BMW updates online services, supports Android

BMW announced new features and a reorganization of the online features in its iDrive cabin electronics interface.

(Credit: BMW)

Almost every new BMW model will come with an integrated SIM card, enabling a dedicated data connection into the car. BMW also announced this week that it would release an Android version of its Connected app, currently only available on iOS, this summer.

This week’s announcement comes as part of a larger reorganization of the connected components of BMW’s iDrive cabin electronics.

As we saw in BMW 750Li, recently reviewed by CNET, the automaker currently includes music coming in through satellite radio, traffic data delivered as an FM radio signal, the BMW Online service, and the BMW Connected app for smartphone integration.

The reorganization does not actually consolidate these disparate features, but seems as if BMW is starting to get a handle on an area it let run wild. BMW says that it will include a dedicated data connection in most of its new models to power the BMW Online services. These services are built into the car, and include Yelp, stocks, news, parking garage information, destination photos, and many others. Owners can selectively install the online services they find the most useful.