Breaking News: Apple to Announce Connected Car at the WWDC 2012

Apple may announce its plans for entering into the connected car space at the upcoming WWDC. Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs dreamed of an iCar. In fact, Apple board member Mickey Drexler confirmed the long-held rumors of the company’s possible foray into the automotive industry when he revealed that Steve Job’s “dream before he died was to design an iCar.” "Look at the car industry; it's a tragedy in America. Who is designing the cars?" said Drexler.

It is known that Jobs and Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn met at some point to go over the iCar, which resulted in a German publication printing a photo of a VW concept (see left) alongside an iPhone.

But what if the iCar is just an in-car entertainment and driver information system that is all controlled and operated by an integrated Apple iPad. The iPad is mounted in a custom dock attached to an extending tilt and swivel arm in the center of the car so that it can be operated by both driver and passenger. The tablet is responsible for all of the car’s “infotainment” functions, including audio, video, satellite navigation and even climate controls. For example, like something in the picture below:

Also, something to consider is that latest Apple products including iPhones and iPads, have been equipped with Bluetooth 4.0.  What if the WWDC announcement is about car OEMs adopting the Bluetooth 4.0 standard to enable the connected car?