Audi has prepared an A8 L long wheelbase prototype featuring the broadband internet with long-term evolution (LTE) technology to showcase how the production version will work.
For those of you who might not know, LTE is a next generation mobile broadband communication technology that is faster than current 3G systems. It offers data transfer speeds of up to 100Mbps, which is similar to a fixed-line broadband connection.
In plain English it means passengers can use the LTE broadband connection to stream music, high-definition videos and other data on up to six computer or mobile phone devices with ease. Current 3G connections can only offer data transfer speeds of around 14.4Mbps. This prototype has successfully passed tests of streaming high-def video and notoriously large data streams just like a fully equipped office. Except you will be more comfortable in this car than in your office!
This car is a webmaster’s wet dream! Guys like us, we can get so much work done while traveling between places. Mind you, if you buy one of these Audis you have to be working 24/7 because it is hugely expensive.
Developed in collaboration with communications pioneer Alcatel-Lucent, the car’s mobile broadband connection is a fourth generation (‘4G’) technology that is hotly-tipped to replace the Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) and the Universal Mobile Telecommunications Standard (UMTS) systems that underpin 3G. LTE allows data to be transferred faster than conventional 3G-technology and modern digital subscriber line (DSL) connections – wired landline broadband. LTE can also cope with large numbers of users streaming data, even at peak times, because of its extra bandwidth.
“We will use LTE technology to extend our advantage in automotive networking and further consolidate the Audi connect strategy,” explained Michael Dick, Audi Board Member for Technical Development, during the presentation of the A8 L prototype.
Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, announced that LTE technology would be used in cars by early 2011 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last year. Just eight weeks into the year, Audi and Alcatel-Lucent have revealed a fully-functioning prototype.
