea now. you can ride the subway and pay for other services by swiping your cell phone.

i'm sure samsung is a major player for getting this technology passed, and it will surely leave apple out in the wind.

The future is not set. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves.

Agreed. My concern over technology like this is the problems starting to arise with pooling too much personal information into one very 'stealable' item.

My phone alone has connections to:
- My bank
- My insurance (Auto)
- My email (both personal and work)
- Contacts
- Addresses
- Social media
- Paypal

That in itself could cause some serious havoc if someone got their hands on it and if it was not password protected at multiple levels. Having your car keys/access is just another way to have issues.

I would like to hear how Hyundai plans on making their app (I assume) compatible with smart phones on different platforms without some major technical glitches.

That is easy to do, if the phone has the tech (NFC) built in it will work very easy. The issue is NFC is still a new tech item so not all phones or devices have it yet.

Also on losing your phone. I agree it is a huge security risk, but take my iPhone for example as preventitive measures:
-I can track it down to a specific GPS spot within 5-10 feet
-Can remotely wipe it or lock it out
-Play a security alert
-Have a full back-up ready to go within minutes of receiving a new phone (via cloud or laptop)
-Passcodes on every app I can and on the phone itself

This will always be an option in my lifetime with a key standard. It requires a phone with the NFC chip. Not even the iPhone 5 has this chip.

I was just going to mention many of these points.

If your phone doesn't work for some reason..... :ugh2:

If someone took your phone.... :ugh2:

If you go to valet parking... :ugh2:

If you need someone to just quickly move your car... :ugh2:

If they say you still have a key as spare....

Then what's the point.... :ugh2:

So what if you forget to pay your phone bill or the service goes out or you drop your phone in the sink...?

I hope that there will also be a mechanical, keyed lock as most remote-door-lock equipped cars (eg, 370Z) have now. Maybe not.

Some tech I like and others I don't. I much more prefer the key fob. Just make it more like the Vette one where you don't have to lock the car yourself. Just walk away and in 15 sec it locks the car for you. I currently love being able to walk up to the car and just grab the handle. But connected to my phone? no thanks. I don't use apps or any of that crap. Basically just use it for calling, occasional photos, and basic internet searches. Honestly, half the time on the weekends i don't even take my phone with me. I figure I got along just fine 10 years ago without a phone I can do the same now.

As for all this consolidating of data on to one device that controls everything, personally I'd rather they wait, perfect it, and then do it like they have showed in movies: implant the bitch in my hand or something.

They need a smart key fob that can work with multiple vehicles or something that fits in your wallet.

Great idea! It should be possible to make a fob in credit card form. Might not have replaceable battery. Not sure how one would be programmed - something similar to a CC mag stripe writer, but RF?

NFC actually isn't new technology. The concept is atleast 50 years old (beginning with RFID and eventually evolving to NFC as a standard) and has been widely adopted in other countries. The US is just way behind on adopting new things (Far too many people afraid of technology than there should be for a first world country, IMO)

When we eventually get the infrastructure for this I wouldn't be surprised if a card that fits in your wallet or your phone replaced your key completely. For those of you who are afraid that your phone might run out of batteries, it's possible for it to simply run a passive RFID or NFC tag that doesn't require power. I THINK as it is now our key fobs don't actually need batteries to start the engine, the battery is simply for remote locking/unlocking. Someone correct me if I'm wrong on this. :confused:

I kind of have mixed feelings about this. I think it is a cool idea, but I think I'd prefer a key fob for many of the reasons mentioned already.

Why don't we get rid of the key all together and use biometrics? Put a thumb print pad on it and you could program as many people as you want and never again leave you key locked in the car.

They will have 2 sets of keys.

A mechanical key for the people complaining above and I'll take the smartphone key.

By the time they successfully develop the software/phone-apps to unlock and start the car... :tup: (<== sounds like)

Hackers would also have successfully developed a malware that stole the code from our phone thus locate and steal the car.... :ugh2:.... :ugh2::ugh2::ugh2:


after all, why don't they use the funds to add some 20-30 horses or improve the handling or the quality instead of this kind of useless features.

I mean.... what's wrong with the keyless entry FOB...?? :confused:

Your missing the point. In the future there are no pockets. So tech companies have to get us use to carrying less stuff. First step is figure out how to make the smart phone replace everything you carry i.e. calendar, blackbook, camera, wallet, and now car keys. Next step is to implant this NFC chip into everyone at birth. They will then be able to track every purchase you make, every book you read, and every magazine you skim through out the checkout line in Walmart. Privacy will be a concept that we tell our grandchildren about (when I was a kid...)

Anyone with an iPhone that looses it or gets it stolen is a moronic. The phones can be tracked via GPS with the Find iPhone app. If you have the thing lock nobody can access it. Even if you could never find it you could remote wipe it. I have 5 iPhones from then 3s to the 4s and two iPads they are all tracked. I can look up anytime and find them. If someone stole I could track the phone where ever they are and have make a loud pinging sound when I get close (even with the volume off) Apple can always find them along with the police even if they are wiped.

Yet, I see that one could lose other phones often without the feature or the feature turned off.

Any moderately expensive electronics used or stolen by thieves these days can be tracked.

you guys are all frikin crazy... heres why.

look at 5 years ago people saying you could pay with phones and everyone who was scared..

As technology moves forward, it becomes more and more secure too.

As technology moves forward, it becomes more and more convenient.

As technology moves forward, it becomes more integrated with everyday life.

This is an inevitability. It doesn't mean it will be the only key. Look at your smart key now, notice the actual key in it?