Table Of Content
- Some Ford Owners Are Now Getting This Big BlueCruise Hands-Free Upgrade
- Ford BlueCruise 1.3 Improves Hands-Free Driving With New Features, Launches On Mustang Mach-E
- Mustang Mach-E first, OTA later
- Caribbean and Bahamas on MSC Meraviglia and Carnival Venezia from NYC
- Ford picks up the pace on hands-off driving with BlueCruise 1.3 release
- Seven Seas Grandeur (Regent Seven Seas Cruises)
- Carnival Jubilee (Carnival Cruise Line)
While hands-free Level 2 systems remain controversial, not least because of the potential for drivers to overestimate just how capable (and autonomous) they really are, I'm still a fan overall. BlueCruise feels far more mature and stable than when it did when I first tested the technology. Though my hands and feet may have been poised and ready, the only times I actually needed to get involved were when I intentionally triggered the attention monitoring system by making it appear like I was looking away. Ford's other tweaks in BlueCruise v1.2 include Predictive Speed Assist, which promises to change the speed setting ahead of places where human drivers might typically slow down. That might be as you enter a curve, for example, or as the speed limit on a stretch of highway changes. However, the most exciting Japan itineraries I've spotted for 2023 are a couple of routes offered by Ponant's Le Soleal.
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Some Ford Owners Are Now Getting This Big BlueCruise Hands-Free Upgrade
Currently, BlueCruise is available on the Mustang Mach-E, the F-150, the F-150 Lightning, and the Ford Expedition. That's not the full extent of Ford and Lincoln's line-ups, true, but it's a strong cross-section of them. Perhaps more notable, you don't have to buy the fanciest trim in order to add BlueCruise.
Ford BlueCruise 1.3 Improves Hands-Free Driving With New Features, Launches On Mustang Mach-E
Designed with the yachting lifestyle in mind, Explora I offers just over 450 balcony suites, with each boasting 377 square feet of space. BlueCruise's driver-facing interface is clean and makes good use of the Mustang Mach-E's relatively small cluster display. Engage the system, and a large steering wheel graphic appears; big text confirming you're in "Hands Free" mode underneath makes understanding whether you should be touching the wheel or not straightforward. Ford's graphics show whether there's a car ahead, though you don't get the birds-eye view of traffic that, say, Tesla's Autopilot UI includes.
Mustang Mach-E first, OTA later
"The hardware and Ford-developed software stack is laying the foundation for how we will be able to seamlessly deliver hands-free driving excellence quickly to the customer in the future," Omari said. Latitude’s goal, then, isn’t to create fully autonomous driverless shuttles of the sort that Waymo and Cruise have been developing for years. Instead, the shift is back to technologies that can be deployed to passenger vehicles more quickly and more profitably. Instead, true eyes-off driver assistance, of the sort that Mercedes-Benz has recently been granted approval to sell, will only come on Ford’s next generation of EVs, expected in 2025 and at least partly built at the $5.6 billion BlueOval City complex. Omari is Ford’s executive director of advanced driver assist technologies, and CEO of Ford’s new autonomy subsidiary, Latitude AI.
Caribbean and Bahamas on MSC Meraviglia and Carnival Venezia from NYC
These will include the Retreat suites, the cruise line’s VIP, exclusive area that provides private spots for dining, relaxation and more, away from the cruising crowds. Following a similar format to that found on sister ships Mardi Gras and Carnival Celebration, Carnival Jubilee will be split into six fun zones and will offer lots of new fun alongside Carnival classic venues and activities. While the cruise line hasn’t given us many peaks behind the curtain just yet, it promises that there’s a lot of fun yet to be announced. The ship also includes more than 40 new and returning dining, bar, and nightlife options, and cutting-edge entertainment.
Ford CEO Jim Farley announced today that the latest iteration of the technology will be released this summer on new Mustang Mach-E models. Older vehicles that are already on the road will get BlueCruise 1.3 as part of an over-the-air software update later this summer. There will be many cabins with ocean views and balconies, large rock star-themed suites, lots of fitness offerings and basic fare packages that include extras like WiFi and a basic beverage. From Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Seven Seas Grandeur will be a sister ship to Seven Seas Splendor and Seven Seas Explorer. When it debuts, Seven Seas Grandeur will offer one of the highest space and crew to passenger ratios out of not just all of Regent’s cruise ships, but industry-wide as well.
While the headline features of v1.2 are useful, the system in general feels more stable and predictable than when I first tried it. For a start, there were none of the unexpected moments where BlueCruise decided it simply couldn't handle an otherwise-regular corner and threw control back to me in short order. "During our internal testing across a variety of roads in the U.S., BlueCruise 1.3 stayed engaged in hands-free mode for an average of 3X longer compared to BlueCruise 1.2," Omari wrote in an announcement on LinkedIn. "We saw an even larger performance improvement from BlueCruise 1.0 to BlueCruise 1.3 with an average of 5X longer engagement in hands-free mode." The Argo AI sensor package, mounted to the roof of its test vehicles, costs more than the cars themselves.
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Carnival Jubilee (Carnival Cruise Line)
Royal Caribbean can always be relied upon to deliver new and exciting features when it announces its new cruise ships. Icon of the Seas does not deviate from this fact, as it kicks off the cruise line’s brand-new record-breaking Icon class. Even before the cruise ship even enters service, it hit a booking record for Royal Caribbean. Expect the same restaurants that you’ve seen on other Virgin ships, including a range of international restaurants and none of the main dining rooms or buffets you’re used to on traditional cruise ships. Resilient Lady appears in May 2023, when it’s expected that the cruise ship will take its inaugural sailing from Greece.
Ford's rivals aren't waiting for it to catch up
The line’s unique, adults-only cruising experience is one you won’t find anywhere else, with its party-esque atmosphere alongside a high level of luxury. In practice, I noticed it most when BlueCruise suddenly overruled the speed I'd set it to. Certainly, I can't argue with being reminded that I was exceeding the current limit — which the system will still allow in hands-off mode — but suddenly cutting the target pace without warning felt like a problematic way of communicating it.
Today, Sammy Omari, Ford's Executive Director of Advanced Driver Assist System Technologies, announced that version 1.3 of BlueCruise will be made available in select Ford vehicles later this summer. Not only that but owners of Mustang Mach-E vehicles produced from 2021 to 2023 will receive the new version at no additional charge in the form of a software update. The one exception to the model year ADAS agnosticism is Level 3 autonomous technology. Omari admitted that Ford vehicles on the road today do not have the hardware required to enable hands-free and eyes-closed driving, meaning that when it wants to push that technology, a new generation of vehicles will be required.
Book a nice lunch cruise in one of our iconic blue boats, where you can view all the beauty of Amsterdam and enjoy a delicious lunch. In addition to having a huge number of staterooms and suites to pick from, on this ship, you’ll also have a wide array of restaurants and bars to pick between, as you plan your itinerary. The upcoming Norwegian Viva will be the sister ship to Norwegian Prima, and Norwegian Cruise Line has said that you can expect nearly identical experiences on both ships. But as for the fun stuff, MSC Euribia will offer five pools, one of the largest waterparks at sea, the longest LED dome at sea in the promenade, 10 restaurants and 21 bars. Just like all four of the Virgin Voyages ships, Resilient Lady will offer the adults-only environment infused with fitness, music and party-esque amenities that the cruise line is known for.
The second is Lane Repositioning, intended to build confidence in the system when you're surrounded by other — often larger — vehicles. “We do need new hardware, and the reason for that is largely redundancy,” Omari said. This includes both sensing redundancy, so that multiple sensors are covering the vehicle in 360 degrees, and also redundancy when it comes to control features like power steering.
What exactly that future, Latitude-powered, eyes-off system looks like and how much it will cost remains to be seen. For now, though, the 1.3 release of BlueCruise will land on all compatible Ford Mustang Mach-E SUVs sometime this summer. Right now, the “perception” piece of BlueCruise — that is, the first level of processing information from the car’s various sensors — is handled in part by software licensed from Mobileye. Hardware redundancy is not something that can be added via OTA update to Ford’s current lineup of cars.
The second route is an eight-day sailing from Osaka to Fukuoka, May 15-22, 2023, taking passengers to stops in the Seto Inland Sea, the oldest sea route in Japan. After nearly three years of shutdowns and restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Japan finally reopened to travelers in November 2022. That includes cruise passengers, and several lines — including Holland America Line and Celebrity Cruises (which is offering special "Spice Route" voyages that include Japan) — are returning. The fourth ship from Virgin Voyages, Brilliant Lady will follow the same design as its predecessors. While not much has been announced regarding the ship thus far, you can expect a good array of restaurants (while the ship forgoes the traditional buffet and main dining rooms that are common on other cruise lines).
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