Re:US Navy will replace touchscreen with mechanical controls...
by johnbrodie on Sunday August 11, 2019 @03:13PM
(#20669845)
For the life of me I can't understand why touch screens built in to a car are considered "different" than phones. Cities and states are finally waking up and making it a crime to use your phone while driving, how in the world are car touch screens any different?
Re:US Navy will replace touchscreen with mechanical controls...
by userbinator on Sunday August 11, 2019 @05:52PM
(#20670776)
I suspect it's more because using your phone is almost definitely not controlling the car, while using a touchscreen that is part of the car's controls is still technically considered "operating the vehicle" and thus not a distraction, regardless of how difficult it is to actually operate.
Re:US Navy will replace touchscreen with mechanical controls...
by minitoar on Sunday August 11, 2019 @02:30PM
(#20669638)
This is a good idea but a recall is too much for this to be practical. At least the NTSB should be doing this for all new cars.
Re:US Navy will replace touchscreen with mechanical controls...
by brewdad on Sunday August 11, 2019 @03:08PM
(#20669814)
I had this discussion with my teenage child this week and neither of us are sure. Our state requires handsfree phone use but has the car touchscreen exception. Would operating Android Auto or CarPlay be illegal or does it fall under the allowed exceptions?
Agreed. I consider them dangerous, a threat to public safety, they should be banned by the NTSB, and some cars that use them should be under recall to retrofit them with mechanical controls.
Many states are now passing hands free laws that criminalize the use of phones or any other devices that use your hands while driving. The states provide exceptions for car touch screen use, but they shouldn't. They should criminalize the use of all touch screens when driving, not just some.