Ford is upgrading its infotainment system to make it more like a smartphone or tablet -- and it is dumping its longtime software provider Microsoft as part of the change.

Instead, Ford (F) will use BlackBerry's QNX operating system for the new Sync 3 infotainment system. Ford Sync allows drivers to navigate, listen to radio and music, make phone calls and control the car's climate through touch or voice commands.

Among Sync 3's improvements will be the ability to expand or shrink the display with pinch-to-zoom gestures. Customers will also be able to swipe the screen's display, as they do on a smartphone or tablet.

Sync 3 will also have a better understanding of common voice commands. For example, drivers will be able to give a street address as "eleven-twenty-five" rather than "one-one-two-five."

It also will integrate better with the Apple (AAPL, Tech30) iPhone, allowing users to access Siri hands-free. The old Microsoft-based Sync did not always play nicely with Apple products.

Related: Car gadgets raise privacy fears

Sync 3 will be available next year on Model Year 2016 cars, though Ford spokesman Alan Hall could not say what percentage of cars will still have the old touch screens and which will have the new ones.

Because the new touchscreens will include new hardware, owners of the current Sync with MyFord Touch system will not be able to upgrade to Sync 3.

 

Only robots can handle these roads

 

The switch from Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30) to BlackBerry (BBRY, Tech30) has been rumored since early this year.

Sync with MyFord Touch has been a source of many customer complaints. The gripes about Sync have actually hurt customer satisfaction and quality ratings for Ford (F)vehicles in surveys conducted by JD Power and others.

The system frequently locks up, has difficulty connecting to a device and it sometimes doesn't understand voice commands. Especially frustrating is Sync's complicated commands to navigate the various features by voice.

Hall said Ford's internal survey show it has "turned the corner" on customer complaints and that those who have the current touch screen product are more satisfied with their cars than those who still have the more basic system which only works on voice commands. About 55% of Ford drivers have the touchscreens, while 40% still have the more basic system.

福特轉儲微軟黑莓信息娛樂系統
由克里斯·伊西多爾 @CNNTech 二○一四年十二月十二日：上午10時02 ET

福特同步3
福特正在升級其同步系統，這引發了許多客戶的投訴。
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NEW YORK（CNNMoney）
福特正在升級其信息娛樂系統，使其更像是一個智能手機或平板電腦 - 這是傾銷的長期軟件提供商微軟，成為變革的一部分。
相反，福特汽車 （˚F）將使用黑莓的QNX操作系統用於新3同步信息娛樂系統。福特同步讓司機導航，收聽廣播和音樂，撥打電話，並通過觸摸或語音命令控制車內氣候。

其中同步3的改進將是擴大或縮小顯示用雙指縮放手勢的能力。客戶也將能夠輕掃屏幕的顯示，因為他們做的智能手機或平板電腦。
同步3也將有一個更好地了解公共語音命令。例如，駕駛者能夠給一個街道地址為“一一二五年”，而非“一個一，二，五”。
它還將集成更好的蘋果 （AAPL，Tech30） iPhone，讓用戶獲得Siri的免提。舊的基於微軟的同步並不總是很好地與蘋果產品玩。
相關閱讀：汽車工具引起隱私擔憂
同步3將在車型年份明年上市2016年汽車，福特雖然發言人阿倫·霍爾不能說有多大比例的汽車仍然有舊的觸摸屏，而且還會有新的問題。
因為新的觸摸屏將包括新的硬件，當前同步與邁福德觸摸系統的擁有者將不能夠升級到同步3。
只有機器人可以處理這些道路
只有機器人可以處理這些道路
從開關微軟 （MSFT，Tech30）為黑莓 （BBRY，Tech30）自今年初以來一直有傳言稱。
同步與邁福德觸摸 ​​一直是許多客戶投訴的來源。關於同步的抱怨實際上已經傷害了客戶的滿意為質量等級福特 （˚F）由JD Power等人進行的調查顯示車輛。
該系統經常鎖死，難以連接的設備，它有時不明白的語音命令。尤其令人沮喪的是同步的複雜的命令通過語音導航的各種功能。
霍爾說，福特的內部調查顯示它已經“轉危為安”客戶投訴和那些誰擁有當前觸摸屏產品都比較滿意自己的車比那些誰還有更基本的制度，只適用於語音命令。約55％的福特車手有觸摸屏，而40％仍然有更多的基本制度。