The new BMW 5 Series is already a rolling entertainment suite. Not only does it have a massive new iDrive screen but it’s also a four-wheeled gaming console, as you can play a variety of different video games on said screen, using your smartphone as a controller. However, it’s about to become even more entertainment-focused, as BMW is now offering TiVo digital streaming, through its new partnership with Xperi.
BMW’s partnership with Xperi brings the Powered by TiVo streaming service to the new 5 Series, which brings all sorts of streaming media to the cabin. Everything from news, to movies, to tv shows will be available to 5 Series passengers. It’s unclear if passengers will need a TiVo account or if buying the car gets you a TiVo subscription but either way, the availability is there.
“In-car entertainment becomes increasingly important for our customers,” said Ingo Lasslop, vice president product management for digital products and services at BMW Group. “This collaboration with Xperi will allow us to deliver a world-class entertainment offering to our customers and transforms their time spent in the vehicle even more into a captivating and enjoyable experience.”
Just like with the 5 Series’s gaming mode, expect TiVo streaming to make its way to other new BMWs, such as the new 7 Series. It’s actually surprising that BMW would launch this on the 5 Series rather than the 7 Series and i7. The latter two cars have a Theater Screen option, which drops a 31-inch 8k widescreen display from the headliner for rear seat movie viewing pleasure. While the 5 Series’s iDrive screen is nice, and big enough to watch movies on, it isn’t anywhere near as nice as the Theater Screen. Plus, how often are front seat passengers going to use this anyway? So expect the 7 Series to get all of these content streaming services as well.
The main idea behind these streaming and gaming services for the 5 Series is to offer some time-killing activities while charging the i5. The BMW i5 has 205 kW charging speed, which can charged the car from 10-80 percent in just 30 minutes, so it’s not as if people need to kill hours in a sitting. However, the i5 requires a compatible charging station for such speeds and they aren’t always available. So when you do need a longer charge in your i5, you can pass the time by either streaming a show or a movie or playing a video game.
