Toyota unveils new concept car - smartphone on wheels

Toyota Motor Corporation showcased a new concept vehicle at the 42nd Tokyo Motor Show 2011. The vehicle, dubbed the Toyota Fun-Vii, comes with a host of personalized functions. For starters, it can display content on the interior and the exterior of the car. So, for instance, the whole vehicle body can be used as a display space. There are customization options, too and users can change the body colour and display content, based on their preferences, hence making the entire vehicle a hub or a terminal for displaying messages and other information.

Smartphone on wheels

The vehicle has an update function that ensures that the software version for the car always stays up to date. The Fun-Vii can connect with surrounding vehicles and infrastructure, allowing it to detect other potentially hazardous vehicles, for example, vehicles in blind spots - in advance; or to link up with friends who are driving nearby. The operation of the Fun-Vii is not limited to the inside of the vehicle, itself, with a portion of the vehicle's functions accessible remotely via a smartphone or any other mobile communication device.

The smartphone car is able to seat three persons and for now is just a concept. However, it’ll be interesting to see how much of this technology can be implemented in real life.