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Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

thedrive.com

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Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#61

Post by sonofhans »

jonathankoren wrote: post #19
bityard wrote: post #10

Wow, talk about missing the point. Four grids of uniform buttons, they think that's an improvement over a touchscreen? There is zero practical distinction between taking your eyes off the road to see which button you're pushing vs taking your eyes of the road to see which part of the screen you're touching. GOOD HVAC/radio design means you can perform ALL essential functions WITHOUT taking your eyes off the road AT A…

I’m pretty sure you regularly use a piece of plastic with 104 near identical buttons without looking at any of them.

That’s not analogous. Proper use, or accustomed use, of a keyboard places the hands in the correct position by default. Our hands don’t remember the _absolute_ position of those buttons, only their position _relative_ to other buttons.

Buttons in car control panels require users to leave the default position of hands-on-wheel and acquire the new button. That’s an expensive operation, and it’s well-studied — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fitts%27s_law

Also, keyboard layouts are static — learn QWERTY once, use it forever. Car control panels are usually different between cars, so learnability is harder. Many people regularly drive multiple cars, increasing difficulty again.

Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#62

Post by dzhiurgis »

gorjusborg wrote: post #15

I've never owned a Hyundai, but stuff like this makes me want to look at them. I recently bought what I thought was a car, only to find it is a tech-ridden abomination. I want a vehicle that is reliable. I want a vehicle that is simple. I do not want a rolling AI/touchscreen. Even just from a security standpoint I want minimal software in my car.

Had a tiny Kia rental recently for few months - small display for wireless Carplay and reversing camera, buttons otherwise. Perfect combination.

All that said wish there was more audio commands and overall remote start gets close to Tesla (who is far from perfect too).

Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#63

Post by jdminhbg »

I have owned a Hyundai, and I have zero idea why everyone is so convinced that their physical buttons reduce driver distraction. In the six years I had it, I never managed to totally figure out where the HVAC buttons were and in what order they cycled the different modes.

Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#64

Post by serf »

kevin_thibedeau wrote: post #56
pif wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, you are missing the point! With a row of buttons, you can count and you do not need visual attention. With a screen, instead, you must look even to understand whether you are on a clickable object at all!

Well designed button layouts don't require counting to figure out which one to push. Even that is a cognitive distraction.

I would like to see an explanation of how a human can have any interaction or choice without some level of cognitive cost.

Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#65

Post by bmitc »

bityard wrote: post #10

Wow, talk about missing the point. Four grids of uniform buttons, they think that's an improvement over a touchscreen? There is zero practical distinction between taking your eyes off the road to see which button you're pushing vs taking your eyes of the road to see which part of the screen you're touching. GOOD HVAC/radio design means you can perform ALL essential functions WITHOUT taking your eyes off the road AT A…

Do you have any good examples of a car or plane that can be operated that way? I'm not aware of any.

Taking a glance to co-locate your finger and a button or knob is far faster than doing so with an element on a touchscreen. And the latter requires visual attention throughout the interaction.

Also, I would wager that keeping eyes on road while mentally finding a button or knob without looking is actually more distracting than taking a quick glance for it.

Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#67

Post by mikeryan »

bityard wrote: post #10

Wow, talk about missing the point. Four grids of uniform buttons, they think that's an improvement over a touchscreen? There is zero practical distinction between taking your eyes off the road to see which button you're pushing vs taking your eyes of the road to see which part of the screen you're touching. GOOD HVAC/radio design means you can perform ALL essential functions WITHOUT taking your eyes off the road AT A…

There is zero practical distinction between taking your eyes off the road to see which button you're pushing vs taking your eyes of the road to see which part of the screen you're touching.

There is, in fact, one large difference. With a button you know you’ve pushed it. Once you see where to press your eyes can go back to the road while you actually press the button since the feedback indicating it’s been pressed is tactile.

That’s just a button though. That scenario is magnified with any sort of adjustment slider.

I just got out of a rental with a touchscreen climate controls and it was significantly less safe just adjusting the heat.

Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#68

Post by anaganisk »

maztaim wrote: post #21
gorjusborg wrote: post #15

I've never owned a Hyundai, but stuff like this makes me want to look at them. I recently bought what I thought was a car, only to find it is a tech-ridden abomination. I want a vehicle that is reliable. I want a vehicle that is simple. I do not want a rolling AI/touchscreen. Even just from a security standpoint I want minimal software in my car.

I can’t speak for their EV line, but no media is talking about how crappy their engines are. I won’t touch a KIA or Hyundai and I have zero qualms speaking up about it. My brother and I both needed new engines after 50,000 miles with normal wear and maintenance. If you read up on oil consumption you will discover they have had problem’s continually since 2014. Last I checked the 2021 +models are still affected. Getti…

Strangely, Does Hyundai/Kia have some difference wrt engines in US and India? Never heard anyone complain about engine in India even after 62k miles, they are quite popular among taxi drivers, who definitely stress the engine more than enough. Indian roads can be quite punishing on cars.

Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#69

Post by ary »

bityard wrote: post #10

Wow, talk about missing the point. Four grids of uniform buttons, they think that's an improvement over a touchscreen? There is zero practical distinction between taking your eyes off the road to see which button you're pushing vs taking your eyes of the road to see which part of the screen you're touching. GOOD HVAC/radio design means you can perform ALL essential functions WITHOUT taking your eyes off the road AT A…

While I agree that Hyundai's console design is seriously lacking, anything immovable/unchangeable has a key benefit over touchscreens: it can be habituated.

Personally I find any interface that can move while you use it to be borderline anger-inducing (the Google Cloud Platform console comes to mind immediately). In a car it's deadly. Gimmicks move gadgets though, so we had to let some designers and product managers get their bonuses/promotions and then pivot into an "epiphany" (sans the mea culpa) to get to now.

Re: Hyundai promises to keep buttons in cars

#70

Post by bmitc »

ryukafalz wrote: post #26
jonathankoren wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m pretty sure you regularly use a piece of plastic with 104 near identical buttons without looking at any of them.

Not identical: they typically have raised markers on two of the home row keys precisely to help with orientation. And, well, your hands are already positioned over them much of the time, so relative identification is much easier. Not so with these buttons.

Car buttons often have markers as well.
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