There’s currently a race amongst U.S. automakers to provide new purchasers the Internet access in their cars that everyone wants. Usually, companies provide onboard Internet through SIM chips in the car or through the driver’s cellphone. According to Forbes, Toyota is going a different direction: the company is planning on installing broadband antennas to its automobiles in order to provide onboard Internet via satellites.
Toyota is working with Kymeta to equip vehicles with satellite broadband antennas, says Roger Lanctot, automotive analyst for Strategy Analytics, Forbes reports. Kymeta has inked deals with IntelSat and InmarSat, but no satellite network has been announced to provide the connectivity or what it will cost.
The benefit of satellites is that there aren’t dead zones like there are with LTE, and satellites aren’t as subject to slower connectivity during peak hours. Plus, cell towers are fewer if you get outside the U.S. Being that most users use broadband in their cars for navigation and driving info, dead zones and connectivity are a major problem for broadband in cars.
Forbes is betting on the technology debuting in a Lexus model, since the satellite broadband is figured to be expensive. The new Lexus LC is out in 2017.