“I am about to start testing these products, and here is my conclusion.”

I was product development manager of a consumer products company and a member of an ASHRAE technical committee when this journalist/tester/writer for Consumer Reports visited a committee meeting and made that statement. That was 30 years ago. I have not read the magazine since.

What brought these memories back is the recent kerfluffle between Elon Musk, CEO of electric car manufacturing company Tesla, and The New York Times.

Seems that a Times reporter took a test drive in a Tesla Model S electric car. His report was less than enthusiastic. Musk took the reporter to task. Soon the Web was full of commentary.

One thing you should know–the Tesla car reported back to the company the details of the trip. Therefore, Musk had facts to rebut some of the report–but not all, it seems. The thing for us all to think about is how this Internet of Things, or Connected Devices, stands to benefit others such as manufacturers and not us, the users.

All arguments aside, what is the constraining factor for the overwhelming adoption of electric cars? Range. Even if range is improving, that is still the worrying thought nagging at the consciousness of all of us who need to go for distances between charging.

The other thing, be wary of some of these “actual use” reports. Read carefully.

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