<s>
Ford	B-General_Concept
Sync	I-General_Concept
(	O
stylized	O
Ford	B-General_Concept
SYNC	I-General_Concept
)	O
is	O
a	O
factory-installed	O
,	O
integrated	O
in-vehicle	O
communications	O
and	O
entertainment	O
system	O
that	O
allows	O
users	O
to	O
make	O
hands-free	O
telephone	O
calls	O
,	O
control	O
music	O
and	O
perform	O
other	O
functions	O
with	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
voice	B-Application
commands	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
two	O
generations	O
(	O
Ford	B-General_Concept
Sync	I-General_Concept
and	O
MyFord	O
Touch	O
)	O
run	O
on	O
the	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
Embedded	I-Operating_System
Automotive	I-Operating_System
operating	O
system	O
designed	O
by	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
third	O
and	O
fourth	O
generations	O
(	O
Sync	O
3	O
and	O
Sync	O
4/4a	O
)	O
runs	O
on	O
the	O
QNX	B-Operating_System
operating	O
system	O
from	O
BlackBerry	O
Limited	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Future	O
versions	O
will	O
run	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
from	O
Google	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
The	O
Ford	B-General_Concept
SYNC	I-General_Concept
technology	O
was	O
promoted	O
as	O
a	O
new	O
product	O
that	O
provided	O
drivers	O
with	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
operate	O
Bluetooth-enabled	O
mobile	O
phones	O
and	O
digital	O
media	O
players	O
in	O
their	O
vehicles	O
using	O
voice	B-Application
commands	I-Application
,	O
the	O
vehicle	O
's	O
steering	O
wheel	O
,	O
and	O
radio	O
controls	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SYNC	O
's	O
text	O
message	O
function	O
also	O
has	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
interpret	O
approximately	O
one	O
hundred	O
shorthand	O
messages	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
"	O
LOL	B-Application
"	O
,	O
and	O
will	O
read	O
"	O
swear	O
words	O
"	O
,	O
but	O
does	O
not	O
decipher	O
acronyms	O
that	O
have	O
been	O
considered	O
by	O
the	O
designers	O
to	O
be	O
"	O
obscene	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Certain	O
voice	B-Application
commands	I-Application
,	O
such	O
as	O
"	O
Turn-by-turn	O
directions	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
Vehicle	O
Health	O
Report	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
Weather	O
"	O
and	O
climate	O
control	O
commands	O
are	O
not	O
available	O
in	O
some	O
countries	O
such	O
as	O
Canada	O
due	O
to	O
compatibility	O
issues	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SYNC	O
can	O
convert	O
a	O
user	O
's	O
SMS	B-Device
messages	O
to	O
audio	O
and	O
read	O
them	O
out	O
loud	O
to	O
the	O
user	O
through	O
the	O
vehicle	O
's	O
speaker	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
feature	O
is	O
supported	O
by	O
several	O
phone	O
operating	O
systems	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
iPhone	B-Device
,	O
most	O
Android	B-Application
models	O
,	O
and	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
Mobile	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
feature	O
is	O
also	O
dependent	O
on	O
the	O
phone	O
support	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
Message	O
Access	O
Profile	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SYNC	O
can	O
connect	O
to	O
popular	O
digital	O
music	O
players	O
via	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
or	O
a	O
USB	O
connection	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
can	O
browse	O
through	O
music	O
collections	O
by	O
genre	O
,	O
album	O
,	O
artist	O
,	O
and	O
song	O
title	O
using	O
voice	B-Application
commands	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
certain	O
devices	O
,	O
SYNC	O
is	O
also	O
capable	O
of	O
playing	O
protected	O
content	O
(	O
for	O
example	O
Zune	B-Library
Pass	O
downloads	O
)	O
,	O
provided	O
that	O
usage	O
rights	O
on	O
the	O
device	O
are	O
current	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
AppLink	O
allows	O
iPhone	B-Device
and	O
Android-based	O
cellular	O
devices	O
to	O
run	O
approved	O
applications	O
using	O
the	O
car	O
's	O
buttons	O
or	O
voice	B-Application
commands	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
set	O
of	O
announced	O
applications	O
for	O
the	O
U.S.	O
included	O
Pandora	B-Application
Radio	I-Application
,	O
Stitcher	B-Application
Radio	I-Application
,	O
iHeartRadio	O
,	O
OpenBeak	O
,	O
NPR	O
News	O
,	O
Slacker	B-Application
Radio	I-Application
,	O
TuneIn	B-Application
Radio	I-Application
and	O
Ford	B-General_Concept
SYNC	I-General_Concept
Destinations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rhapsody	O
announced	O
AppLink	O
capability	O
of	O
its	O
Android-based	O
mobile	O
app	O
in	O
January	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Spotify	B-Application
was	O
made	O
available	O
to	O
iPhone	B-Device
users	O
in	O
March	O
2013	O
and	O
later	O
to	O
Android	B-Application
users	O
too	O
,	O
but	O
discontinued	O
in	O
January	O
2018	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Applications	O
for	O
the	O
U.K.	O
market	O
(	O
as	O
of	O
September	O
2019	O
)	O
are	O
Glympse	O
(	O
real-time	O
location	O
sharing	O
)	O
,	O
Waze	B-Application
(	O
navigation	O
)	O
,	O
Sygic	O
(	O
navigation	O
)	O
,	O
Radioplayer	B-Application
,	O
EventSeeker	O
,	O
CitySeeker	O
,	O
HearMeOut	O
,	O
AccuWeather	O
and	O
Acast	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
information	O
for	O
traffic	O
alerts	O
and	O
Turn-By-Turn	O
Directions	O
are	O
provided	O
by	O
INRIX	O
and	O
Telenav	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
LogMeIn	B-Application
application	O
allows	O
users	O
to	O
remotely	O
access	O
an	O
office	O
computer	O
using	O
a	O
data	O
connection	O
provided	O
by	O
Sprint	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
user	O
can	O
open	O
applications	O
on	O
the	O
remote	O
computer	O
,	O
make	O
updates	O
and	O
print	O
documents	O
using	O
a	O
Ford-certified	O
,	O
Bluetooth-enabled	O
keyboard	O
and	O
printer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tool	O
Link	O
is	O
an	O
application	O
that	O
enables	O
a	O
user	O
to	O
take	O
physical	O
inventory	O
of	O
objects	O
present	O
in	O
the	O
truck	O
bed	O
using	O
radio-frequency	B-Application
identification	I-Application
(	O
RFID	B-Application
)	O
tags	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
user	O
attaches	O
RFID	B-Application
tags	I-Application
to	O
an	O
object	O
,	O
allowing	O
the	O
SYNC	O
system	O
to	O
detect	O
the	O
object	O
's	O
presence	O
or	O
absence	O
and	O
noting	O
the	O
object	O
's	O
status	O
on	O
the	O
in-dash	O
computer	O
display	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ford	O
had	O
exclusive	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
Microsoft	B-Operating_System
Auto	I-Operating_System
embedded	O
operating	O
system	O
that	O
powered	O
the	O
early	O
versions	O
of	O
SYNC	O
until	O
the	O
exclusivity	O
agreement	O
expired	O
in	O
November	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Ford-developed	O
user	O
interface	O
elements	O
and	O
Ford-developed	O
applications	O
remain	O
exclusive	O
to	O
Ford	O
group	O
vehicles	O
and	O
are	O
not	O
available	O
to	O
other	O
manufacturers	O
using	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
Embedded	I-Operating_System
Automotive	I-Operating_System
for	O
the	O
basis	O
of	O
their	O
in-vehicle	O
infotainment	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SYNC	O
v1	O
,	O
which	O
debuted	O
September	O
2007	O
,	O
offered	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
play	O
certain	O
entertainment	O
media	O
,	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
connect	O
to	O
certain	O
mobile	O
phones	O
and	O
digital	O
audio	O
players	O
and	O
to	O
utilize	O
SMS	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
applications	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
Ford	O
Work	O
Solution	O
were	O
Crew	O
Chief	O
,	O
Garmin	O
Nav	O
,	O
LogMeIn	B-Application
and	O
Tool	O
Link	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
11	O
,	O
2014	O
,	O
Ford	O
announced	O
Sync	O
3	O
,	O
which	O
will	O
replace	O
MyFord	O
Touch	O
,	O
will	O
have	O
simpler	O
features	O
and	O
will	O
be	O
powered	O
by	O
QNX	B-Operating_System
software	O
by	O
BlackBerry	O
Limited	O
instead	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Over	O
half	O
of	O
Ford	O
's	O
North	O
American	O
vehicles	O
will	O
have	O
Sync	O
3	O
by	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2015	O
and	O
will	O
be	O
expanded	O
globally	O
afterward	O
;	O
vehicles	O
not	O
equipped	O
with	O
Sync	O
3	O
will	O
be	O
equipped	O
with	O
the	O
original	O
Ford	B-General_Concept
Sync	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ford	O
cited	O
issues	O
with	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
complex	O
software	O
dragging	O
down	O
its	O
scores	O
with	O
Consumer	O
Reports	O
and	O
other	O
consumer	O
magazines	O
being	O
a	O
reason	O
it	O
switched	O
to	O
the	O
BlackBerry	O
QNX	B-Operating_System
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
generation	O
of	O
the	O
Ford	O
's	O
SYNC	O
computer	O
was	O
designed	O
in	O
cooperation	O
with	O
Continental	O
AG	O
and	O
is	O
built	O
around	O
a	O
400MHz	O
Freescale	O
i.MX31L	O
processor	O
with	O
an	O
ARM	B-Architecture
11	O
CPU	O
core	O
,	O
uses	O
256MB	O
of	O
133MHz	O
Mobile	O
DDR	O
SDRAM	O
from	O
Micron	O
and	O
2GB	O
of	O
Samsung	O
NAND	O
flash	B-Device
memory	I-Device
,	O
runs	O
the	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
Embedded	I-Operating_System
Automotive	I-Operating_System
operating	O
system	O
,	O
and	O
uses	O
speech	O
technology	O
by	O
Nuance	O
Communications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Cambridge	O
Silicon	O
Radio	O
(	O
CSR	O
)	O
BlueCore4	O
chip	O
provides	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
connectivity	O
with	O
compatible	O
phones	O
and	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SYNC	O
3	O
hardware	O
is	O
a	O
TI	O
OMAP5432	O
CPU	O
,	O
using	O
ARM	B-Architecture
Cortex-A15	O
cores	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SYNC	O
4	O
hardware	O
is	O
an	O
NXP	B-Architecture
i.MX	I-Architecture
8	O
Series	O
,	O
using	O
ARM	B-Architecture
Cortex-A53	O
cores	O
.	O
</s>
