Buttons or not

[kevin-bradbury]

Buttons.

Knobs.

Would even enjoy a toggle or two.

• This reply was modified 9 months, 3 weeks ago by  Kevin Bradbury.

[993cc]

Every indication so far is that Aptera’s HVAC and entertainment systems will be touch screen driven, mostly because it’s cheaper. I agree that it’s a trend that needs to die a painful death, but for now, Aptera needs to be competitive. I just hope there are switches for the lights, wipers and cruise control.

[norman-roberts]

If they could utilize voice commands problem solved and safety would increase

[Ray]

The relatively small amount of experience I’ve had with GPS voice command leads me to think I would be happy with no voice command. I would trust that avant-garde engineers at Aptera would be way out in front in that department if voice command was part of the package.

[0xKruzr]

For my part, Google voice command seems to work very well in my Android Auto-enabled truck. If it were trained on things specific to the car – “set AC to 70 degrees” – I think this could work. One thing you’d have to plan for is cellular outages, though, since IIRC its engine has all voice clips sent to the cloud for processing.

[jerry-kingzett]

I vote for Buttons, Knobs, and Toggle Switches, Oh My. But keep it simple as possible. I just looked at my steering wheel on my two year old Chevy Bolt and discovered two buttons that I don’t know what they are for. The Bolt’s shifter is stupid because it just an expensive selector switch two buttons. As a lifelong user of a stick shift I have the bad habit of resting my right hand on the shifter while at a stop light and inadvertently pressed the park button multiple times. I would be happier with the controls on the Wuling Mini EV.

[clint-nichols-nichols]

I am ok with touch-screen as they are constantly upgradable, and configurable, BUT some things really need to have a button or a knob. Even if it is just ONE thing. Have a volume/mute knob. I have a 2017 Ridgeline with a full touch screen and it is beyond aggravating to try to turn the volume down. Especially on those early mornings when you’re barely awake and you were blasting the volume on your favorite song the night before when you shut it off. While I do have a button on the steering wheel for this, the responsiveness of that, and the display screen are abysmal. The knob in my wife’s 2019 Odyssey is instantaneous, simply and efficient.

[paul-van-steenberghe]

Buttons, knobs and toggles are so much better for things like volume control, heating and ventilation, opening gloveboxes, wipers, etc. sure a touch screen and associated software can be upgraded and be used for many options, but for common things that are done while driving, I don’t want a touch screen, I want knobs, buttons and toggles.

[patrick-wachter]

I’m a 100 % for knobs for some functions : heating, volume control, opening windows and wipers. It’s not only more convenient, but also safer. You only take your eyes off the road for a fraction of a second, if at all.

[Mangoat]

I’m fine with all touch screen, but as a current driver of a Honda Fit, I know the argument far too well. The Fit is a good example that has played with models coming out with a physical volume dial & did try a model with either buttons up/down or it was on a touch screen, I forget which. The model without a physical volume knob got a lot of hate from the Fit fans. Personally, I didn’t care either way. Due to the hate the knob-less volume control model got, they brought it back in the model after that one.

All that said, for computers we often see plug & play accessories that take over some controls or give extra controls to a computer. Maybe something can be done for the Aptera like this? Unsure if it is doable or not, but what if someone made a console unit that plugged into the Aptera’s USB port and gave it physical knobs/buttons for various functions? Computers already have USB knobs that allow for volume adjusting or macro buttons to easy access features.

[Pragmatic_to_a_Fault]

Touch screens = distracted driving.

If I can’t legally touch my gps while the vehicle is in motion, how am I supposed to put my windows down in an aptera legally ? Turn down the heat ? Turn on the wipers ? Etc.

Distracted driving laws are very real.

[paul-kirchner]

I can’t remember if there’s been talk of voice commands for any of the touchscreen functions.

[jesthorbjorn]

Not sure where I picked up on the rumor, but seems to me that I have heard that the two buttons on the steering yoke will be programmable. A parallel thought is why must they be simple buttons? Why not two axis toggle buttons? I may be mis-naming them, but what I am talking about have been ubiquitous on video game controllers for years and would provide actuation of five different functions each.

How many functions do you think you need to control without moving your hands from the yoke? Especially if you can pick and choose which ones?

All just speculation on my part but seems plausible enough, no?

[wingsounds13]

I am sure that the programmable controls on the yoke are in the very least two way (up/down) switches. More likely they are scroll wheels like Tesla uses. Better yet, they should also have push and left/right click functions, though somehow I doubt that the design team has been this forward thinking. Maybe they’ll read this comment and incorporate the idea in their design.

[george-hughes]

In an earlier discussion on this general topic, it was noted that many of the items in the Aptera are connected via an internal network (windows/doors/etc/) that use electronic signals to activate. It was further suggested that the functions controlled on the mainscreen, could be developed into a phone app. If that is true, then standalone buttons designed to transmit a particular signal for a particular operation could be developed and installed as third-party additions. This is strictly a communications thing and it is imminently solvable. Basically, if you can do it with a phone app; you can do it with a ‘button’ device.

Beyond that, I’m curious how effectively one might flip through the Aptera interface with the use of the two scroll-type buttons on the yoke. Depending on the cleverness of the programmers doing the interface, you can do a lot with scrolling buttons.

I mean it would seem feasible to have a switch about the size of a box of matches that is Velcro-ed to the door to roll the window up and down powered by a button battery. It is a matter of flipping a switch to provide power to the window motor. It would be cool if you could program the button using the yoke’s scrolling buttons :).

A better future is what we all hope for, but in the end, it is and will be what it is.

[srbobc]

IMO Tesla has it right. Two scroll wheels on the steering wheel and a touch screen. There is a learning curve. When I got used it I have found there is no need for anything else – just requires a little weaning from the traditional knobs and buttons!

[jonah-jorgenson]

👍 Same experience. It takes a willingness to adapt. Most who complain about the screen have not driven a vehicle with the screen as an interface. Of course, none have driven an Aptera with their implementation of a screen interface. I think it is an adapt or go with another less capable vehicle.

• This reply was modified 5 months, 4 weeks ago by  Jonah Jorgenson. Reason: update content

[Jonathan]

To me it’s about safety over entertainment, convenience or cost. How long does the driver need to look away from the road to make the adjustment? I don’t have to look down at the brake pedal to use it. The time it takes to look away to roll down a window or adjust the airflow should be minimized. If a voice command can do that reliably, I guess I can get used to it. Otherwise I like a tactile button, knob or switch.

[rex-schneider]

I’d like it to look like this but I will settle for a screen

[william-tiller]

I personally think the EV manufacturers are going a little over board with the screen controlling everything. Let me adjust air vents without having to touch a screen. That also saves having to put a motor in that will eventually fail.

[michael-may]

The latest interview with Jason Hill indicates that there will be less functionality on the yoke buttons than was previously announced. Sounds like the left button will be volume up/down, and the right one will be the horn.

I think that there will be an active after-market for Aptera hard-switches. Some smart person will figure out how to make physical switches interface with the Aptera, and start selling 3D printed units for us to mount.

[Pragmatic_to_a_Fault]

I don’t have to look for my window buttons or my door locks , I know exactly where they are and can FEEL them

There is a reason for the F and J on your keyboard having a bump on them. It’s to position your hands so you can type without looking at the keyboard.

You don’t have to look at the break or clutch gas etc. You know where they are.

A giant touch screen is one more distraction you don’t need.

My old boss rear ended someone in his Prius because he was looking at the “presumed” gas mileage and so focused on getting to 99mpg he didn’t look up and whamo.

I remember setting the clock in my friends Benz. You have to go through so many folders and sun menus to set the stupid clock after daylight savings time it’s insane.

What’s the point ? So prove you can make it as difficult as possible ?

[joshua-caldwell]

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/ctrl-bar–4#/

This links to a campaign specifically for the Tesla 3 auxiliary device. However, I think that this would be good either for Aptera to do directly or for another company to create a version for the Aptera. In the Aptera previews, it seems there are very few physical buttons for commonly interacted with vehicle commands. Physical buttons that can be used without having to redirect focus from driving to manipulating a computer screen would be a very good idea. While other car companies do this with dedicated buttons, I’m interested in this ability for the driver to set the buttons to do what THEY want, and not waste space on rarely used specific buttons.

• This reply was modified 4 months, 1 week ago by  bbelcamino.
• This reply was modified 3 months ago by  Gabriel Kemeny.

[barry-jewett]

I too saw these Tesla oriented buttons and immediately felt excitement in an Aptera adaption. It would be great to know if there is an ease of adapting through Aptera’s software. Does anyone have experience with Tesla’s use of these buttons? They will be number one on my own personal addition.

[george-hughes]

I’d say the auxiliary buttons are a certainty for Aptera given time and interest.

[Andrew]

This is great to see. If indeed I end up with one of my hoped for and reserved Apteras as my daily driver I will most certainly have physical buttons one way or another. I would prefer that Aptera recognizes this as an important feature and facilitates implementation of third party products quickly, but failing that I will design and program an interface for myself.

Companies that are on the opposite side of Aptera’s right-to-repair philosophy such as Apple have failed to prevent me from taking ownership of what they sold me. That is, I have adapted these products and software to my use case without the company’s cooperation. How much simpler this will be with Aptera honoring their commitment to an almost open-source level of RtR. Linux, Unix and Apple’s derived coding frameworks are simple enough to be approachable by the nonprofessional, and I look forward to seeing physical button interface products become available for EVs one way or the other.

• This reply was modified 4 months, 1 week ago by  Andrew O.

[IA-1]

Aptera should not drop the ball on this one. If they can’t provide physical buttons for the operation of the windows, windshield wipers etc they must provide a convenient port and a software support for an easy connection of a third party controller.

The lack of physical controls is one of the major reasons why I will wait for a few years before I decide to get an Aptera.

The Tesla Model 3/Y! controller from the link above looks good, the price is affordable, but we need more than 4 buttons for sure. The control bar should be full with buttons, I don’t see a reason why we shouldn’t have more.

[993cc]

Devices such as the “S 3 X Y” buttons usually interface with the vehicle through the OBDll port. I hope Aptera provides an alternative, since I want that port for the Heads Up Display I want to install.

[AlexA]

That is actually a good thing.

Pretty disappointed Aptera went the Tesla way and decided to do everything over the screen.

Hopefully they can add some functions like displaying the important info like speed, navigation and other stuff on one of the side mirror screens.

[matthew-ksonic]

I will not purchase a vehicle if I cannot maintain clear vision of the road without taking my hands off the steering wheel or my eyes off the road. This includes turning on and off the windshield wipers and washer fluid to clear the windshield and also turning on and off the head lights and high beams. Have you ever gotten drenched by a car hitting a puddle. Or coming into a dark dip in the road where you need you high beams. Or driven in slush and snow that needs to be washed off periodically. And voice activated is not fast nor reliable enough. I like everything else I know about the vehicle but will not sacrifice my safety by driving something without adequate controls. I would consider these controls almost as important as the steering wheel and the gas and brake pedals.

• This reply was modified 4 days, 7 hours ago by  matthew-ksonic.

[john-malcom]

No problem. Buy something other than an Aptera or Tesla. 😄 Most on this forum are strong supporters of Apterae and will find ways to accomodate the Aptera design and still drive safely. If you had an early reservation, someone behind you will be happy to move up a space.

[bryan-hendricks]

I was surprised by how quickly I became comfortable with the steering wheel controls on the Tesla. The lack of buttons seemed strange to me at first. Then, I learned HOW to control windshield wiper/washer, lane keep, adaptive cruise control, etc. and I now prefer the Tesla experience.

Yes, the lights are a little different. I am inclined to leave the setting on “auto”, but I understand the emergency examples described earlier. I appreciate the shortcut of pulling back on the stalk to quickly get to the menu for exterior lights.

I routinely take one hand off the wheel to shift gears with a manual transmission. In my opinion it was far more difficult to learn how to use a manual transmission than to manually turn on the lights on a Tesla.

I’m sure the Aptera will be a little different, but I am confident in my ability to adapt.