Infotainment Systems that Disappoint, Pt. 2

In our last post, we took a look at two confounding infotainment systems that LINK could definitely help fill functionality gaps for. The previous-generation Starlink and Sensus are hardly the only – or even the worst – offenders, however, as there are a bevy of factory-standard consoles out there that leave drivers wanting more. What’s especially baffling about some of these products is that they come from some of the most sought after automotive brands on the market.

Lexus Enform

Take, for instance, the infotainment system that comes standard in many Lexus models. Many entry-level compact cars have more sophisticated and futuristic design principles guiding their infotainment offerings than what Lexus, often ranked among the most sought-after and advanced marques in the industry, delivers.

For starters, the Enform foregoes a touchscreen in favor of a touch pad on the console that takes a lot of getting used to. Not only is this inconvenient for drivers – if not a safety hazard – but the hypersensitive touch pad can make navigating between the different functions on the dash-mounted screen a game of chance. Without a passenger to man the infotainment system, drivers are better off just leaving the radio on and memorizing their route before they travel rather than take advantage of the different infotainment offerings.

Infiniti InTouch

Where Lexus fell short on delivering a modern touchscreen, Infiniti doubled down. The InTouch infotainment system features two touch-sensitive screens that sit on top of each other, giving drivers and passengers a dash console that at times can be like watching two TVs at once. While it can be convenient having one screen map out your route while the other gives you options to access multimedia, there is a lot of overlap in regards to functionality between the two screens that at the end of the day is just distracting. There’s also a great deal of lag that can be attributed to a number of factors, whether that’s flawed power management or a lack of virtual memory, that just fuels a great deal of frustration.

With LINK’s 2 TB of shareable storage, it can take any burden from digital clutter off of an infotainment system by carrying all of the necessary content a driver may need within its small, effective form factor. The device’s ability to give users WiFi wherever cellular data is available can  make up for any lacking modern capabilities that users would expect to come standard from a premium brand like Lexus or Infiniti, while allowing users to take their content with them once they reach their final destination.