2007 Mitsubishi Lancer: Tap It In

A tap taperoo!

This is typical of the problems w/ roadtests on the net, magazines, etc. First, let me say that I have 5 series BMW, and I'm fine with iDrive, so you might view this as a BMW fanboy rationalization, but bear with me.
  
The problem stated in this is that the Lancer's Nav system is easier to to use with only causal knowledge--and this is probably true. But what I want to know is how well a car works once one has experience with it.
  
I would never deny that iDrive has a steep learning curve, but if you buy the car, you learn. Now it's really a good interface, at least for me.
  
Of course for a reviewer these sorts of problems are paramount. Not necessarily so for owners. Since most of use are buyers, not reviewers, I'm not sure about the thrust of all these reviews.
  
In 1974 I bought a Fiat 128 based on reviews in all the typical mags including Consumer Reports. There was only one complaint for all the reviewers: the windows cranked in the wrong direction.
  
They all missed the fact that the car was junk. Of course the longterm reviews here and elsewhere are an antidote to this.

I'm with stevej2001 on this one, I am just not a fan of touch screen interfaces. My good friend's LS460 is supposed to have one of the best in the industry, but it is slow to operate and doesn't recognize that you have touched it half the time. This doesn't even mention the fingerprints all over the screen that drive obsessive compulsive people like me crazy.
 
I also get irritated that you can only use touch screens when the car is parked because it is just so awkward to use when moving. I have gotten so that I can use the COMAND controller in my car without even looking at the screen, I can tell where I am by the resistance that builds in the controller. To me that works better, but again the learning curve is steep.

My Lincoln has a touch screen, and it works great, plus you can't see finger prints on it unless the light is just so. But the best part about it is, it works while the car is moving. You can search through any nearby Points-of-Interst (restaurants, ATMs, Parking)or your address book, even while in motion.

The factory Nav was a big reason I chose the Lancer. Coupled with the Sun & Sound package it makes for a very enjoyable and practical means of transportation. I've got 100 of my favorite CDs stored in the Nav's Hard Drive, bluetooth that works great with my phone, Sirius radio and the price was comparable to the cost of an aftermarket unit with integrated Hard Drive storage. Now if only Mitsubishi would update the software on the unit to give it a pause button...

Long live the touchscreens!!

I owned a newer Acura with the touchscreen and it was excellent. Very quick (though that's an issue of software and processing) and I didn't have that Lexus problem someone mentioned where the touchscreen didn't recognize a touch. However, the real secret to programming a nav system is voice commands. If they're done right as Honda/Acura does, there's nothing better or quicker.
 
(P.S. As the map above shows, Jacobs is clearly in The Grove parking garage in Los Angeles. Hopefully it directed him not to take Grove Drive, 3rd Street or Fairfax.)

I'm with stevej2001 and mercedesfan. With iDrive, I no longer have to even look at the screen to perform many functions. Touchscreens cannot be as recessed as the Audi, BMW, and Mercedes screens - meaning the fingerprints are exacerbated by glare, which is already worse usually, i.e. Lexus and Jaguar, who are still in the tech dark ages with touchscreens.
  
MMI, COMAND, and iDrive offer more tactile feedback for your given instruction. You often have to be looking at where and what you're pressing on a touchscreen because there's no tactile indication. Yes, the learning curve is usually steeper with a centralized control concept, but once you learn it the functional and ergonomic reward is greater. I'm glad touchscreens are being phased out. Honda/Acura and Nissan/Infiniti are the most recent converts.

"Lexus and Jaguar, who are still in the tech dark ages with touchscreens."
 
Really? Hmm... maybe Lockheed Martin should give the F-22 a MMI/COMAND/iDrive-like control because I am sure the pilots would be thrilled about it...

Well, the F-22 Raptor doesn't have touchscreens either, if that's what you're implying. And actually, it has moved towards an integrated cockpit management concept:
 
"The Integrated Control Panel (ICP) is the primary means for manual pilot data entry for communications, navigation, and autopilot data. Located under the glareshield and HUD in center top of the instrument panel, this keypad entry system also has some double click functions, much like a computer mouse for rapid pilot access/use."
 
If anything, many modern aircraft are very similar to Mercedes-Benz's original COMAND interface, which was ATM-style soft keys on the sides of the screen, combined with traditional single-key entry. Boeing and Airbus commercial aircraft use this concept on their Flight Management Computer (FMC) interface.

I could've swore that F-22 has touch screens, but anyway, the JSF (F-35) definitely does:
 
http://www.landings.com/_landings/pacflyer/dec3-2006/Dn-21-jsf-cockpit.html
 
"If anything, many modern aircraft are very similar to Mercedes-Benz's original COMAND interface, which was ATM-style soft keys on the sides of the screen, combined with traditional single-key entry."
 
That's completely not true. The 1970-technology fighters like the F-15 and F-16 already have those interfaces that you have described. The USAF is definitely moving away from that to the touch screens with the F-35.
 
Oh and by the way, bank ATMs are moving to touch screens as well. At least Bank of America's are...

I don't really understand this recent argument. Touch screens are not going away (just look at the iPhone). People love the idea of not having buttons, the only issue is that we just don't have the technology yet to make truly great touch screens for anything less than billions of dollars. That is fine for military aircraft, but completely unfeasible for cars.
 
Secondly, touch screens just don't make as much sense in automobiles because they require more effort focused on a screen rather than on the road.

"the only issue is that we just don't have the technology yet to make truly great touch screens for anything less than billions of dollars."
 
I don't know...
 
The touch screen on my then $189.99 Mio GPS unit works pretty well. Also, like you've said, the iPhone touch screen isn't bad either. Although my IS350 doesn't have an in-dash unit but the IS250 I test drove does and it works nicely.
 
Oh and by the way, the Bank of America ATMs' touch screens aren't bad either...

bimmerjay, I am actually in the aerospace industry myself so I do know what you are talking about. However, one thing to keep in mind is that kind of interface in the picture is nothing new and was already on many fighters 30 years ago.
 
Anyway, all I was trying to point out is that the statement you made earlier:
 
"Lexus and Jaguar, who are still in the tech dark ages with touchscreens. "
 
is completely untrue.
 
By the way, if you are interested, here is the 360-deg view of the A380 cockpit:
 
http://www.gillesvidal.com/blogpano/cockpit1.htm
 
One can clearly see that the old buttons-beside-screen type of interface is gone and replaced by giant touchscreens.

louiswei the key is that the touch screens work "alright", not great. You must make a deliberate tap against the screen and even then your finger is not always recognized. As a mechanical engineer I do not deal with this type of device, but the electrical engineers I work with swear against touch screens because of awful long-term durability and needless complexity. I just know what I have heard from them.

That's a really cool 360 of the A380 flight deck, thanks for posting.
 
I didn't think they were using any touchscreens... I thought the MCDU was still keypad/cursor-controlled (aft of the screens) - the same function buttons are still there. I also thought the EFB screens were controlled by those little control pads you can see below them. The MCP is still conventional buttons/dials and the 5 PFD/MFD/EFIS screens should just be conventional A/C LCDs.
 
Either way, I guess we'll just have to disagree. Or if I were to choose a 1487-style response, I would say, "Wrong as usual" for disagreeing with me.