iDrive 8 detailed demo & review

[dr3wzilla]

I couldn't get it to display the tire pressure to save my life . Not very intuitive, big step backwards imo

[nerdogray]

Has that beautiful Android look and feel... the Mega Bloks of UI.

[TheBingoBalls]

Aesthetically, it isn't as bad as people think especially if you've actually seen it while in the driver seat - it's a huge difference than just looking at it from a picture. The i4 implementation is better than the iX where it really does looked tact on last second.

As for usage, yes it's easy to use voice…when it works. And that's a major flaw with all these voice commands across all manufacturers that I've experienced. If the voice command can't guarantee 100% success rate, it's useless to me because the time I try to get it work, I would have already completed the task with a press of a button.

[mbanck]

Originally Posted by spuntyb

Let's be honest, the macro buttons were probably one of the best features of BMW cabins since they were first implemented.

That BMW couldn't incorporate them into the new cabin and software doesn't mean they're necessarily terrible at implementation, but they were incredibly nice to have. Moving forward though, they probably don't have room for them in the overall design language. Maybe they'll come back in some form in the future, who knows

The macro buttons (hotkeys? shortcut buttons? radio station memory buttons? whatever you call them) are still there, just implemented in software.

[carseatsm5]

Pretty laggy and dated looking. Seems like something Apple would have rolled out 10 years ago.

Apart from climate controls, I don’t use idrive at all. Just run everything through CarPlay. Agree no button for climate is dumb.

I continue to wonder why car manufacturers keep investing in their own garbage software when we all have CarPlay. Just save the money it’s awful every time.

[FCX5]

Originally Posted by psuibmw

You better have one for calling the wife

You can do all that with voice. At least for me, channels, address, call etc are all voice activated. The hard buttons are useful for bringing up vehicle status, screens and settings. But they are easily found on the iDrive 8 UI as well.

[FCX5]

Originally Posted by Bird~Dawg

These Luddite comments are…hmm, what's the word I'm looking for? Oh yes, Pathetic!!

Reminds me of people in my office who said they would never give up their blackberry's for an iPhone because of the keyboard…

IDrive 8, at least on the iX I drove was pretty slick and intuitive. But I can see the benefits of physical buttons.

[robopp]

Originally Posted by nerdogray

Has that beautiful Android look and feel... the Mega Bloks of UI.

First thing I thought when I saw it too. Reminds me of the old Blackberry Storm and we all know how that story ended.

[Cadillac]

Originally Posted by FCX5

Reminds me of people in my office who said they would never give up their blackberry's for an iPhone because of the keyboard…

IDrive 8, at least on the iX I drove was pretty slick and intuitive. But I can see the benefits of physical buttons.

Guilty😂

[Haywood]

Originally Posted by carseatsm5

Pretty laggy and dated looking. Seems like something Apple would have rolled out 10 years ago.

Apart from climate controls, I don’t use idrive at all. Just run everything through CarPlay. Agree no button for climate is dumb.

I continue to wonder why car manufacturers keep investing in their own garbage software when we all have CarPlay. Just save the money it’s awful every time.

Have you tried it? Funny, how people look at a video and make a determination. It's not laggy at all and most reviewers state it's the best they've seen so far on an EV.

My wife's Volvo has the climate control on the screen. I'm old school as well when it comes to buttons. But, you quickly learn it's not a big deal. Keeping the iDrive wheel is the biggest win for me. That only makes it better than almost every car manufacturer.

[PLF69]

I know it will never come back but would love this option

Like my 135i or the 1M's when you could order them with or without iDrive.

[carseatsm5]

Originally Posted by Haywood

Have you tried it? Funny, how people look at a video and make a determination. It's not laggy at all and most reviewers state it's the best they've seen so far on an EV.

My wife's Volvo has the climate control on the screen. I'm old school as well when it comes to buttons. But, you quickly learn it's not a big deal. Keeping the iDrive wheel is the biggest win for me. That only makes it better than almost every car manufacturer.

I haven’t tried it no. I watched video and then said how it looks.

[Scrippy]

So much engineering in these cars that I appreciate but a lot that I don't. I wish some of the financing behind these tech pieces could be directed at performance pieces. I understand that some folks do want an iPad on the dash but maybe reserve that for the X models, 6 & 7 series. 5 series and bellow owners would probably prefer performance features but that's just my take.

[sharkymcpeterson]

I'll miss the buttons. Not a fan of driving highway speeds which for me is 90+ at times and trying to screw with an iPad. The location of the physical buttons was committed to memory and like second nature to use. This will take getting used to, to say the least.

[Smithcinema]

I guess we have no choice I will definitely miss I drive 7 I thought it was the best ever in any of my bmw's , not a fan of I drive 8 but I guess we will get use to it , will be in my wife's 23 x7 as per my dealership, at least I love by system in my new escalade

[Quadruple VANOS]

Owner's manual shows the 1-8 presets are now software; and accessible with an upward swipe from the bottom of the screen. I wish he would have demod that in the video.

[Grumpy514]

So happy I'm getting a 2022 M3 & not the LCI with ID8. I prefer the buttons over touch screen everything. Especially climate control.

[FarsBimmer]

Originally Posted by MUFCbmwbear

I was not impressed in both look and usability. Prefer the 7 layout.

Looks half done prototype.

I think BMW have got a bit lost in the design, not really appealing as it used to be.

I was considering to change my X5 G05, but looking at the current directions the considering is gone.

Checked the iX and i4 at the CES and that was far from interesting.

I hope there will be a new cool X5, but looking at the dash design there is coming now then perhaps not.

[buckybadger]

Clunky and not well integrated, I'd skip the current generation and wait till it's integrated seamlessly.

[themnmd]

Originally Posted by carseatsm5

I haven’t tried it no. I watched video and then said how it looks.

My wife has a Volvo too, but the layout is better than BMW's

[tahoebimmer]

Functional for sure, but I think auto manufacturers are missing an opportunity by going with these iPad-like control surfaces.

We are bombarded with screens of many types all day every day. Phones, computers, tv's, etc. Getting in a car and driving somewhere is a refreshingly analog experience vs the virtual world many of us spend half the day in.

I don't want more computer screens in my car. I want to feel like I'm controlling the vehicle in a physical sense. Old school controls like buttons and knobs make the experience even better.

[mopaman]

Originally Posted by tahoebimmer

Functional for sure, but I think auto manufacturers are missing an opportunity by going with these iPad-like control surfaces.

We are bombarded with screens of many types all day every day. Phones, computers, tv's, etc. Getting in a car and driving somewhere is a refreshingly analog experience vs the virtual world many of us spend half the day in.

I don't want more computer screens in my car. I want to feel like I'm controlling the vehicle in a physical sense. Old school controls like buttons and knobs make the experience even better.

I think the sheer volume of available options and controls for all the vehicle features and vehicle status/information requires an interface like an iPad to control and access it all. That being said, the day to day tactile stuff such as audio volume, climate and wipers should be available.

I think with so much being automated (climate for example does not require much resetting on the go), physical controls may not be something most people miss.