Ford on Wednesday announced a new Sync Destinations app for iOS and Android devices that will let users send directions to their cars from their smartphones, among other things.
The free app will work on the iPhone, iPad, and Android phones, and will be added to BlackBerry in the near future. Drivers with 2010 or 2011 Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury cars equipped with Sync traffic, directions, and information (TDI) can utilize the app.
Sync Destinations will let drivers access syncmyride.com on their mobile devices to add, save, or manage destinations. Any changes made on phones or tablets will be synched with the car. Drivers can save up to 25 destinations on the app, and once in the car, the navigation system will provide turn-by-turn voice directions.
The app will also provide access to traffic information, powered by Inrix. Drivers can see real-time speed, accident, and incident information for highways and streets in 126 North American cities. Analyzing traffic data, Sync Destinations will provide drivers with recommended departure times, travel times, ETAs, and recommended routes based on current conditions.
The app also includes local business search and address book integration for address look-up.
"Sync Destinations leverages the power of your smartphone to manage a user's Sync Services account and to plan ahead, sending destination locations to your car, and knowing what's happening on the road ahead of you before you even get behind the wheel," Dave Gersabeck, SYNC TDI product manager, said in a statement. "With Sync Destinations, you can be standing in line for a coffee, making impromptu plans with a friend or sitting at the ballgame, and conveniently add a new address to your Saved Points – without ever stopping to log into your account at a personal computer."
To prevent a distracted driving incident, the app also includes a 5mph lockout feature, which will stop the app from running on a smartphone if it is detected to be moving faster than 5mph.
Earlier this week, Ford announced that its Auto Start-Stop technology, which turns off a car's engine when it comes to a stop, will be added to non-hybrid cars by 2012.