I’ve spent a lot of time over the past few weeks looking at new vehicles (mine is about to bite the dust), and one thing is a constant: nearly every single one has a terrible in-dash system for entertainment and navigation. After chewing it over for a couple days, here’s a short list of things that suck about cars:

1. Slow Interface – Hands down, the most obvious issue on literally every single dash unit I have played with recently has been the absolutely dreadful performance of the interface. Choppy scrolling, missed touches, and severe delays are the norm in vehicle dash units. Remember how everyone (rightfully) lost their minds when the iPhone 3G ran like molasses on iOS 4? That’s normal on most vehicles. We don’t tolerate poor performance on $600 smartphones, so why do we allow it on $30,000 vehicles? According to iSuppli, the A7 processor in an iPhone 5s only cost $19. Even if we jack that way up to $100, that’s a drop in the bucket for any consumer vehicle. A desktop-class CPU costs less than the “smoker’s package” in most vehicles, and would make a night and day difference in the performance of infotainment systems. It’s time we expect more. 2. Poor Screen Quality – Another surprising issue in vehicles. Screen quality makes such a huge difference in the experience of using a touchscreen device, it’s unfortunate that manufacturers have dropped the ball here for so long. In-car displays consistently have poor viewing angles, struggle with brightness, and have poor resolution. The studs over at iSuppli determined that the best in class display of the iPad Air costs less than $100 bucks. When so much of the interior of a vehicle is taken up by a display, it’s asinine to not put a high quality screen in there. Looking forward, with vehicle displays becoming more of secondary display for the devices we already carry, it’s foolish to not have displays that are on par with the quality we have come to expect in tablets and smartphone. 3. Lack of Vehicle Statistics – Not surprising, as manufacturers want to protect their dealers’ service departments, but it’s disappointing that more data isn’t available to users. Example: If my check engine light comes on, I shouldn’t have to take it to a dealer to get the code read. My dash unit (or even an app on my phone) should immediately tell me what’s wrong, and offer to make a service appointment for me if necessary. Beyond that, though, it should give me feedback on my driving habits, details about system status (e.g.- your turn signal is burnt out) and service bulletins for my make/model. 4. No User Customization – This one seems simple, especially since tons of vehicles have memory options for seats. Why don’t dash units have the same options? If I use the secondary key fob for a vehicle, I should be able to have a completely different set of music options, traffic reports, navigation preferences, and more. I want my vehicle to know that my girlfriend prefers to listen to FM radio at a higher volume level, while if I’m driving I’d rather my car default to the bluetooth connection to my phone so I can catch up on a podcast. Computers have had separate user accounts for years, it’s time that our cars catch up. 5. Software Updates – Perhaps the most mind-blowing one of all. Why aren’t vehicles getting regular software updates, with bug fixes, performance improvements, and feature additions? Tesla has been offering updates on the Model S, and they’ve added significant features to the in-car systems. Whether it’s something basic, like fixing a laggy menu, or something significant like reducing power draw, software updates have become a necessity for vehicles. Looking at it from the user point of view, it obviously improves their experience by squashing bugs and adding features. From the manufacturer’s point of view, you can significantly cut back on basic troubleshooting appointments at dealerships and significantly increase customer loyalty by showing a willingness to support your products. So, there’s my “short” list of gripes about the crappy state of vehicle infotainment systems. I’ve got some ideas on how manufacturers can fix things, but that will have to wait for a separate post.