[thebruce87m]

> Each vehicle on the road contains around a hundred microcontrollers (MCUs) to operate lower-level functions, such as electric seats, transmission changes, and range reporting.

https://www.arm.com/markets/automotive/zonal-microcontroller....

The software that runs on these microcontrollers is not bug free. At the very minimum, having an OTA update fix a bug reduces the number of journeys with the bug by one vs driving to the service centre and wasting your own time.

Also, I realise it’s a common hn trope to want a technology-free car, but having a coffee at lunch time and watching Netflix on the big screen is one of the few times I get to myself in a post-child world. All of the infotainment technology is great to be honest, from the charging experience to the Apple Music integration.

[HWR_14]

I understand the value of a large screen. I don't understand the value of it not being a dumb monitor. My cellphone can play Netflix on the screen just fine, thank you. And it is far more likely to have interesting non-Netflix entertainment options as well.

And yes, code on microcontrollers can have bugs. But bugs mostly occur with advanced features or having those features hook into more basic ones.

[thebruce87m]

The general public can’t handle non vertically integrated things. My mum will never, ever know how to switch inputs on a display despite growing up with the first TVs and using one every day. My wife can just about do it.

Also it’s not just Netflix, it has other integrations and a full browser.

> And yes, code on microcontrollers can have bugs. But bugs mostly occur with advanced features or having those features hook into more basic ones.

It’s much worse than you think. Legacy car makers treat each micro only as an item on a BOM, software and all. It’s getting better now, but you would have a vendor for each of those microcontrollers with no coordination between any of them. The path from bug fix to rollout was non existent for a lot of them.

Not to mention the microcontrollers themselves are probed / final tested using VBA in a piece of “software” built on top of Microsoft Excel. No, I’m not joking.

I’m also still getting extra safety features added to my Tesla. I now get cross traffic alerts when reversing.

[HWR_14]

I know it's more than just Netflix. But I'm sure it is in all ways inferior to the offerings on the smartphone.

Your Tesla is getting extra features on a system that I don't want at all.

[thebruce87m]

> I know it's more than just Netflix. But I'm sure it is in all ways inferior to the offerings on the smartphone.

Bigger picture and better sound in the car, which is 100% of the audiovisual experience.

> Your Tesla is getting extra features on a system that I don't want at all.

That’s fine. In your original comment you expressed your ignorance on two topics and people have tried to educate you on both. We seem to have bottomed out on this one which is fine. Not wanting extra safety features or immediate bug fixes is definitely an opinion to have and I’m sure we could find some others who share it.

On the other topic you have also expanded your knowledge on why software needs updates, although your conclusion that your car doesn’t have any critical bugs needs a citation.