The Tesla Model S certainly isn't the only electric car on the market, but when it comes to the 2020 Porsche Taycan it's the obvious competition. That makes for an interesting showdown: on the one hand, Tesla has had years to refine and improve its flagship electric sedan, but Porsche brings no small legacy of crafting performance vehicles to the table.
It feels like the Porsche Taycan has been a long time coming. Four years after the German automaker revealed its Mission E concept, the first all-electric sedan from the company better known for the 911 is about to make its public debut, and with it drop a huge bombshell in the EV segment.
Tesla has launched its own insurance product, promising more affordable rates of coverage for drivers of its EVs, though initially only in California. The product - called, unsurprisingly, Tesla Insurance - was first confirmed as being in the pipeline back in April, with CEO Elon Musk claiming at the time that it would be "much more compelling" than rival coverage.
In order for smart cars to be able to make decisions for both safety and self-driving purposes, they need to be euipped not just with sophisticated computer brains but also with a ton of sensors. At the most basic level, those include cameras and motion sensors and in some instances even lidars. That same equipement, however, can also be used for less than simple purposes, like taking pictures of cars passing you by which can then be fed into a computer that can identify not just the make and model of the vehicle but also notify you of potential high-risk behavior.
A project is underway on Hackaday that follows a person called Amie DD who is trying to get an implantable RFID transponder to be able to start a Tesla car. The bioimplant is installed in the woman's left hand and is an X-Series transponder implant in bioglass that was injected using a needle. The implant is an xNT NFC Chip that measures 2 x 12mm.
Despite their popularity in media, Tesla has been having some difficulty not just in production but also in sales. In the past months, the carmaker has been having problems reaching targets, especially as far as their more expensive models are concerned. Now the company is trying to entice would-be buyers into the fold with the promise of unlimited charging but, while tempting at first glance, current Tesla customers are painting a cautionary tale of such gift horses.
Tesla may be best known for its electric cars but an important part of that equation is the battery. And for Tesla to truly become a credible proponent of eco-friendly transportation, it can't settle for just any batteries but has to make its own. Developing sustainable energy sources not just for its cars but for other projects has become just as important for Tesla as making EVs and it as just announced it biggest battery yet. With the Megapack, the company is aiming to help power up utility-scale projects quickly, efficiently, and environment-friendly.
It seems that Elon Musk envisions Tesla's cars as more than transportation machines. Not so long ago, the electric car maker started adding the ability to play games on cars' displays. That naturally requires more interaction than some drivers and passengers might be comfortable with but what about passive forms of entertainment? That may be the line of thinking behind the visionary's revelation on Twitter that cars will soon play videos from Netflix and YouTube but not while it might be dangerous to do so.
There are already a few notable games available through the Tesla Arcade, but today, one of the most popular games in the world is joining the lineup. Tesla has revealed that Chess is now in the process of rolling out to Tesla Arcade globally, so if you want to keep your brain sharp while you wait on a recharge, this seems like a really good way to do it.
Tesla has published its second-quarter 2019 financial report, revealing record deliveries of 95,356 vehicles alongside a new record production of 87,048 vehicles. These new records exceed the previous quarterly records set by the company in its fourth-quarter of 2018. In addition, Tesla says its ended Q2 2019 with its highest cash and cash equivalents ever at $5.0 billion.
Electric vehicles are touted to be the more eco-friendly option for land transportation but their benefits will be for naught if their power increases the carbon footprint anyway. Ideally, EVs will also get their from renewable sources, particularly solar power. That is exactly the spiel that Tesla is making in announcing its latest V3 Supercharger station right on Vegas strip to power over 1,500 Tesla cars.
Tesla is making some changes to its product lineup today, dropping some vehicles and tweaking prices for others. If you were considering buying a standard-range Model S or Model X, then this is bad news, as Tesla has dropped both vehicles from its product lineup. That leaves the long-range and performance models as the only available Model S and Model X variants.