←back to thread

Are touchscreens in cars dangerous?

(www.economist.com)
238 points Brajeshwar | 5 comments | 20 Sep 25 15:57 UTC | HN request time: 0.001s | source
Show context
crazygringo ◴[20 Sep 25 16:27 UTC] No.45314757[source]▶
> An analysis published in 2020 by the Transport Research Laboratory, a British organisation, found that touchscreens impaired a driver’s reaction time more than driving over the legal alcohol limit.

The question isn't whether they're dangerous, anymore.

The question is, when is safety legislation going to be passed that prevents them from being used for any routine adjustments while driving. I.e. windshield wipers, AC, change volume, skip to next track, etc.

Like it's fine if you still use them to input a GPS destination, change long-term car settings, connect a Bluetooth device, etc.

But we need to separate out the actions routinely used during driving and legislate physical controls. Why is there not legislation for this already?

replies(11): >>45314916 #>>45314919 #>>45315029 #>>45315075 #>>45315182 #>>45316058 #>>45316286 #>>45316477 #>>45317954 #>>45318566 #>>45319312 #
nothrabannosir ◴[20 Sep 25 19:03 UTC] No.45316286[source]▶
I would support legislation which disables the touch screen when the passenger seat is unoccupied and the vehicle is in motion.

But I admit I’m being selfish: I don’t drive but share the road with people who do.

replies(7): >>45316741 #>>45316941 #>>45317504 #>>45317645 #>>45317798 #>>45318151 #>>45318211 #
bo1024 ◴[20 Sep 25 21:17 UTC] No.45317645[source]▶
One not-so-fun place this could go is mandatory voice recognition commands, leading to everything said in the car being recorded and stored by the manufacturers.
replies(1): >>45319498 #
1. Silhouette ◴[21 Sep 25 02:29 UTC] No.45319498[source]▶
Voice recognition might be the only UI worse for safety and usability than a touchscreen for normal driving operations.

Not that you're wrong about the privacy angle either.

replies(1): >>45330142 #
2. 1718627440 ◴[22 Sep 25 07:27 UTC] No.45330142[source]▶
Why? Talking won't prevent you focusing on the road?
replies(2): >>45331368 #>>45342250 #
3. Silhouette ◴[22 Sep 25 10:20 UTC] No.45331368[source]▶
Because voice recognition is horribly imprecise. If you're controlling essential functions for driving then you need controls that are efficient, predictable, and reliable.
replies(1): >>45334016 #
4. 1718627440 ◴[22 Sep 25 14:32 UTC] No.45334016{3}[source]▶
Sounds like a implementation problem, not a problem with voice control.

We have a 20 old navi with voice control. You can't just say free form things, but it's very deterministic. Most commands you want to say aren't free form, so this doesn't really matter. It also confirms everything, so it will never do something without you knowing. It also has the best voice I got to know. Natural, precise, short AND friendly; no clue why all these modern voices with way more compute all sound like garbage.

5. necovek ◴[23 Sep 25 02:44 UTC] No.45342250[source]▶
Yes: attempting to have conversation is found to diminish focus on driving to a large extent — I remember seeing a study on this, and can vouch with personal experience.

Yes, you can do most of the driving, but "at the edges", when quicker reaction time is needed, it becomes noticeable. Similar to, ahem, drunk driving, though obviously, not as bad, and you can stop a conversation whenever needed.

Obviously, talking to a computer in your car would be less taxing than to a person, but when it misrecognizes the input, it might be the opposite.