OnStar, GM's connected car service, has been standard on all of the company's cars and trucks for years. The basic functionality includes remote access, vehicle diagnostics, and some other simple connected features, with more advanced fare like GPS navigation and theft protection hidden behind paid tiers. For the last few years Chevrolet has also offered in-car Wi-Fi hotspots powered by the OnStar system, connected to AT&T's LTE network. Following the latest tweaks in AT&T's unlimited plans for smartphones, the companies are now offering unlimited data to cars, too.

$20 a month gets you unlimited data access for any mobile gadget or laptop connected to the internal Wi-Fi hotspot in your car or truck. That's a pretty great deal on its own, assuming you (and someone else who isn't driving) are in your car often enough to make it feasible. Previously AT&T had offered 1GB, 4GB, and 10GB monthly passes at $10, $20, and $40, respectively. At the moment it's not clear if AT&T will be putting the same data limitations on OnStar customers as it does on smartphone users, i.e. potentially slower speeds after 22GB and lower-quality video by default.

Chevy estimates that it's sold more than 3.1 million cars and trucks with LTE hotspots included, in addition to tens of millions of cars with more basic OnStar functionality. The unlimited data option might be a thrifty way to get a month's worth of cheap data for a long roadtrip, as opposed to expensive day passes or hotel Wi-Fi. The plan will be available tomorrow from OnStar's web or mobile management tools.

Source: Chevrolet

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