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Comment by l3_ | Hacker News Reader

That's why I hate having to deal with touch controls in cars for basic functions. I like having tactile feedback so I can control them without needing to look, or just having a glance instead of having to focus navigating through an interface. Don't get me wrong I love how smarter cars are getting but some things just shouldn't be made "smart" imo.

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I don't think the main reason car companies are shifting more and more functionality to touchscreens is because of the perception that they're "smart". I think it's because touchscreens are cheaper, especially in terms of development costs, since it's easier to iterate in software than hardware. I'm not super knowledgeable about the field though, so maybe someone who's worked at a car company can help explain.

Mazda is ditching touchscreens, and I doubt they’ll be the last (if they survive 2020).

Safety controls aren’t something that should be subject to “move fast and break things.”

I'm not saying the cost savings are necessarily worth it. I strongly dislike the move to touchscreen interfaces in situations where they don't make sense. I think cost savings might be a reason many car companies have chosen (IMO) a clearly worse interface, especially if you look at it from the perspective of an executive trying to decrease costs.

Sadly they kind of forgot about that in electric Mazda MX-30, which proudly adds a touchscreen for climate controls -_-

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