MMI vs iDrive vs Comand.

[Yannis]

Here's the first look at the new Mercedes Comand system on the 07 s-class...Our agents tell us to look for this implementation on the next generation CL and E-Class.

The coolest feature is there is a button to the left of the screen the allows you to power swivel the screen to point towards the driver or the passenger.

The interface is state of the art and makes the iDrive interface, Audi MMI and all others look like DOS 1.0 compared to Macintosh OSX.

If iDrive's software interface was as good as this, no one would have said a negative word about it.

The problem with iDrive and MMI was never the hardware...it's always been the software.

iDrive and MMI software team...In the words of Donald Trump...YOU'RE FIRED!

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Another lame Autospies article, note that they have a Mercedes ad on the page, seems they had to say something good in return.
On the other hand it's true that iDrive mostly and MMI in some cases have got some critisism for being more complicated than the regular all button layout.
I wonder what the rest of you guys think.

[Yannis]

If you ever want a chuckle, ask a Mercedes engineer how Lexus manages to use a touch-screen interface that neither dominates the view forward nor requires the use of Satan's joystick. After a lot of hemming and hawing, the answer is that Mercedes offers more functions in its system, so a touch screen allegedly wouldn't work. Mercedes engineers confided in us that, in focus group testing, Americans had a far lower aptitude for mastering complex control systems than European and Japanese testers, and they tried to find a happy solution for all with slight regional software differences but the same overall system layout. Time will tell if Americans warm to the admittedly complex controller.

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The touch screens that Lexus uses seem to be easier to use than the more complex German OS like iDrive, MMI and Comand and i don't buy that BS that they can't be used due to many functions.

[Just_me]

sorry but I cant take autospies artickle seriously

[SDNR]

Originally Posted by Yannis

Mercedes engineers confided in us that, in focus group testing, Americans had a far lower aptitude for mastering complex control systems than European and Japanese testers....

Yet another sideswipe at the Americans there - I'm sure in reality Americans are just as capable of mastering "complex control systems" as anyone else.

[Yannis]

Originally Posted by Just_me

sorry but I cant take autospies article seriously

Neither do i but after reading numerous reviews mainly from American magazines and sites it seems that they prefer Lexus touch screen over German systems. Even here in Greece some journalists have said the same. Perhaps the "German way" is wrong in this case?

[Giannis]

I have tried the Audi A6 software. Is it MMI? Anyway, i found it easy at least for me!

[Yannis]

Originally Posted by Giannis

I have tried the Audi A6 software. Is it MMI? Anyway, i found it easy at least for me!

MMI is easier than iDrive in my opinion. I haven't tried the new Comand yet. The Lexus touchscreen should be very easy from what i have seen on TV reviews.

[The Artist]

The MMI is easier to use than the idrive no doubt.. i have used both for a pretty long time..
And the new Command.. is just so logical.. it takes 2 seconds to understand how to use it fully..

[Yaz]

It would be really interesting to see a comparison of all three systems from one person. It sounds like they didn’t like it much in the car connection review of the S-Class.

[QUOTE = The Car Connection]In theory at least, the new controller, and the latest version of M-B's COMAND interface system, should help keep the driver's eyes from looking down too far away from the road. The system's menus have now been restructured for easier use, but as with BMW's iDrive and Audi's MMI, it's not a system to go navigating through while driving. Some features like climate control are easily accessed through the system, and there are steering-wheel-mounted buttons for audio controls and other often-used functions. But others are unexpectedly complicated. For instance, some of the map-display functions are still hidden under several layers of menus.[/quote]

IMO, I think younger people will be able to master it better than older people. It’s just like computers. I show my dad how to do something on a computer, but then after a day or two, he forgets how to do it by himself.

[warot]

I've only used the Idrive, all the versions actually. I'm sure Command and MMI is easier to use, but I didn't find the Idrive that complicated or necessary actually. I've said this a million times but how many times do you actually change the airflow setting when you are in Auto mode? You would ever use the Idrive when you are driving... even the radio would have been present and you can change everything via dashboard or steering wheel. I don't know why journalists have such a hard time seeing that.

As for the touch screen, maybe I shouldn't be commenting because I've never used it, but you have to take your eyes off the road more than if you had the "joystick of hell" from the German cars.