The multimedia screen war comes to cars

When someone wants to show off their car, they usually resort to the horsepower each model offers. Currently, this is still the case, but another value is beginning to matter when assessing a car. That value is the size of the multimedia screens, which is becoming an important factor, and one way to gauge a car’s status is its screen.

This has been “taken up” by manufacturers, who increasingly take this kind of thing into account. High-end vehicles boast large multimedia screens, which are used to control the various elements of the information and entertainment system. Electric cars tend to be the ones with the largest screens. The proof lies in vehicles such as the Tesla or the new Ford Mustang Mach-E, which fit large screens mounted in portrait orientation so they don’t take up too much space.

The record belongs to the Byton M-Byte, which features a large 48-inch screen. It also has a 7-inch screen on the steering wheel and two more behind it. But without going to such extremes, we are seeing a general increase in standard screen sizes. For example, the Alfa Romeo Giulia and the Alfa Romeo Stelvio have abandoned the standard size of 6.5 inches in favour of 8.8-inch screens.

In the Tesla Model 3 and the Volkswagen Touareg there is a 15-inch multimedia screen, and Mercedes is fitting its cars with 12.3-inch screens for the instrument cluster and another of the same size for the infotainment system. Other brands are adopting a three-screen configuration, such as Audi and Jaguar Land Rover.

Overall, the standard size was until not long ago 6.4 inches, although that average has now risen to 7.3 inches. Screens over 7 inches are found in 75% of cars on the market today, which is quite revealing. This applies to most vehicles currently being sold, although many of them offer as an option the possibility of fitting a larger screen.

However, not everyone agrees with the presence of multimedia and touch screens in cars. In fact, some brands are already returning to traditional controls, downplaying the importance of multimedia screens. The trend seems to be a balance between a multimedia screen and physical controls, so that it is easier and more intuitive to operate all the technological elements of the car.

That said, technology is seen as an important factor when choosing a new car, and screen size, together with connectivity and compatibility with the phone, has become an argument for choosing the model to drive off in.