Shamed by your poor driving? The new TomTom CURFER gadget and app combo, £80 to you, sir ($125, AU$170), could help you improve, by tracking and scoring your performance when it comes to cornering, braking and more.
Does it do this by pulling grotesquely exaggerated "I'm worried" faces, repeatedly stamping on an imaginary brake and shouting, "Slow down you moron, you're going to break the car," at you from the passenger seat, belittling you and then leaving you for another, more skilled driver?
No, it simply shows you, in a calm and reasoned way, how good or bad you are in numerical form.
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By adding a dongle to the diagnostics port on your car, the CURFER gives live feedback on how well you're cornering, accelerating and braking and how long you're leaving the motor idling. This data is stored so you can track your improvement over the long term.
Adding a layer of gameification and social sharing, the CURFER will even present you with digital trophies for hitting new heights of road mastery, and you can, of course, share your prowess with no-doubt-delighted friends, and both compare driving styles and compete with fellow CURFER drivers.
Although whether being able to announce, "I am the safest and most boring driver in my social circle" is that impressive a boast is open to question, let's say.
There have been apps and devices along these lines before, and some insurers make having something along similar lines fitted in order to qualify for reduced premiums. However TomTom's is the first virtual driving instructor/back-seat driver we've seen from a big tech brand.
