[cjrp]

I had an eight-gen (2005–2012) Honda Civic, and honestly I've never seen a car with better ergonomics. Climate and radio controls high up and within easy reach of the driver, different sized/shaped knobs so you can differentiate by touch, big digital speedo and GPS screen high up so they're practically at the base of the windscreen. I drove a ninth-generation Civic while mine was being serviced, and even that felt like a step back.

[germinalphrase]

There must be some bummed out designers in these companies who know better than to mediate all these tactile controls.

[zrobotics]

Part of it is a cost thing. Automotive grade buttons are really, really expensive. Honda probably pays $1-10 each for a button or rotary dial, a touchscreen is $30-70 depending on size. Plus, backup cameras are legally mandated, so they need to include a screen anyway, difference between a touch & plain screen is likely negligible, on the order of maybe $0-10. (costs are estimated and include the molding & plastics, which drive the cost way up).

I would imagine there is significant accounting pressure to push as much as they can onto the screen. There are definitely a contingent of designers who are upset by this trend, but I wouldn't be surprised if there is also a contingent of people in the design department who advocate for this due to the 'cleaner' look and are wanting to emulate Tesla.

[cjrp]

Totally. Plus more pieces to fit on an assembly line, etc.

Ironic that requiring cameras to improve safety has potentially done the opposite by killing off physical controls.

[MichaelZuo]

Nearly all well intentioned laws have quite serious negative downstream effects, because the world is vastly more complicated and interconnected then commonly expected.

[germinalphrase]

Yea - I'm sure you're right.