This is exciting for me and many other Avis renters. I exclusively rent with Avis for many reasons but read my post below and you will see one of the many reasons. I can’t wait to rent my next Avis car and I will be sure to include WiFi on it. This is great for long drives like from LA to San Francisco which I am considering to make in a few weeks. I like to be connected and this would be one more way to have that. Maybe my wife can whip out my Mac and watch her TV shows she has missed while I drive. I am already connected to the net on my Nokia E61i but this would take it to a whole new level.
Here is what
So this isn’t new, but I find it interesting nonetheless as entertainment options proliferate online. Avis rental cars offer Avis Connect, WiFi for your car. Their service is about $11 per day, available in major US market airports. The technology is to connect to either an EV-DO or HSDPA network (not sure which). There is an executive coach service from Boston to New York that also uses this technology.
So what does it mean? I think it’s a great idea for those dreaded road-trip family vacations. Remember the classic family trip – being trapped in a car with only as much entertainment as you can bring along, reach behind the seat, read without getting nausea, or invent in your own head. Now imagine you had the internet at your fingertips! Online gaming, streaming music, email, chat, endless entertainment. Would a parent be willing to spend $11 a day to keep their kids quiet, er happy, in the car on the way to Mt. Rushmore? I suspect they would if they are honest with themselves.
This doesn’t even consider the functional benefits for the road trip. Pass an ad for a historic sight, go online to see if its worth stopping. Get news in the town you’ll be staying to avoid any surprises. Find maps and phone numbers of the hotel reservation you forget to print out before you left home. No worries about staying in a hotel that doesn’t have wifi. In the end, this is a great idea that will revolutionize the family roadtrip. Unless, of course you take the family so far afield that you don’t have a wireless signal…
[...] to another! Add in the growing number of roving access points in busses (LimoLiner), rental cars (Avis), and even private use (Airport Express, Delphi/Autonet) and you could be seeing lots of spurious [...]