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I jumped into the M3 this morning and started it up quick. I was in a hurry.
As the nav screen loaded, a detail caught my eye and stopped me in my tracks. The pseudo reflection in the detail bubble reminded me of the Jan van Eyck's The Arnolfini Portrait and it's convex mirror.
I dunno, maybe I just needed some coffee.
Scott Jacobs, Senior Photographer
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worthyofed says:
12:45 PM, 06/25/09
Gotta love the attention to detail. So... is iDrive really as bad as people say? I used it in the show room, briefly mind you, plus half the features were disabled, I'm assuming because the ignition wasn't on, but it didn't seem that bad to me. It seemed pretty straight forward.
fuhteng says:
12:46 PM, 06/25/09
Wow. That is the nerdiest thing I've seen all day. Cool though. Did you think: "Ah! Just like that tiny mirror in The Arnolfini Portrait!" immediately or did it take you a while? And how on earth can you see those tiny mirrors well enough (either of them) to compare them to anything?
bimmerjay says:
01:02 PM, 06/25/09
@worthyofed,
For 2009 BMW introduced a completely new iDrive interface. It sports improved graphics, speed, new features and a much easier to learn interface. I have the last of the previous generation which I've gotten very used to and enjoy using (plus it has a library of voice commands, like the 2009 version).
About the only thing the new version of iDrive shares with the old is the name. It has now been critically acclaimed as one of the better systems on the market. Incidentally, it comes from the same company that makes Audi's MMI.
saxdogg says:
05:21 PM, 06/25/09
Drinking and driving is bad.
iancar says:
05:41 PM, 06/25/09
It will be strange for Mr. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin to look at the bottom right picture.
worthyofed says:
05:42 PM, 06/25/09
Ahh interesting. Thanks Bimmerjay. I've heard all sorts of things about iDrive from completely counter-intuitive, to completely enjoyable. And mostly all good things about Audi's MMI. Thanks for the info.
jerome81 says:
07:23 PM, 06/25/09
What?
lawnboy3 says:
07:10 AM, 06/26/09
so there is some use for majoring in Art History afterall.
mikeolan says:
11:26 AM, 06/26/09
Wow, someone majored in art history!
revaholic says:
11:55 AM, 07/ 8/09
A bit of a stretch, but I certainly appreciate that you pointed that out! I had never heard of that painting before, but I had fun reading about it on wikipedia after you mentioned it.
911cs2 says:
08:31 PM, 10/ 1/09
I've always loved that van Eyck - and I like it that a car journo is as well-rounded as Scott is!
But I'm annoyed at myself that I did not notice this detail in my e92 m3! ;)