Why do cars even bother with infotainment, everyone uses Apple CarPlay/Android anyway

[Nocturnal310]

seems like most car reviews lately focus 70% video on the 'screens'...who gives a fuk about screens?
And hasnt carplay made all cars infotainments pretty standard?

why does bmw bother with all gimmicky 'gestures' to change volume when everyone uses wireless carplay ?

yet car manufacturers keep experimenting with new software and interface every year...instead of focussing on driving experience & feel.

[nosirrahx]

One of he reasons that I love my Evora 400. Infotainment is aftermarket from the factory, you can swap it out for anything you want.

I really hate fully integrated infotainment.

[nosirrahx]

BMW used to make a fortune from marking up a chit tier GPS and selling it as part of a $5000k 'tech package' to retards, that's why their implementation of carplay/AA is so terrible

TBH I never use my car's infotainment and get pissed when it pops up before AA is initialized, hopefully eventually all car makers dispense with terrible UI/UX proprietary systems and just go all in on wireless AA/carplay

There needs to be a universal standard so you can install your own UI and the makers of these UIs can compete to create the best infotainment experience.

[SouthDakotaBrah]

probably the same reason why ford and GM continue to make their own transmissions

engineers tend to be stubborn

[gluon]

infotainment is the biggest scam in the industry, touch screens are dirt cheap to produce. had some geek on here argue that infotainment is a critical measure of a cars luxury LMAO. also LMAO at digital speedos and tachs. another way car companies sell you something cheap but convinces you its high end. a nice clean needle tach reminiscent of a fine watch is GOAT. worst culprit is ac controls on touchscreen, ffs sometimes analog just works better brb crashing because i'm too busy staring at a screen trying to bring up my ac controls.

[phillipsanchez]

It's pretty cool to see your tyre temps, pressures fluid temps, lap times.

I still use Android Auto on my commutes because its just works so well with Wave, Spotify, Audible and Google Maps.
Thinking about getting a new radio for my older cars so I can use Android auto on them.

[AlBHappy]

seems like most car reviews lately focus 70% video on the 'screens'...who gives a fuk about screens?
And hasnt carplay made all cars infotainments pretty standard?

why does bmw bother with all gimmicky 'gestures' to change volume when everyone uses wireless carplay ?

yet car manufacturers keep experimenting with new software and interface every year...instead of focussing on driving experience & feel.

I use my Cadillac Cue. Not Android.

[Redfish225]

probably the same reason why ford and GM continue to make their own transmissions

engineers tend to be stubborn

I’d like to meet the 4L60e design team and put my foot up their asses.

[nosirrahx]

It's pretty cool to see your tyre temps, pressures fluid temps, lap times.

I still use Android Auto on my commutes because its just works so well with Wave, Spotify, Audible and Google Maps.
Thinking about getting a new radio for my older cars so I can use Android auto on them.

Bluetooth OBD2 + non-integrated infotainment gives you some pretty insane flexibility. I use this combination in my Evora 400. The GPS I use identifies dirt roads very clearly and I can't live without that feature. I do a lot of exploring while routing out cruises and nothing pisses me off more than this simple feature being missing in most apps.

[SouthDakotaBrah]

Not the best example since their 10 speed is one of the best in the world and can take huge amounts of HP and torque stock

They could have just thrown in a ZF8 and had a better transmission without wasting several years and who knows how many millions in R&D

Same with navigation, just go the Tesla route and put in an iPad with Google maps (engineers in Detroit absolutely should not be coding things or doing anything tech related)

[BJoe]

I’d like to meet the 4L60e design team and put my foot up their asses.

You may need to go talk to who ever approved the TH350 transmission back in the 60’s, that became the 700r4 in the 80’s, then the 4l60 in the 90’s before the 4l60e was around, even then, you’ll probably be wanting to talk to the accountants instead of the engineers anyway.

[phillipsanchez]

Bluetooth OBD2 + non-integrated infotainment gives you some pretty insane flexibility. I use this combination in my Evora 400. The GPS I use identifies dirt roads very clearly and I can't live without that feature. I do a lot of exploring while routing out cruises and nothing pisses me off more than this simple feature being missing in most apps.

Which GPS are you using? Or maybe you're talking about avoiding unmade roads?
Have yet to find a good sattelite GPS for off roading. Mostly because photos are so old but using trail maps on the go is a bloody nightmare.

[Murph0408]

generally agree. like i don't even use the GPS anymore i just throw waze on my phone. even XM radio feels like a feel thing of the past now; everyone syncs the phone and uses spotify or something similar.

if i'm buying a car i'm buying the performance and looks and feel of it. don't pay for the tech.

[jamalfudge]

You can't justify charging an extra $15-20k than the car should actually cost without putting them in every vehicle.

[kovalchuk71]

infotainment is the biggest scam in the industry, touch screens are dirt cheap to produce. had some geek on here argue that infotainment is a critical measure of a cars luxury LMAO. also LMAO at digital speedos and tachs. another way car companies sell you something cheap but convinces you its high end. a nice clean needle tach reminiscent of a fine watch is GOAT. worst culprit is ac controls on touchscreen, ffs sometimes analog just works better brb crashing because i'm too busy staring at a screen trying to bring up my ac controls.

Agreed. The loss of tactility in the center cluster is going to lead to a lot of unnecessary accidents in the future. Some areas in a car NEED physical buttons.

[nosirrahx]

That would be great but company's would loose money to the aftermarket

Only if they were unable to compete with them. I like the idea of forcing competition through universal standards.

"It sucks but you can't change it so we won't be bothered improving it" <- No one should support this.

[Jax05]

Deals, agreements, contracts, etc.,

Also good way for them to ask a little more for the car

[nosirrahx]

Deals, agreements, contracts, etc.,

Also good way for them to ask a little more for the car

If an automaker had an analog button/switch/knob package and non-integrated infotainment, I would pay extra for it.

[swoleyo]

BMW used to make a fortune from marking up a chit tier GPS and selling it as part of a $5000k 'tech package' to retards, that's why their implementation of carplay/AA is so terrible

TBH I never use my car's infotainment and get pissed when it pops up before AA is initialized, hopefully eventually all car makers dispense with terrible UI/UX proprietary systems and just go all in on wireless AA/carplay

Doesn't BMW charge you to use Apple car play or Android now?

[icewill36]

I don't like to use my phone. I prefer to play music off my USB drive.

[conspiracy5]

Yup agreed.
Just put and big screen and provide apple carplay/android auto.
A friend of mine installed a tesla style ipad screen in his camry and looked really cool (he got it from China) and u can even see tv in it!

[mesobuild]

I agree. Besides the actual car, I loved my BMW with great speakers, simple leather seats and no tech besides a backup camera. I do not even want the tech in there if I could choose. Two aux cables connected my music perfectly.

[Kewbrah]

I don't know what BMW were like in the past (I've often heard negative things), but the tech in my new 330i seems really slick but unobtrusive and came without being part of any extra cost option. I've been really impressed.