Cheap new microprocessors from Freescale Semiconductor may help drive down the cost of in-car entertainment and navigation, making possible in Toyotas and Kias what's only been available on Lexuses and Audis. The i.MX35 family of multimedia applications processors were shown at this year's Convergence show in Detroit. They're follow-ons to the i.MX31 processors behind Ford's Sync Bluetooth and entertainment system.

The processors are based on the Freescale ARM1136JF-S score and include separate chips for:
-- audio platforms (i.MX351)
-- for cheap display-based systems (i.MX355)
-- for higher-end display-based systems, typically navigation systems, and integrating OpenVG technology (i.MX356).

The Freescale processors support both the Microsoft Auto and QNX platforms, two key players in the infotainment business. (QNX at Convergence showed an intriguing glass cockpit that would work with these processors, ) They'll sell for $10 to $13 in quantities, Freescale says, so the processor isn't the culprit when you wonder why in-car navigation systems still cost $2000 and the cheapest, in the 2009 Hyundai Sonata, is $1250.

"Freescale has developed a processor family designed to take hands-free infotainment control functionality - traditionally reserved for luxury automobiles - into every vehicle," said Paul Marino, general manager of Freescale's Multimedia Applications Division.