Mazda will launch its new connectivity system – MZD Connect – with the redesigned 3, on sale in the UK in January 2014.
The automaker claimed its new C segment car will one of the first in the segment to offer a “huge” package of online services to go along with a redesigned interface.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Like similar systems in the Toyota Auris and BMW’s Mini line, MZD Connect works with the user’s smartphone (requiring a calling plan with plenty of data allowance), expanding existing navigation and SMS features (including readout and voice recognition). Mazda will offer the infotainment service Aha via the seven inch display on top of the centre stack.
Aha, a cloud-based platform designed for car use, offers more than 40,000 choices of content including internet radio, news, podcasts and audio books as well as Facebook and Twitter feeds and a variety of location-based services. Users need to download the app to connect in the car via Bluetooth or a USB plug.
MZD Connect also offers Mazda’s own vehicle apps, such as eco-display and maintenance reminders. With its modular hardware structure and updatable software, the system is said to be flexible and future proof.
It also supports playback from other connected mobile devices, and works in 25 languages for audio and 38 for text. The range of available applications and services will continually grow, the automaker promised.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataThe new interface works with ‘Active Driving Display’,a new head-up display.
