The First Car to Get a Blu-Ray Player Is...

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There's certainly been a change in the past year at the features offered in our rides. As we get excited for the newest iPhones, tablets, and apps, we overlook the fact that cars are staying just as savvy to keep up with our desire to have the latest and greatest things.

You may remember my recent blog post on the importance of music and how drivers, especially millennials, want to have more than just a cassette or CD player in their car nowadays. Toyota answered by offering the MP3 input standard on all future versions of the Corolla, and now they want to keep the tech innovations rolling with the 2013 Sequoia, their full sized, eight-seater sport utility vehicle. What's going to change?

For starters, 2013 will mark the first full year that you'll be able to get Entune, Toyota's entertainment and navigation system that has apps like Bing, iHeartRadio, and more. If you haven't seen it in action, you definitely need to ask a friend with select models of the 2012 Camry or Prius, or visit the dealership to try it out for yourself. However, the big news that has got us excited is that the Sequoia will have an industry first Blu-Ray player built into the backseat.

If your kids (or passengers) have a collection of Blu-Rays they're dying to watch, it's a definite upgrade from the DVD players of yesteryear, considering the only other Blu-Ray player that has been available was a 3rd party one that had to be installed separately.

Some other changes will include a power boost, upping the Sequoia's old 310-hp 4.6-liter engine to a 381-hp 5.7-liter V8 that will come standard on all available models. A blind spot monitor has also been added to assist in changing lanes on the road.

An official release date hasn't been made but we'll be sure to update as soon as we get more information. You can read the official press release and all the changes to the Sequoia at the Toyota pressroom site.

What features are you most excited about?