New technology that could be standard soon

Technology moves at a rapid pace, especially in the automotive industry. Just a few years ago, 200 horsepower was Ferrari territory – now Hyundais are pushing 300. The same is true for safety and technological features. Where anti-lock brakes and electronic stability control were once high-priced extras, they're now standard on most vehicles. One only needs to look at the features list of many used cars to see how far technology has come in recent years.

With this in mind, Kelly Blue Book, the used car pricing guide, recently put together a top ten list of new car features that could eventually all become standard issue for many vehicles.

As portable devices become more popular, wireless internet access becomes more important. That's why a number of manufactures, like Audi, Ford and GM, are offering cars with mobile hotspot technology. While the driver won't get much benefit out of this, kids on long road trips will likely appreciate the ability to log onto Facebook and chat with friends, all while using the car's own personal network.

On the other hand, drivers of manual vehicles will likely appreciate one of the innovations that has made its way to Nissan vehicles. Driving a stick can be a bit of a hassle, which is where SycroRev comes in. The new system makes sure that the engine is always spinning at the right speed for any gear, ensuring that a driver's shifts are always good.

Touchscreen navigation is currently all the rage, but Audi is taking it one step further with its new Multi Media Interface. The system can trace finger movements and recognize handwriting, so even drivers with poor penmanship don't have to deal with a keyboard – they can simply draw the letters onto a screen.

Perhaps the technology that has the best chance of becoming standard in the future is lane migration. Mercedes-Benz and BMW have been two big proponents of this safety technology, although it seems to be finding its way onto more affordable vehicles as well. The system can recognize the lanes on a road and tell when a car begins to drift, automatically combating driver inattentiveness and alerting the driver to mistakes.

All of these new features come with a price, however. Drivers who are interested in the technological innovations may want to wait until the vehicles hit the used car market so that they don't end up paying extra for features that will later become standard.