a screen -- touch or not -- is useful for setting things up when the car isn't in motion, but touchscreens are going to get people killed.
i live in a city and don't even mess with the touch screen / volume / AC while on city streets since it requires a lot of attention and people tend to rapidly pop out of nowhere.
Instead of the phony innovations, they should focus on the backend: figure out how to make vehicles cheaper, more fuel efficient, and eco-friendly.
Isn't the linked article a counterpoint as folks are complaining of too many features?
Consumers should be able to find a vehicle that meets there needs. If this isn't happening, then that means the market lacks competition.
> why would someone sell a product for $10 when it can be sold for $50
In a competitive market prices would never go up. In anything, competition should make them drop. The problem is the startup cost to enter the automotive industry is too high. Consider if someone wanted to mass produce cheaper vehicles, even for a niche audience, they need millions (maybe billions) to enter the market. If the startup cost can't be lowered, then perhaps the automotive industry needs trust busting.
We talking about the same auto industry that received TARP and other bailouts from the government? Yeah, I am afraid the trust busting ship may have sailed here.
Edit: I don't disagree about cars, I just think there's some car tech that's extremely useful, like, my kid's new car has cruise control that just keeps him a safe distance behind the car ahead, rather than just dumbly keeping the car at a set speed. I am totally willing to pay for that in my next car.
There is nothing VCs have brought to the internet that is of any value. Whatever is good here was already here before them. I know this because I was here before them too.
Maybe not, but they often do increase surveillance and/or replace useful functionality.
I want CarPlay and I want it to work. Not too much to ask. I absolutely do not want a car entertainment system with anything Google baked in, though. I'm slightly alarmed at things going that direction.