End of the in-car CD player?

Cassette decks were once considered state of the art in car entertainment, eventually CD players became more popular and replaced tape decks. The way mass storage devices are evolving we may see a similar fate for the CD player in the very near future. Ford has already begun replacing multi disk CD changers for USB connections and Bluetooth connectivity. Sheryl Connelly the global trends and futuring manager for Ford Motor Company said, "In-car entertainment technology is moving digital more rapidly than almost any other element of the vehicle experience. The in-car CD player - much like pay telephones - is destined to fade away in the face of exciting new technology." At the moment Ford offers CD players alongside alternative connections such as USB, Bluetooth and auxiliary inputs, but as digital devices become more popular, it appears that it will not be long till CD players are completely phased out. Ralf Brosig the multimedia manager of Ford of Europe said, Ford will obviously continue to offer CD players while there is demand. However, over time we expect customer preferences will lead us quickly into an all-digital approach to in-car audio entertainment." Ford now offers the SYNC with MyFord Touch system in Europe - arriving first in the new Ford Focus Crawley. It provides a multimedia infotainment hub with multiple input options including, SD card ports, USB, RCA and Bluetooth. Ford also offers Digital Audio Broadcasting radio, in the form of DAB, DAB+ and DMB, with 150,000 DAB equipped Fords already on the roads across Europe. Starting in July 2011, coverage will expand as more countries replace or supplement analogue broadcasting infrastructure with DAB systems.