Nokia Car Mode, a promising smartphone service

At the IAA (Internationale Automobil Ausstellung), Nokia announced Nokia Car Mode, a standalone application optimized for the in-car use of Nokia smartphones. Nokia Car Mode features an optimized user interface simplifying the access and use of Nokia Drive (voice-guided car navigation with Nokia Maps), traffic updates, music and voice calls while driving. Nokia Car Mode, built with Qt, will be available for download from Nokia's Ovi Store in Q4 2011 for Nokia smartphones based on Symbian Belle - such as the recently launched Nokia 600, Nokia 700 and Nokia 701 - as well as the Nokia N9.

Nokia Car Mode is the first commercially available solution supporting MirrorLink, formerly known as Terminal Mode. MirrorLink is a standard smartphone-to-car connectivity platform driven by over 20 major global brands from across different industries within the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC). With MirrorLink, smartphones can be connected to in-car displays, car controls systems, and car audio systems. Thus consumers can control their smartphones via the car dashboard, as if the device and its apps were integrated into the car itself.

MirrorLink is increasingly gaining industry momentum. Among the first commercially available products presented at IAA besides Nokia Car Mode is Alpine's new ICS-X8, a dashboard-mounted unit that lets drivers of supported cars retrofit MirrorLink capabilities and Bluetooth hands-free phone. After connecting their Nokia smartphone with the Alpine ICS-X8, consumers are able to intuitively and safely use smartphone applications from the ICS-X8's large 7-inch high-resolution display.

As a founding member of the Car Connectivity Consortium, Nokia is striving to introduce mobile innovation to the automotive industry. The integration of smartphones and their capabilities into cars is playing an important part in Nokia's Location & Commerce business strategy, extending the existing ecosystem and thus providing benefits and opportunities for consumers, automotive companies, application developers and advertisers alike.

The Alpine ICS-X8 will be available in November at Alpine authorized dealers. Please visit www.alpine-europe.com to locate a retailer.