Buttons are Better

[G30M]

Originally Posted by c1pher

I have no problem with stuffing some lesser used or customization settings that you’ll touch once and never touch again. But look at the Corvette, there’s a bunch of buttons in addition to the screen. Unfortunately from a HMI perspective the hard buttons other than on the steering wheel are not properly designed. You have to look away, maybe you can remember that long wall, but I also bet most of those buttons don’t even need to be there.

can't charge subscription for buttons and gear sticks coz they're always there

but if you can make it disappear in software you can make anything disappear without subscription

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by RM7

There are things I like to be able to adjust on my car via the touchscreen that give a level of control not previously found. It's simply not practical to have all of those switches somewhere on the car and probably not even possible.

True because modern cars have computer control modules that can tune the electric steering, automatic transmission, all-wheel drive system, brakes, and of course engine tune (especially if turbo'd). Obviously a screen and tactile control knob is ideal for those sorts of adjustments as they are done when the car is stationary. But with an E30 you know by sight what level of air flow is at each position (windshield, torso, and footwell) and the temperature via the position of the knob, and you could adjust the dash lighting brightness with a simple twist of the light switch, all while in the middle of an 11-turn corkscrew mountain road slaloming through at 45 MPH pressed up against the side bolster*.

I think the argument here is regarding the movement of most all functional controls to a touch screen. Not a bad ergonomic solution if the car is driving itself and you don't have to pay attention to the road...

* the essence of what made the BMWs of the 1970's and 1980's the "Ultimate Driving Machine"

[RM7]

Another thing I "like" about touch-screens is the ability to set custom settings on buttons, so when your buttons are programmable, you can select the way you want a tactile button to behave. That is kind of the "right" fusion IMO, rather than putting navigation displays on screens to your right or frequently used audio settings on your touchscreen.

I really like the fusion in the SS 1LE, it's just enough. With the radio functions, there's often 3 ways to do things, one on the steering wheel, one as a knob or button, and one as the touchscreen. That way you don't go for the touchscreen first by any means. And critical drive settings are buttons and info on the drive settings goes to the instrument dash, not the touchscreen.

But yeah, I think there are a variety of reasons why manufacturers are goin this way. They *think* the same ergonomic principles of an I-phone apply, they are saving money, and so on. Decluttering is a good thing, but not at the expense of human performance. Even if we are talking about a self-driving car, the exact same principles still apply, controls you may need to use in an emergency or quickly need to be accessible and easy to reach. Information that is important needs to be right in front of you. I remember renting a prius a few months back and it was a trainwreck IMO ergonomically. Important information was actually on the passenger side (whether cruise control was engaged) and no information was presented straight ahead. There were other things too, but this car seemed to be trying to present a "futuristic cockpit", but the actual function was poor.

Interesting aside, I worked a little with some research on gesture-operated auto interfaces. They had a few other applications in mind, but so far I haven't seen any of the other stuff show up. This was like 15 years ago.