Thursday, November 20, 2008

2010 Lexus RX 350 and 450h: Luxury Crossovers Get Mouse-like Haptic Controller: Live From the 2008 L.A. Auto Show

from the IV Mb, by cellodude:

2010 Lexus RX 350 and 450h: Luxury Crossovers Get Mouse-like Haptic Controller: Live From the 2008 L.A. Auto Show Lexus r450h

The Lexus RX crossovers are celebrating an anniversary. It's been 10 years since the first generation Lexus crossovers hit the market and brought with them a wave of new carlike utility vehicles.

However, perhaps the biggest development is on the inside. Lexus has finally joined the haptic controller race with a new system called “Remote Touch.” This controller acts similarly to BMW's iDrive and Audi's MMI systems, but instead of a fixed knob that spins to run various vehicle functions, the Lexus system acts more like a more sophisticated computer mouse­—moving on multiple planes. It can also be programmed for different levels of feedback. We can't wait to test this new system.

The new RX 350 goes on sale in February with the RX 450h following in the spring. —Ben Stewart]

No comments: