Photo: Jeep
The year 2022 may be shaping up to be the year of in-car displays. To lovers of all things analog and physical, I say: Yes, your despair is not ending any time soon. Touch screens have invaded the car cockpit and, increasingly, they are no longer a mere addition to the dashboard or center console; in many cases, they are becoming the dashboard itself.
For the 2022 model year, the three-row Jeep Grand Cherokee L is getting an equal number of additional displays, bringing the total amount of available interior touch screens to five. Before, it just had the 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster and 10.1-inch primary infotainment display. Now, it also has an optional 10.3-inch front passenger screen as well as an optional pair of 10.1-inch touch screens for second-row passengers.
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Each of these last two displays is compatible with Amazon Fire TV, the Cherokee L’s built-in Wi-Fi hotspot, HDMI, and voice remotes powered by Alexa. They also have nine gigabytes of storage for Amazon Prime Video content. As for the front passenger screen, it can show media controls, navigation information, and camera views.
And just in case you needed more displays, the Cherokee L also has an optional digital rearview mirror as well as a head-up display. If you prefer analog controls over paging through submenus and tapping on a screen to get anything done in your car, you’re not in luck. Like it or not, the auto industry is going the way of the Cherokee L.
Indeed, it’s now common to see 12.3-inch screens even in mainstream vehicles, and in those belonging to the same ultra-luxury segment as the Jeep, screen saturation is only becoming more prevalent. The Cadillac Escalade’s curved OLED screens span more than half the width of the dashboard. The new Grand Wagoneer, a cousin to the Cherokee L, has up to seven screens with 75 inches of total display area.
We do have to wonder if it’s possible to ever have too much information at hand, especially while at the wheel of a car, when your focus should be on the road. Then again, when fully autonomous driving technology arrives, that will stop mattering. And when it does, the vehicles that feel like a home cinema will probably stand out the most.
Kurt Verlin was born in France and lives in the United States. Throughout his life he was always told French was the language of romance, but it was English he fell in love with. He likes cats, music, cars, 30 Rock, Formula 1, and pretending to be a race car driver in simulators; but most of all, he just likes to write about it all. See more articles by Kurt.
