Ferrari outfits super car with iPad Mini

UPDATE Unveiled today at the Gene­va Motor Show, Fer­rari's new US$1.3 mil­lion LaFer­rari hybrid fea­tures a touch of Apple in the form of two iPad minis mount­ed in the backs of the front seats. Accord­ing to Bloomberg, the inclu­sion of the tablets marks the start of an expand­ed part­ner­ship between Apple and the renowned Ital­ian auto maker. Also, if you'll recall, Apple's inter­net soft­ware and ser­vices boss Eddy Cue joined the Fer­rari board of direc­tors last year.

There's no fur­ther word from Bloomberg — which insists on refer­ring to the iPad as "I-Pad" for some rea­son — on how the deal will unfold, but the inclu­sion of iPad mini in other mod­els makes sense, along with Bluetooth-based audio inte­gra­tion and per­haps Siri Eyes Free. We're not sure how much the tablets add to the stick­er price on the limited-run vehi­cle (only 499 will be made), but when you're deal­ing with a $1.3 mil­lion car, it's prob­a­bly about the same as an extra cup hold­er.

03/06/13 Ferrari is adding iPad minis and Siri voice integration in its four-seater FF in the first show of collaboration since car-collecting Apple VP Eddie Cue joined the sports car maker’s board in November. Bloomberg Businessweek reports that the tablets will be part of the car’s infotainment system, accessible from its rear passenger seats.

On the software side, Apple added support for a feature called Eyes Free in iOS 6, letting drivers interact with Siri on their mobile devices without taking their eyes off the road. The driver starts talking to Siri by pressing a command button on the steering wheel of cars that support the feature, like the new FF. And more integration between the two companies is on the way. Ferrari’s chairman Luca Cordero Di Montezemolo said that his company is in talks with Apple to collaborate more on in-car entertainment. The comment was made at the at the Geneva Motor Show, where Ferrari also revealed its new hybrid supercar, the 963 horsepower LaFerrari.

In years to come expect iPad Mini-like devices in the dashboard of most cars. It just makes too much sense.