Hyundai has announced that it is to replace the in-car cigarette lighter with a USB port after a survey of Hyundai buyers in Korea revealed that 84 per cent of respondents said they didn't use the lighter in their car and 92 per cent expressed a preference for a USB port over the lighter hole.
For the moment the move will only apply to Korean domestic market cars, but could in time be rolled out to other markets. Hyundai claims it is the "first auto company in the world" to make the move and comes at a time when smoking has fallen out of favour with many in the developed world due to better understanding of the health effects and the rising costs of cigarettes.
Hyundai is not the first company to notice that cigarette lighters are no longer used for lighting cigarettes with many manufacturers labelling the orifice as a 12v socket and fitting a 'blank' lighter when not in use. Hyundai does say however that its USB charger will fully charge a smartphone in less than an hour as opposed to the 'up to seven hours' it can take through a separate portable charger.
The news does present a rather significant problem (and not just because I am a smoker). While smartphones and tablets can be charged via USB (while also providing a quick and easy way to access your music) they are not the only devices regularly used in cars.
Some satellite navigation units come equipped with USB power leads, but not all, while most tyre compressors (like those supplied with new cars in lieu of a spare wheel) rely on a 12v socket. While Hyundai says its in-car ashtrays will remain the same and that smokers can buy a USB-powered cigarette lighter if they wish, that is unlikely to be of much comfort to somebody stranded by the side of a road on dreary night, unable to pump up their tyres due to lack of a 12v socket. And they will not even be able to have a smoke while waiting on the recovery services!