BMW has teamed up with Montblanc, Bowers & Wilkins and Moleskin to create a range of new lifestyle accessories for 2017 BMW 5 Series owners who feel the luxury sedan alone doesn't make them feel special enough.
Montblanc's is the piece most directly related to the car: the activity key set (which sounds like something you'd buy for a four-year-old at Toys R Us) includes a leather wristband that lets you wear the 5 Series passive entry fob, and also includes a special fob with "Montblanc for BMW" only slightly pretentiously embossed onto it. The wristband key is not exclusive to BMW, Jaguar has the Jaguar Activity Key for the F-Pace.
Moleskin, the Italian maker of "luxury" notebooks, brings to BMW's lifestyle catalog a smart writing set that converts words and sketches on paper into digital renderings that can then be displayed on a mobile device through an app, or displayed on the 5 Series' infotainment screen. It uses a special notebook called the paper tablet, and a smart pen that uses a tiny camera to trace and digitize everything you write. Moleskin didn't develop this tech just for the 5 Series, but this notebook has an "exclusive" sketch of the new 5er on the cover, and a pen with BMW lettering on the cap.
Finally, there's a set of Bowers & Wilkins over-the-ear headphones that links up to the brand's optional surround stereo -- optional in the 5 Series -- that lets you listen to the car stereo when not in the car. It's not clear how far these let you stray from the car, but we suspect you have to remain in sight of it. It's neat tech, for sure, but if you want to listen to a sweet car stereo in the open air, why not pony up for a 6 Series cabrio?
The Moleskin smart writing set and Bowers & Wilkins headphones will be available through BMW's online shop in March, and the Montblanc activity key set will go on sale in summer of 2017.
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