Sony Is Ready for the EV Race With New Vision-S SUV Prototype

At this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Japanese electronics giant, Sony has unveiled its new SUV concept dubbed Vision-S 02 along with its intent to enter the electric vehicles (EV) fray, The Verge reported.  

As the world gives up on internal combustion engines and  to electric vehicles and the increased reliance on electronics inside the car, the lines between carmakers and the tech industry have gotten blurry. For now, it's no surprise that an Apple car by 2025 is in the making. Lest we miss the woods for the trees, Sony has now shown us not one but two concept cars in this space. 

Its first Vision-S EV unveiled at CES 2020 entered public road testing in December of that year and has since moved into safety and user experience verification of the imaging and sensing technologies installed therein, the company said in a press release. It has now stepped up its efforts with an offering of a 7-seater SUV that uses the same platform. 

Building on the strengths of the high resolution and sensitivity of the CMOS image and LiDAR sensors, Sony aims to enhance driver experience by utilizing the vehicle's sound system and the human-machine interface (HMI), the company said. Its advanced driver assistance system is currently at Level 2 as it is functioning is being verified on European roads. 

Sony's mobility interface solution will support gestures along with voice commands but will also allow users to use custom themes as well as acceleration and deceleration sounds. Like other car systems, Sony's system will also connect to the cloud and let you control your car through a smartphone-based application. However, the Japanese giant is going a step further and allowing remote operations using 5G communication technology as it aims to achieve low latency transmission of audio and visual signals as well as communication control using the system installed in its concept cars, the press release said. 

Undoubtedly, Sony also wants to extend its expertise in the entertainment sector to its mobility system as it looks to provide high-quality experiences on the panoramic screen of the VISION-S while also allowing users to remotely connect to PlayStation consoles at home while still being in the car. 

Later this year, Sony will spin off a mobility dedicated company, to further explore how it will enter into the EV market. Whether this leads to a Sony-branded car remains to be seen but it is quite clear that mobility is set to change forever.