> ..But every screen-based control system I've seen requires that you look > at it to know which menu option you're choosing---taking your eyes off the > road for a significant amount of time. > The shorcomings of the BMW IDrive are well known by now since no one has ever said anything good about it in print. But, many of those critics have said that the Mercedes version has taken note of all the design mistakes BMW made and has designed the latest Comand system to avoid them. I'm referring to the redesigned Comand (made by Mitsubishi Electronics) found in the W221, W212 and W204 plus at least some of the SUVs. The previous versions (W211/W220 etc.) were clunky and not very user friendly. Nor very relaible.
Now that I have been using MB's latest Comand in my C300 for almost two years, I can say that after a short learning period, I have found it very easy to use. Further, the fold-out screen is at almost dashtop height and I would not call it distracting. If you look at nearly all past MB models before 2001, you will find the radio down at the bottom of the center stack just above the ashtray where a driver REALLY has to take his eyes off the road to make changes. Further, MB's voice control of functions can be used (knowing what to say) to avoid button pushing if you want to use it. Many of the functions of the central control knob (just ahead of the armrest) are duplicated on the face of the Multimedia unit for simple changes. For example, repeatedly pushing the uppermost left button cycles between AM, FM, Sirius, and weather bands. As one example. Those fearful (terrorstricken, bulging eyes, sweating etc.) of "all those electronics" can take comfort in that reliability is the norm, not just dumb luck. RLE -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://okiebenz.com/pipermail/mercedes_okiebenz.com/attachments/20090910/bd299996/attachment.html> _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
