As part of its quest to match the rest of the industry point-for-point, Hyundai has just announced at the Consumer Electronics Show that it’s entering the world of telematics with the introduction of Blue Link, its first foray into the safety and convenience sphere.

@funkmasterflex

Similar to OnStar, Blue Link handles everything you’d expect, specifically directions with turn-by-turn navigation, point-of-interest searches, remote door-locking/unlocking, vehicle health reports, maintenance scheduling, crash notification, remote start and – according to Hyundai – 30 other features at launch. Included is a vehicle slowdown feature to aid police if the vehicle is stolen and a new “geofencing” system that sends a text message to the owner if the vehicle strays outside a prescribed area or route. Little Jimmy will not be pleased.

Hyundai is also touting a new voice-to-text feature that allows drivers to reply to a text message with custom commands rather than canned responses.

Blue Link is set to arrive this spring, initially on the Sonata sedan and a “youth-focused model” before the summer, with the system rolling out to every Hyundai by 2013