Really... an iKeyfob? Apple continues war on fanbois' pockets Apple has been granted a patent for an iKeyfob capable of unlocking doors, starting the engine and turning your car into a less good version of KITT from Knight Rider. Serving as a kind of car controller, the patented device works in conjunction with iPhones or other mobile devices and also performs as an in-car gizmo using …
I have keyless entry on a Ford Focus.
To open the car I put my hand on the door handle.
To lock the doors I touch the door handle lightly with my hand/thumb/finger.
To start the car I sit in it and press a button.
I can program it to open just one door or all the doors.
I can lock all the doors when inside by pressing one button.
How on earth would I save any more time? Perhaps a micro second of a micro second?
Start the car perhaps while I am walking towards it? Waste of fuel.
If I lose the key fob I still have my phone to call for help.
If I lose my phone I can still drive home.
If only they came up with some kind of iTraffic management that when activated moved every other car on the road out of the way, now that would be something.
If your journey is so short that the time to unlock the car door is at all a consideration in how long it takes then why are you using the car at all? If a second or two is significant then the journey is so short (a few metres?) that it'd be as quick to walk.
Yes but LA is special. It's the only place while walking out of a store I've been stalked by someone looking for a parking space only to have them turn around when it was clear I was parked further than they wanted. I kind of knew it was coming since there were several open spaces next to me at the end of the lot.
That is what most car keys do already. Press a button and your car honks or flashes it's lights.
So car thieves could have used this "feature" for years.
If Apple were to use the Apple watch as a key then this kind of theft would not work. The watch monitors heart rate and switches off payment functionality when the watch is removed from one's wrist. Similarly it could stop working as a car key.
Relax, nothing will come of it...
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/04/26/apple_car_keys/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/07/18/apple_patents_new_fondleslab_dashboard_distraction_device/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/08/01/apple_adjustable_car_interior_patent/
Etc...
Which just goes to show they are patent trolls.
Patent everything, no matter how minor, then if someone else does it. BANG, gazzilion dollars or we block all imports.
This is just so vague it could cover anything, so it's bound to get passed.
BTW, Clifford alarms and may others have auto start and keyless entry.
I don't think you understand the definition of a patent troll. A patent troll is a non practicing entity (ie. they don't make anything) that makes money purely by asserting patents, normally that have been purchased rather than developing them themselves, and only when they have been incorporated into a successful product.
Apple, Microsoft, Google, IBM and pretty much any tech company you care to mention are continually generating patent, many of which will never make it into actual products. Some of them (Microsoft and IBM for example) make considerable money from licensing, but this doesn't make them patent trolls.
Who said that they have no intention of using it themselves? They may or may not decide to make a product using it, depending on how well development of the idea progresses and market demand. They may decide to licence the technology, make it part of a standard or keep it for themselves. Whatever they do, they have a patent for a particular method, not all possible methods of doing something. Existing keyless entry systems don't invalidate the patent IF they work in a different way, and this patent doesn't prevent anyone from creating a different way of doing the same thing.
Find just ONE instance where Apple has sued someone for violating a patent they hold that they have no products that use it, and don't later make a product that uses it.
Apple only cares about people copying what they do. They could care less if they come up with something, decide they aren't interested in making it a product, and someone else does it.
It's called a center punch.
I accept that this does not start the car and only gives immediate access to any item left lying around.
However, ones car is more likely to be targeted by equipped opportunists rather than dedicated ringers/exporters.
This iKeythingy may provide some convenience but I can't see how it is any more secure than any current keyless entry system. This is not about innovation, it has been a long time since Apple was about innovation.
Am I really the first one to notice this typo? Knight Industries Two (later, Three) Thousand, apparently. So they say. Not that I would admit to knowing this, you understand. Cos I don't. I never watched the series, of course.
Oh. I see why I'm the first one now. Changing to anonymous before posting. Oops.
Considering that there will be a high priority that this Ikey can be hacked, I can see the future now. Someone develops an app that thieves can use to steal cars. All they would have to do is get near the car and that app would exploit some weakness in the Ikey. And this app will be available for $3.99 at the Google Play Store.
It will be the natural course of events.
I refer you to: Already Been Proven Practical
http://www.zdnet.com/hackers-steal-keyless-bmw-in-under-3-minutes-video-7000000507/
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2011/08/19/hacked-in-60-seconds-thieves-could-steal-cars-via-text-messages/
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/thieves-steals-cars-with-a-click-of-the-computer-instead-of-force/story-fni0fit3-1227055881485?nk=74f952d29eb2b781fea3deaec80e90ec
The search results already run into several pages with mostly unique returns.
When I predicted that the more cars become part of the Internet of Stupid Things the easier they will be to steal and burgle, I didn't realize some fucking dumbasses would try to make it even easier.
Yes, I know keyless entry and start have been around for a few years now, but this IS Apple we're talking about. You know, iCloud, China? Those guys.
The Register 
Biting the hand that feeds IT
Copyright. All rights reserved © 1998–2025
