Report: Audi Wants to Ditch Interior Buttons, Free up More Screen Space
With Cadillac torpedoing any hope we had that the touchscreen trend might come to swift end, we started digging around to see the latest and greatest interior screen experiences automakers are hoping to push onto the market. The worst offenders cropped up in concept vehicles, though most automakers aspire to equip future models with more screen space than you’ll know what do with — see China’s Byton for an example.
As for less speculative specimens, Audi had us covered. The brand’s MMI Touch Response infotainment system sacrifices physical controls for three rather large interactive displays. Limited to higher-end models (A6, A7, A8, and Q8), MMI groups a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster, 10.3-inch central console, and a smaller 8.6-inch display for controlling the HVAC system. Apparently, that’s the interior Audi wants to run with for all future vehicles while it works up something new.
According to Motor Authority, Marc Lichte, Audi’s head of design, said the company eventually plans to phase out buttons in the cabin to better embrace newer technologies and forge a premium appearance. The next sweeping change for Audi interiors will be a head-up display utilizing some level of augmented reality (meaning it will adapt and interact with what you see on the road ahead).
Meanwhile, the gauge cluster will become smaller and show less information — allowing the HUD to convey fundamentals. Lichte also wants to see the center console morph from two separate screens into one really big one (think Tesla). Obviously, this change will have some ramifications.
From Motor Authority:
While today’s setup has a real volume knob, Lichte said in the future there will be no more buttons. The traditional volume knob will disappear, but some sort of alternative will remain, likely a volume rocker on the steering wheel for those who don’t want to use the touchscreen or voice controls.
While voice controls open cars up to the same privacy concerns we’ve seen with smart-speaker technology (e.g. Google Home and Amazon Echo/Alexa), it’s probably the best solution to keep drivers from getting distracted. Our main gripe with touchscreen implementation is how much more attention they demand of a user compared to a simple switch or knob. Several small-scale tests support this claim. But perhaps the most damning evidence came from the U.S. Navy, which decided to revert its destroyer fleet back to traditional controls after the National Transportation Safety Board faulted the new design as partially responsible for a fatal shipwreck. Surveyed crewmen also said they didn’t care for the new touchscreen systems, claiming they produce more fatigue and aren’t as intuitive or functional as dedicated physical controls.
That doesn’t guarantee Audi is making a mistake, just that there are some obvious drawbacks to its strategy. Those big screens are going to constantly draw the driver’s eye; interfacing with them will require more focus than the clock-radio units jammed into the dashboards of yesteryear. They’ll also grow heavy with fingerprints as you begin using them on a daily basis and may eventually drive you bananas with promotional items you didn’t ask for. But they’ll look slick in a dealer showroom and likely offer novel app-based features that require a very specific, and screen-centric, interface.
[Images: Audi]
A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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Well, I guess my current Audi is my last Audi. I use prescription sunglasses, so the are polarized. I was considering transition lenses for my next pair, but that would give me the same issue. HUD never works with those. Some of the touchscreens don't even work. I literally see a blank, black screen. Or in the case of HUDs, its like its isn't there. Also, if I have to take my eyes off of the road to do something as simple as adjust the HVAC temp or change the volume or input of the sound system, then that's a safety regression. Smaller screens, less screens, and a few easy to operate buttons please. It's not an airplane or a Star Trek shuttlecraft.
This world has gone mad. Goofy cast wheels, giant trucks for guys who should be spending their money on Viagra, and now touch screens. I will not have a touch screen if it means I have to buy every next car from Hemmings.