iPads Don't Belong in Cars.

Cars have held a unique spot in my heart. As a passionate Hot Wheels collector in my youth, it is no surprise that I’m attached to cars and follow all the new developments.

The auto industry today is not what it was a decade ago. And unless you live under a rock, you know that this change has been brought about by the introduction of EVs into the consumer market. EVs have a lot going for them, the premier of the reasons being their sustainability and eco-friendliness. This is a step in the right direction, with the environmental damage that’s been caused by having almost 2 cars per family¹ in the US.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, I can’t help but feel discontent. EVs are completely going to phase out the very cars I dreamed of driving once. Even if they had just chosen to swap the combustion engine with a set of batteries and motors, I would have been happy. Instead, they aim to ‘revolutionise’ the car. Mind you, there’s nothing wrong with fixing something, but if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

I’m talking about the new minimalist look EVs aim for. Heralded by Tesla, this new approach to the interior has been adopted by most car manufacturers now. Slowly, the physical buttons are replaced with haptic touch controls, and haptic touch controls are replaced with touchscreens. This makes cars look just as sleek from the inside as from the outside. It makes the interior an uncluttered space for the conduction of ideas and visions. It also takes your focus away from the road.

Car interiors are supposed to draw bare minimum attention and deflect your eyes back to the road. Buttons are a great way to do this as they provide sensory feedback. You know that you pressed the button for the FM without having to see if it got pressed or not. Also, each function has its designated button on the dash. The same can’t be said for touchscreens. They provide no feedback, bury multiple features in menus, and require you to see the screen to ensure you pressed the right thing.

A Swedish publication Vi Bilägare² tested out if buttons are really better than touchscreens. They pitted a 2005 Volvo C70 against 11 new cars and measured the time it took drivers to do 4 normal tasks (activating seat heaters, changing radio channel, resetting trip computer, lowering instrument lighting) at 110 km/h. The results were telling. The old Volvo left the others in dust. Most of the cars - including popular models like the Tesla Model 3, Hyundai Ioniq, BMW iX, Mercedes GLB - took between twice to thrice the time it took the Volvo to perform those tasks.

When I was smaller, I was excited at seeing screens and other cool technology in cars. I could now play games in my car! Now, I’m just left with a bitter taste in my mouth whenever I sit in a car with many touchscreens and few buttons.

EDIT (5th March, 2024):

The European New Car Assessment Program will roll out new guidelines for its safety ratings, which include bringing back more buttons. I'd like to think my article had some role in this...

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Sources:

1: Number of vehicles per household in the U.S. 2017 | Statista

2: Physical buttons outperform touchscreens in new cars, test finds | Vi Bilägare (vibilagare.se)

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Interesting Reads:

I love electric vehicles. But increasingly I feel duped | Rowan Atkinson | The Guardian

Opinion: why do manufacturers insist on using screens instead of buttons? | Top Gear

I'm sorry but touchscreens in cars are stupid | Tom's Guide (tomsguide.com)

Buttons beat touchscreens in cars, and now there’s data to prove it | Ars Technica