Will voice-activated RVs revolutionise the Big Lap?

Published: June 28, 2019

The future is here for tech-loving grey nomads, with Jayco launching what it claims to be the planet’s first voice-activated production RV.

The manufacturer says its signature Silverline 2019 range now has a personal virtual assistant – Amazon Alexa – making voice commands possible and opening up a whole new world.

Voice commands range from ‘Alexa, play songs by my favourite artist,’ and ‘Alexa, check today’s weather forecast’ through to ‘Alexa, change my TV channel.’

The company says it is focused on making caravanning trips even more effortless and even more relaxing.

“We rely heavily on technology when it comes to our home and work lives, and it shouldn’t be any different when it comes to your caravan,” , said Jayco Australia CEO, Garry Moore. “The introduction of Amazon Alexa in the iconic Jayco Silverline opens up a whole new luxury caravanning experience for domestic travellers across the country.”

According to the Cars Guide publication, other voice commands include:

  • Set timers or reminders: ‘Alexa, set a timer for 15 minutes.’
  • Turn the air conditioning on or off: ‘Alexa, turn on the air conditioning.’
  • While listening to music in Amazon Music: ‘Alexa, buy this song,’ or ‘Alexa, buy this album.’
  • Turn the volume up or down: ‘Alexa, turn the volume up.’
  • Get traffic information: ‘Alexa, what’s traffic like?’
  • Turn lights on or off: ‘Alexa, turn on the lights,’ or ‘Alexa, turn off the lights.’

It is yet to be seen whether the addition of a personal virtual assistant will become the new norm in future caravans and motorhomes and whether it becomes more than just a fun ‘extra’.

  • Would being able to issue voice commands to your ‘rig’ (and be listened to) enhance your Big Lap? What other voice commands would you like to be able to give your caravan or motorhome? Comment below.
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Soon we’ll be able to send the van on holiday by itself and we can stay at home and do everything by remote!

Sounds all great and fancy but reality is it will only cause problems. Some technology is great but too much is just a headache.
Keep vehicles and equipment as simple as possible. The more you put in it the more can go wrong. Imagine all the extra wiring ECM servo motors required for this set up.
Won’t be much fun stuck on the side of the road or bush with a van
that does work

More things to go wrong !!

No thanks sorry but I’d rather do these things myself

The launch of the 5G network will enable EVERYTHING be connected to the network controlled by voice commands, but it’s early days yet and some time before everything is total reliable. For now I would avoid this technology in my van, keep it simple and avoid the the headache.

No thanks vanning is about family or quite time and leaving the office behind to enjoy venturing around our beautiful country .

What happened to exercise, you know that thing we did to keep fit by setting up the van etc. On the other hand those with some disability may be glad to have some electronic help but I have to agree with Sarbi & Ant I don’t feel like been stuck somewhere. The cost of repairs or retrieval also puts me off.

Jayco could put their efforts into building a decent van!

Another sales ploy of a caravan manufacturer. Totally useless.

When you work it out so that I can say “Alexa, reverse park , build a campfire, start the BBQ and open the wine” let me know…
What a stupid idea…

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