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Wi-Fi updates????
- Thread starter CH46E
- Start date
allegedly, no. just has to be connected to your home wifi. you may want to verify it is connected and select check for updates before turning it off just to ensure it is good to go. I ended up just using a USB drive b/c it seemed to do it over a few days and I didn't want to wait as I could be dead tomorrow 
I actually got to speak to some people in the know in Dearborn about this very topic as the OTA updating system in SYNC3 is a disaster.
What I got back absolutely astounded me but makes sense as to how poorly executed this system is.
Apparently the thought was no owner would want their vehicle updated all at once (WTF) so they designed the system to do all OTA updating in the background over several days. So you would go to and from your house or work WiFi connection and every time it was in range it would download a chunk. No information passed on to the owner of the vehicle until it finished.What other software does that?
Next update we should see some changes with OTA updating but SYNC3 is a disaster IMHO.
What I got back absolutely astounded me but makes sense as to how poorly executed this system is.
Apparently the thought was no owner would want their vehicle updated all at once (WTF) so they designed the system to do all OTA updating in the background over several days. So you would go to and from your house or work WiFi connection and every time it was in range it would download a chunk. No information passed on to the owner of the vehicle until it finished.What other software does that?
Next update we should see some changes with OTA updating but SYNC3 is a disaster IMHO.
This is really good to know, but the more I think about it, this method actually makes a TON of sense from an OEM perspective. Not only do they need to account for people's wildly different internet speeds, but they needed to build a system that could both be updated as well as have 100% uptime. You know how when updating software or updating your computer's OS, you can't actually use the software or the OS while it is updating? Imagine that was your car. OEMs have to account for both people that would never update anything on their own unless forced to (i.e., my wife) AND people who seek out early builds to install them and try them (me). Not only would people be PISSED that they couldn't access NAV, radio, climate control, etc. if their SYNC was updating at the time, but its also a liability for the OEM too. If a person got in an accident because some portion of their cars systems weren't operational that would be nothing but headaches for the manufacturer. I actually think that if you want both a) a system that needs to be accessible whenever the user needs it and have 100% on-demand uptime, AND b) a system you can push/force updates to; this is really the only way...
Fair comment but........
It's not difficult to have a system that the owner predetermines downtime for updates. i.e. Windows 10 Update Program
Windows asks the owner when the best times to do updates are and only does them and the subsequent reboot during those times so user experienced downtime is mitigated.
The system can also be smart enough to calculate download speed and time. i.e. The software will, after making the WiFi connection, be smart enough to say "Hey the connection speed is 300MB/SEC I can pull down everything in about 90 minutes so Im going to update the system"
Or it says "Hey the download speed is 5MB/SEC I can't do it within the predetermined downtime so abort" The owner gets a pop up when they start up in the morning "A system update was attempted by SYNC but your connection speed was too slow"
The other option is to prompt the owner/user for another type of wireless connection. As cellular speeds increase with 4G and 5G its not unreasonable to do updates as you drive to work if you have a longer commute. Especially with Unlimited Data Plans.
So having a pop up that says "Hey do you want to allow software updates over cellular?"
It's only my opinion but for a company that year after year gets negative feedback on customer satisfaction surveys that in large part are due to poorly executed multimedia systems you would think they would see the light and be the gold standard.
U-Connect doesn't have any of these issues, I use it every day.
It's not difficult to have a system that the owner predetermines downtime for updates. i.e. Windows 10 Update Program
Windows asks the owner when the best times to do updates are and only does them and the subsequent reboot during those times so user experienced downtime is mitigated.
The system can also be smart enough to calculate download speed and time. i.e. The software will, after making the WiFi connection, be smart enough to say "Hey the connection speed is 300MB/SEC I can pull down everything in about 90 minutes so Im going to update the system"
Or it says "Hey the download speed is 5MB/SEC I can't do it within the predetermined downtime so abort" The owner gets a pop up when they start up in the morning "A system update was attempted by SYNC but your connection speed was too slow"
The other option is to prompt the owner/user for another type of wireless connection. As cellular speeds increase with 4G and 5G its not unreasonable to do updates as you drive to work if you have a longer commute. Especially with Unlimited Data Plans.
So having a pop up that says "Hey do you want to allow software updates over cellular?"
It's only my opinion but for a company that year after year gets negative feedback on customer satisfaction surveys that in large part are due to poorly executed multimedia systems you would think they would see the light and be the gold standard.
U-Connect doesn't have any of these issues, I use it every day.
