System will let smartphone control car

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SEOUL, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- South Korean car maker Hyundai says it's working on a system to allow a driver's smartphone to control many of an automobile's systems.

Using an NFC (near field communications) smartphone, drivers could lock and unlock the car's doors by tapping their phone on an NFC tag on the door, and once inside, the smartphone could be placed in a center console to activate a driver's user profile, with settings such as preferred seating position and specific radio station preferences, TG Daily reported Friday.

Users will be able to stream their own music and phone contacts to a touch screen display in the car, Hyundai said, which can then interact with a phone's navigation and multimedia apps.

The center console will also wirelessly charge the phone, in a system similar to one Toyota will be offering in its 2013 Avalon.

The technology, which could do away with the need for car keys, is a prototype concept not scheduled for production until 2015, Hyundai said.