Hormazd

Just curious if anyone has seen what the press thinks of the ACURA RLs ergonomics and I-Drive equivalent.

My mother got one last week and I was truly expecting to see a system that was going to put BMWs I-drive to shame. I thought the Japanese did this better and that Honda was the ergonomic king. Wrong.

The system takes as long, if not a longer learning curve. the Navigation map was less clear, and not nearly as obvious. EG. There equivalent of Map, direction of travel is something far more obscure.

They have a Wheel like the BMW but still have buttons all over the place for Input and Cancel and MAP and Menu etc. For what? Adding destinations is the same process only with the option of using voice commands. ....And they too take 15 seconds to boot before showing a lawyer screen.

The voice command system requires you to push the prompt button for every command, unlike ours which beeps after asking a question so you can just answer. This i found particularly irritating.

Finally their Hands Free Bluetooth link sucks.

There is no such thing as Address book transfer. You store each number using voice commands into a phonebook that is independant of the phone. It cannot be displayed on the screen. You can only call a number by voice. So if you have voice recognition problems, good luck.

I can only comment positively on the fact that the system was responsive.. No sporadic 2-3 second delays when turning the wheel. Also the sound quality of the HF link was excellent. No echo whatsoever at any volume.

I welcomed the cockpit of my E60 and have developed a new found respect for the engineers that designed the system. BMW Just get the bugs worked out and you can give the Japanses a run for their money even in this arena.

swajames

I agree - issue here (IMHO) is that the motoring press didn't take the time and effort to appreciate iDrive and once they had decided it was too complicated for them there was no turning back. I tested an RL and agree with your summary, their idrive equivalent is no better than iDrive but the motor press (I saw this in a couple of RL tests) are giving it big props - why? Because it is like iDrive but isn't iDrive!

alohalc

i think because it's a japanese car and they all think japanese technology is always better than all other countries .

MaxBuck

I think the RL's system is a bit more intuitive than iDrive, but I also think it's probably a very individual, subjective thing. Whether to spin the puck or push the puck on iDrive is a question that I think will take me a while to figure out.

One thing you can't argue about is that the puck placement for iDrive is much more convenient than the Acura's. No need to bend forward, just play with the thing on the console. Sweet!

Hormazd

The spin or push question presents itself on the Acura too. Only you have to use a second wheel behind the puck to spin and use the puck to push. Another plus for I-drive in addition to its location that you mentioned.