Car infotainment systems suck. Using the touchscreen in a modern vehicle usually feels more like interacting with an ATM or a stubborn inkjet printer than using a well-designed, consumer-focused product. These crude, emotionless operating systems might feel right at home on an industrial factory robot, but in the wider world—where people are used to smartphone OSes that are continually refined—these barely designed systems fall flat.
Infotainment systems are actually the worst part of a modern car. In fact, a study by Nielsen and SBD Consultancy found the systems in new cars to be the biggest cause of customer complaints. Much like during the beginnings of the modern smartphone, the car infotainment trend takes a bunch of manufacturers that traditionally have only made hardware and asks them to create software. It should be no surprise that they are terrible at it. (And that says nothing of their typical sloth-ish product cycles.)
Smartphone companies are coming to save car infotainment, though. Google and Apple are both working to bring their market-leading smartphone OSes to the car, which will finally bring large app ecosystems, decent voice recognition, smooth scrolling and animations, and beautiful design to your car's dashboard. By combining the strengths of the smartphone with car hardware, the hope is for an easier, safer, and more user-friendly way to do your car computing needs on the go.
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