Toyota introduces Entune multimedia system in select vehicles

Giving tough competition to Ford's Sync is Toyota's latest in-car entertainment platform coined as the Toyota Entune multimedia system.

The system was unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show 2011 and will be available in select vehicles this year.

Toyota has always been a leader in the automotive industry, so it makes sense it would bring the latest in mobile technology to the car, said Chris Daniels, general manager of Bing for Mobile, Microsoft Corp.

Toyota Entune offers fully integrated and upgradeable entertainment, navigation, and information services giving an enriching in-vehicle experience. The new system allows safer connectivity as the driver doesn't have to touch their mobile phone due to the installed conversational voice recognition and in-vehicle controls.

Entune allows customers access to a wide variety of personalized content and services after pairing the downloaded mobile application and a capable phone with their Toyota vehicle. The technology is compatible with a wide variety of mobile phones with a data plan.

Available in select models this year, the Toyota Entune features applications like Bing, iheartradio, MovieTickets.com, OpenTable.com, and Pandora, as well as location-based services, such as personalized traffic, fuel prices, stocks, weather, and sports.

It also includes support for read-back and replay capabilities for text messages. These are combined with a fully featured entertainment and communication system, which includes XM radio, HD Radio, CD player, USB connectivity, Bluetooth streaming and phonebook. A high quality JBL sound system is available as an option.