- cross-posted to:
- fuckcars@lemmy.world
- cross-posted to:
- fuckcars@lemmy.world
For over a century, the automobile has represented freedom, power, and the thrill of mechanical mastery. The connection between driver, machine, and road defined what it meant to own and love a car. But in today’s digital era, a different trend is unfolding. Cars are no longer just machines designed to take us from point A to point B. Increasingly, they resemble something else entirely: smartphones on wheels.
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The sad thing is ‘smartphone on wheels’ is a slur.
Smartphones don’t have to be soulless and uniform and enshittified and subscription based and completely inaccessible and straight up anti-consumer/designed to fail, but here we are.
I really hope Slate takes off though (and they make a nimble hatchback for their next chassis). It feels like the antithesis of all this.
The simplicity of the Slate interior is fantastic. They developed a screenless touch screen that you can rotate without even looking at them. I wish I were in the market for this type of vehicle.
Interior photo
Yeah, that is so perfect.
Imagine a sedan or hatchback. It would be light as a feather (in terms of curb weight) and still feel spacious being so ‘clean’ inside.
Kind of disappointing Bezos is involved though.
Backed, not owned though, and not alone:
https://slaterides.com/slate-auto-investors/
I view it as a net positive if Amazon wants them for EV delivery. A substantial guaranteed commercial customer is huge, and Slate isn’t exactly into dystopian tracking electronics or anything.
Some of these comments are the most elitist, contrarian bullshit I’ve ever heard.
This article is about the positives and negatives of car connectivity, not how cool you are because you choose to ride a bike. You’re so cool because instead of choosing to not connect your phone to your car, you bought a rusty 07 Camry?
I’m not the biggest fan of the choices these companies are making either, but if your 1997 Mazda 929 is a personality trait, it’s not much different from the ding dong who bought the Ram 3500 to showcase his peanut balls.
You’re so cool because instead of choosing to not connect your phone to your car, you bought a rusty 07 Camry?
Yes.
Hello, I’m here for my check-in so that you can tell me whether or not I’m allowed to like something. Let me know when you’re ready to start.
Neither I nor anyone else cares what you like, but don’t act like what you like makes you better than anyone else.
Turtles are awesome.
Whatever you say, bud. I’m really just here to get my certification from the board.
Thanks.Seeking approval seems to be your forte.
Personally I think it is cool to not give money to anti-consumer companies, which I assume all car companies have become by now if they all have computers. Certainly they cannot forever resist the temptation to use the power they have over users when they control the software running on our hardware.
I don’t disagree with either of your points. However, I’m not edgy because I refuse to shop at Target. I’m saying these comments are a bit smug.
Yeah, I completely agree.
I drive old cars because they don’t spy on me and they’re inexpensive to own. I have an 07 hybrid and an 06 minivan. They’re only an expression of my personality to the extent that I don’t care about my car and need something to get from A-B. I don’t flaunt it, and I’ll probably replace it with an older EV because refilling gas is annoying for my dedicated commuter (the hybrid).
I’d rather ride my bike, but my work is too far away (2 hours on transit, ~1.5 hybrid w/ bike, maybe 1 with a riced ebik, each way), and my reasons for sticking with my employer and not moving are more important than my preference for cycling.
My mode of transportation is about utility, not expression of personality. I’d drive a truck if it made sense, I just haven’t found one that makes more sense than renting one the 2-3 times per year I need to haul something that doesn’t fit in my minivan.
When I need to upgrade my car, I’ll find something sensible and maybe remove the parts I don’t like. It’s not a big deal.
Agreed. Minivans are legit.
Sadly yes and they’re mainly taking the worst aspects. Normal built in features like heated seats as subscriptions, dropping smartphone integration for their own far inferior dogshit UI and features, and so on.
Volkswagen is so bad at this! They have phone connectivity but they bog down the infotainment with they’re own crap software. The GPS is so bad it slowes down the whole system. I will never use vw maps. Ever. Just stop!
And Chevy just doesn’t have android auto on or apple play on their lower trim levels. But they do compensate by integrating Google maps at least.
Kia is the best though. Minimal proprietary software. Plug your phone in and android auto automatically comes up.
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No need for data grabbing AA/Carplay shit in my car, stock ui works superior. But give people the option
I drive a Kia EV6, and love it. Kia pushes like 2 OTAs per year for updates and small bug fixes, but hasn’t rolled out any new features. They have a premium connectivity package, but nothing but remote bells and whistles are behind it.
I use my phone for the infotainment via CarPlay.
My phone acts like a phone, and my car acts like a car.
Now, the reason I have an EV6? I was a happy Chevy Bolt owner looking for a newer vehicle and was eyeing the Equinox EV. I noped out as soon as they announced the Google partnership and decided to remove CarPlay and BYOD as a feature.
The two things that will turn me off from a future purchase is lack of CarPlay, or paywalled “hardware” upgrades, like performance tweaks or locking out something installed like heated seats. Nope.
It’s nothing less than a war against property rights.
They are pushing software into cars because they see copyright, and more specifically the DMCA anti-circumvention clause, as an excuse to retain their control over your property after they sell it to you. Rentiership is 100% of their goal, and providing useful functionality is nothing but an afterthought at best.
“Subscriptions” to hardware you already own is entirely FRAUD and executives of companies that engage in it deserve long prison sentences.
John Deere cough cough
we always flip off the John Deere plant as we drive by. Family tradition.
Just?
aand this is why I won’t buy a car made after 2010.
My 2014 Crosstrek is fine. Doesn’t even have eyesight.
My 2020 Crosstrek with a manual is pretty good. The only things on the little touchscreen is the radio, backup camera, and android or apple for navigation. Also it isn’t integrated into the whole car so it can be replaced with an aftermarket unit. It has none of the blind spot monitoring, lane assist etc. It’s a lot of fun to drive on back roads, although it could use just a little more power.
Eh, my early 9th gen civic is nice, though I think they ruined it only like coupla years later with cell radios.
Cars after 2010 are fine. It’s the recent years that are the issue. My 2020 Forester is just a regular car with a small regular display just for radio or plugging in my phone for the map.
This is why I ordered a Slate.
I hope you get your money back when they fold.
What money? The $50 deposit?
Yes.
IMO cars peaked around 2015
Interiors looked really nice and you had analog dials etc. Wish some small screens, just enough.
Today it’s just big plastic dashboard with cheap tablets stuck in them
The analog dials were an illusion. That information has been processed digitally for at least the last 25 years.
I don’t really care what’s happening in the backend, I want it to look nice and not cheap
Analog an illusion? Yes.
Tactile effectiveness an illusion? No.
I had a base model around that time frame. Good safety ratings for its time but the car isn’t integrated with the touchscreen so while it’s already a dumb-car, I could make it even more simple by tearing out the radio and installing one without a screen. Makes me happy to know I’m not obligated to fix it if the radio breaks because I drive maybe 30-40 miles a week and would rather keep my money than shell out for all the gimmicks.
2016 is still a good year as most of the connected tech isn’t supported anymore as it’s on the 3g network.
good to know!!
They’ve been. Demand your privacy back
They’re trying to for sure. Thats why I insisted on no electric doors, windows, or locks when I bought my truck. The CD player built in got yanked for an aftermarket mp3 CD player . no digital displays indash either
So the slate has a market after all
If you think that thing won’t have trackers everywhere, you’re dreaming.
I made sure my last car I bought had no modem in it. This is going to get a lot harder for my next. I will be probably limited to the used vehicles market.
Yes.
Cars have been giant
smartphones{tracking and data collection gold mines} for years nowMy car is basically an accessory that turns my phone into a car, yes.
the thrill of mechanical mastery
I remember people in the 80s/90s complaining that those pieces of shit were broken all the time. Not anymore IMHO. There was only thrill for a few car enthusiasts.
I’m gonna be honest, I want my car to be an iPad on wheels. 120fps, buttery smooth animations, 3000nit brightness 19” vertical panel with CarPlay Ultra.
However, I’d be totally satisfied with the Slate truck model that has an app on a tablet that hooks directly into the truck. That’d be honestly more ideal.
