Randall Stross, New York Times: “Chrysler is poised to offer in its 2009 models a new entertainment option for the children: Wi-Fi and Internet connectivity. The problem is that the entire car becomes a hotspot. The signals won’t be confined to the Nintendos in the rear seat; front-seat occupants will be able to stay online, too.

Bad idea. As drivers, we have done poorly resisting the temptation to move our eyes away from the road to check e-mail or send text messages with our cellphones. Now add laptops.”

Sure, Wi-Fi in cars could be a terrible idea, but everyone knew this was coming. It seems like there are opportunities for speech enablement and integration of an “auto-optimized” version of internet browsing with simple peripherals for display, much like the portable satellite radio or GPS designed for cars. If we can make the web a useful tool in the car without making it too intrusive, it sounds like something worth doing.