Before I begin, worth noting that I am a software engineer specializing in compressed media systems and real time connectivity. That being said, there are several features I'd like to see supported in the Model S with regards to the mobile connectivity and browser. I know some of these feature have been discussed before, but probably not in the context that I am suggesting. Here me out:
1st Feature: Mobile Hotspot Support (as a *replacement* for the 3G service)
We all know the Model S has an always-on 3G connection. From what I read this is through AT&T. Right now Tesla is footing the bill, so none of us know what this is actually going to cost. We also know theres rumors that it may or may not have the capability of going to 4G LTE (I think there is not support for this right now, e.g. no chip, but they may not want to say that publicly as they may provide an update in the future.
That being said, My 4G LTE hotspot is $50/month (note: this is before Verizon switched to the "add another device to your plan for $$ cost structure). This is just a hotspot - data .. Not voice. I sort of expect the monthly cost, when we have to start paying for it, may be similar - perhaps $30/40 a month.
Originally I though it would be cool to just pair with your phone, and use that as it's connecivity. But the problem with that is when you leave the car - it has no connectivity (therefore can use mobile apps to talk to the car, etc).
What I am suggesting with this feature request is to support pairing with a mobile hotspot, which can just be left in the car plugged in (side note: does the model S have a built-in invertor (to outlet) anywhere?, if not I hope it can be charged through USB). So now that providers have switched from the $50/month for mobile hotspot, to the "add another device, e.g. mobile hotspot, to your existing wireless plan for $10/month", I think a good feature would be to support this. Then we can get rid of the AT&T 3G connection (which is slow…) and use whatever we have to both 1) save money and 2) much faster connectivity.
2nd Feature: RTC (real time communication) support, e.g. voice calls over the data service plan to any mobile/landline
So if the connectivity is data only - no voice - there is another option for "making phone calls" directly from the vehicle. From what I can tell, the browser is Safari running on linux (right?). Support for WebRTC http://www.webrtc.org/ is currently being developed into this browser (already supported in Firefox and Chrome). What this means is that if the browser in the car can support this, and it can tie into the car's microphone and speakers for devices, we can build web applications, (or Tesla can build native apps right into their console), that support VOIP calls, including integration with services that translate and go out over the PSTN network (thus we can dial anyone we want - mobile phones, land lines, etc). There are plenty of ways of doing this. Here are a few examples already supporting WebRTC and SIP/PSTN integration:
http://www.tokbox.com/opentok/api
http://phono.com/webrtc
https://www.plivo.com/
https://labs.ericsson.com/blog/webrtc-interworking-with-traditional-telephony-services
http://www.thrupoint.com/solutions/webrtc-sip.html
So in the end, with both of these features, we can have a cheaper always-on mobile connectivity, faster service, and the capability of making and receiving phone calls directly using the console (whether it be through a web app or, if the Tesla engineers like this, native support built-right into their app).
1st Feature: Mobile Hotspot Support (as a *replacement* for the 3G service)
We all know the Model S has an always-on 3G connection. From what I read this is through AT&T. Right now Tesla is footing the bill, so none of us know what this is actually going to cost. We also know theres rumors that it may or may not have the capability of going to 4G LTE (I think there is not support for this right now, e.g. no chip, but they may not want to say that publicly as they may provide an update in the future.
That being said, My 4G LTE hotspot is $50/month (note: this is before Verizon switched to the "add another device to your plan for $$ cost structure). This is just a hotspot - data .. Not voice. I sort of expect the monthly cost, when we have to start paying for it, may be similar - perhaps $30/40 a month.
Originally I though it would be cool to just pair with your phone, and use that as it's connecivity. But the problem with that is when you leave the car - it has no connectivity (therefore can use mobile apps to talk to the car, etc).
What I am suggesting with this feature request is to support pairing with a mobile hotspot, which can just be left in the car plugged in (side note: does the model S have a built-in invertor (to outlet) anywhere?, if not I hope it can be charged through USB). So now that providers have switched from the $50/month for mobile hotspot, to the "add another device, e.g. mobile hotspot, to your existing wireless plan for $10/month", I think a good feature would be to support this. Then we can get rid of the AT&T 3G connection (which is slow…) and use whatever we have to both 1) save money and 2) much faster connectivity.
2nd Feature: RTC (real time communication) support, e.g. voice calls over the data service plan to any mobile/landline
So if the connectivity is data only - no voice - there is another option for "making phone calls" directly from the vehicle. From what I can tell, the browser is Safari running on linux (right?). Support for WebRTC http://www.webrtc.org/ is currently being developed into this browser (already supported in Firefox and Chrome). What this means is that if the browser in the car can support this, and it can tie into the car's microphone and speakers for devices, we can build web applications, (or Tesla can build native apps right into their console), that support VOIP calls, including integration with services that translate and go out over the PSTN network (thus we can dial anyone we want - mobile phones, land lines, etc). There are plenty of ways of doing this. Here are a few examples already supporting WebRTC and SIP/PSTN integration:
http://www.tokbox.com/opentok/api
http://phono.com/webrtc
https://www.plivo.com/
https://labs.ericsson.com/blog/webrtc-interworking-with-traditional-telephony-services
http://www.thrupoint.com/solutions/webrtc-sip.html
So in the end, with both of these features, we can have a cheaper always-on mobile connectivity, faster service, and the capability of making and receiving phone calls directly using the console (whether it be through a web app or, if the Tesla engineers like this, native support built-right into their app).
