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For years, car safety experts and regular drivers have lamented the loss of the simple button. Modern cars have replaced nearly one-sided dashboards full of tactile buttons with sleek, iPad-like digital displays, despite concerns that these attractive devices may worsen distracted driving. But there are signs that the tide is turning.
After years of being all-in on touchscreens, Korean automaker Hyundai is publicly switching gears. Ha Hak-soo, vice president of Hyundai Design North America, recently reported the shift interview with JoongAng daily He admitted that the company was lured by the ‘wow’ factor of huge, all-in-one screen-based infotainment systems. Customers apparently did not share that enthusiasm.
“When we tested with our focus group, we realized that people get stressed, irritated and stressed when they want to control something but can’t,” Ha said.
Now the company is reversing course. Hyundai previously announced it would use physical knobs and buttons for many in-cabin controls in its new range of vehicles. They are not alone. Porsche and Volkswagen are among the major brands planning to buck the trend. It is part of what appears to be a broader recognition of so-called ‘screen fatigueamong car buyers.
Touch screens allow car manufacturers to bring together functions in one panel
The first touchscreen in a car dates back almost forty years ago 1986 Buick Riviera. That application, a cathode ray tube powered 3×4 inch box, was relatively quaint compared to the huge desktop screens in some modern vehicles.
Over the years, screens gradually developed in size and overall functionality. These screens were no longer only used to operate the air conditioning and radio. Over time, drivers in some models could use touchscreens to adjust key car mechanisms such as traction control and even switch between performance modes. The introduction of systems such as Apple and Google CarPlay, which allow users to access certain phone functions via the car’s display, similarly encouraged car manufacturers to equip their vehicles with larger, more intuitive touchscreens. At the same time, touch screens do reportedly becoming much more cost-effective for automakers.
In theory, a tablet-like display should free up more space at the front of the vehicle by replacing a dashboard full of analog buttons with one centralized control panel. Because the screen interface is not limited by space, it also gives drivers a greater ability to customize and control every aspect of their driving experience, from seamlessly linked Spotify playlists to perfectly warm seats. Tesla, which has perhaps done more than any other automaker to popularize today’s touchscreen aesthetic in cars, has taken this trend to its logical conclusion by adding the ability to play graphically intensive video games, such as Cyber Punk 2077.
Many drivers find touchscreens too complicated and annoying
But it turns out that, for the most part, drivers aren’t that interested in all that choice and functionality. A survey of American car owners last year by JD Power found, for the first time in 28 years, that overall consumer satisfaction with their cars fell for two years in a row. The main cause of that dissatisfaction was complicated, difficult-to-navigate touch-based infotainment systems. A more recent one J.D. Power research found that most drivers simply considered passenger-side displays – a growing trend in the industry – “not necessary.” Only 56% of drivers surveyed said they preferred to use their car’s built-in infotainment systems to play audio.
“This year’s survey makes it clear that owners find some technologies of little use and/or persistently annoying,” JD Power director of user experience benchmarking and technology Kathleen Rizk, said in a statement.
There is also evidence that an increasing reliance on overly complex, touch-based infotainment screens could pose a safety risk. A 2017 research conducted by the AAA Foundation claims that drivers navigating through in-car screens to program navigation apps and other functions were “visually and mentally distracted” for an average of 40 seconds. A car traveling at 50 miles per hour can travel half a mile in that time. Buttons and buttons are not completely distraction-free, but research shows Their tactile response makes it easier for drivers to use them without looking down and away from the road. The European New Car Assessment Program (NCAP), an independent safety organization, entered the debate earlier this year, announcing it would award five-star safety ratings to cars with physical controls for turn signals, wipers, horns and other critical features. .
[ Related: Too many screens? Why car safety experts want to bring back buttons ]
A reinforcement of knots?
A handful of automakers are responding to this growing dissatisfaction by going back to basics. In the case of Hyundai, the company is responding directly to customer feedback it has received through focus groups. Drivers reportedly complained about touchscreen systems that sometimes added annoying levels of friction to simple functions like climate control and music. In some cases, says Hyundai Design VP Ha, touchscreen systems would require multiple taps to perform a function that a physical button could perform instantly.
“When we added integrated [infotainment] screens in our vehicles, we also tried to put touchscreen-based controls, and people did not prefer that,” Ha said during his interview with JoongAng daily.
Ha’s comments come a year after luxury carmaker Porsche revealed this would be the case move away from the completely touch-based form experiences and add more physical controls for its Cayenne SUV. Volkswagen similarly announced this would happen do away with touch-sensitive controls on the steering wheels and replace them with physical buttons after complaints. At the same time, a select number of automakers like Nissan have been hesitant to join the touchscreen arms race and have only recently introduced relatively modest digital infotainment systems.
“I think people are going to get tired of these big black screens,” said Nissan Senior VP of Global Design Alfonso Albaisa during a 2020 interview with Green car reports.
It’s worth noting that these automakers are still in the minority, at least for now. American car manufacturers such as GM and Ford will have large, Tesla-like touchscreens as standard in many of its upcoming models. Mercedes-Benz even has announced its own gigantic 56-inch “Hyperscreen” display. In other words, don’t expect screens to suddenly disappear from cars anytime soon. But if current trends continue, buds may still have a fighting chance.