Byton $45k EV with 49" screen in dash (late 2019)

[tynopik]

https://electrek.co/2018/01/08/byton-all-electric-suv/

Byton unveils its all-electric SUV starting at $45,000 with range up to 323 miles

After a few month of teasing and confirming that it will launch in the US in 2020, Byton, the international brand of China-based EV startup Future Mobility Corp, unveiled its first electric vehicle, which it refers to as “an electric intelligent SUV.”

As we previously reported, Byton was founded by a bunch of executives from Tesla, BMW, and Nissan, and it has several Chinese investors, including Tencent Holdings, which is now also an important investor in Tesla.

The company is part of a growing trend of Chinese electric vehicle startups launching new EVs in China but who also have international ambitions.

Their first vehicle unveiled this weekend at CES, a small electric SUV, is planned to hit the Chinese market next year before coming to the US and Europe in 2020.

They listed the key features in a press release:

- Shared lounge experience for in-car communication, entertainment and work, with content and connection driven by the BYTON Life cloud platform
- A single 125 x 25 cm (49 x 9.8 inch) Shared Experience Display center console, along with three additional display screens
- Unique human-vehicle interaction incorporating voice recognition, touch control, biometric identification and hand gesture control technology
- Incorporation of Amazon Alexa for intelligent voice control, with additional Amazon collaboration on audio and video content
- Maximum range of 520 km (323 miles) on a single charge

That range will be enabled by a 95 kwh battery pack a 4-wheel-drive dual motor 350 kW powertrain for a premium, but the base version starting at $45,000 will be powered by a single RWD 200 kW motor and a 71 kwh battery pack for a driving range of 400 km (248.5 miles).

The company claims to be able to charge the battery pack to “80% in just 30 minutes.”

. . . .

Electrek’s Take

Interesting first entry from this somewhat secretive startup that we have been following for a while now.

I’m not sure what to think of all that multitude of high-tech features yet, but when it comes to core electric vehicle specs, I like what I’m hearing – especially for the price.

We are talking about a mid-luxury SUV at $45,000 with a significant battery capacity close to the base version of Tesla’s Model X. The higher-end version with dual motor and a bigger battery pack could theoretically even be competitive with Tesla’s flagship electric SUV.

Otherwise, it sounds like it could be a competitor to Tesla’s upcoming Model Y, which is expected around the same time.

Of course, we haven’t had a lot of luck with EV startups bringing their cool EV concepts to production yet, which means that Byton will have to work against the persisting vaporware-feeling that comes with new companies launching electric vehicles.

If you want my opinion, the caliber of leadership is impressive and it seems one of the most credible financial backings to date for EV startups in China.

I think Byton might be a company to watch in the next few years. What do you think? Let us know in the comment section below.

It will be interesting to see if any of these other EV only companies will take root or if they'll all get crowded out by 'traditional' car manufacturers

Moved from OT.
admin allisolm

 

[sdifox]

so buy new car when the screen dies? horrible idea with the gestures. as if driver is not distracted enough.

 

[vi edit]

Touch screens are one of the worst things to happen to automobiles. We aren't wired to safely propel a 4000lb+ object at 75MPH AND be distracted with a giant ass iPad that is responsible for most functions within the cabin.

 

[MixMasterTang]

I want to know what happens to the tablet on the steering wheel when the airbag goes off?

 

[CrackRabbit]

I want to know what happens to the tablet on the steering wheel when the airbag goes off?

Getting smacked in the face with a tablet will the least of your worries because the car will fold like bad origami and the batteries will catch fire when involved in a crash.

 

[RLGL]

That will take distracted driving to a whole new level!

 

[KIAman]

There's got to be an innovative method to control the car's info and entertainment systems. I agree, touchscreens are not the way to go. I thought natural language processing was the way to go but I find I rarely use voice command if I have other people in the car because I have to tell them to stfu.

I like the HUD and having controls on the steering wheel. The HUD allows me not to take my eyes off the road and controls on wheel ensures my hands don't have to come off. But there needs to be more and expanded to be able to completely control the car from that perspective.

 

[Chaotic42]

Touch screens are one of the worst things to happen to automobiles. We aren't wired to safely propel a 4000lb+ object at 75MPH AND be distracted with a giant ass iPad that is responsible for most functions within the cabin.

Agreed. My 2016 Subaru WRX has a horrible touch screen and I hate it. Fortunately I can do most things I need to with tactile controls. Interestingly it doesn't let you do things like search for addresses while you're moving, which seems nice until your passenger tries to do it.

 

[Greenman]

There's got to be an innovative method to control the car's info and entertainment systems. I agree, touchscreens are not the way to go. I thought natural language processing was the way to go but I find I rarely use voice command if I have other people in the car because I have to tell them to stfu.

I like the HUD and having controls on the steering wheel. The HUD allows me not to take my eyes off the road and controls on wheel ensures my hands don't have to come off. But there needs to be more and expanded to be able to completely control the car from that perspective.

It's called the switch and the knob. Push switch to turn on radio, turn large knob to increase or decrease volume.
There shouldn't be a front seat entertainment system. There shouldn't be flashing lights and bells and whistles going off. The dash should supply critical information about the vehicle in a very easy to understand format. NOTHING ELSE.

 

[KIAman]

It's called the switch and the knob. Push switch to turn on radio, turn large knob to increase or decrease volume.
There shouldn't be a front seat entertainment system. There shouldn't be flashing lights and bells and whistles going off. The dash should supply critical information about the vehicle in a very easy to understand format. NOTHING ELSE.

I agree. But I meant something that doesn't require you to take your eyes off the road. Knobs and switches on the console still needs a look before you use them.

 

[Meghan54]

I agree. But I meant something that doesn't require you to take your eyes off the road. Knobs and switches on the console still needs a look before you use them.

Uhhh....no, they don't, unless you spend zero time in your vehicle driving. After a couple of months, I've always been able to navigate the dash by feel....knobs, switches....know where they all are, how they work, etc. So I can change the volume by feel without looking at the radio, change my interior temp., change A/C to heat, etc., etc. I even have steering wheel buttons/controls for most functions, but the buttons are smallish, creating mishits on pushing particular buttons. Working the knobs is vastly easier....the knobs and switches all have differing shapes, so easy to remember what's what on the dash by location.

I thought everyone learned their vehicle's interior by feel.

 

[KIAman]

You are way more coordinated than me. I also own a KIA Sedona with a knobs and switches and buttons on the center console and I have to at least glance at where my hand is going to go before I can use them.

 

[darkswordsman17]

That screen looks terrible as it looks like its juts up more than a normal dash would, hindering visibility. Not to mention at night how much of a nuisance that would be even if there's a dark/night mode. Plus being a massive distraction and I don't want to have to login or have it auto sense and log me in to a car anyway.

Which, another thing, just in general, these newer LCD dashes are horrible. I love how even in their glamour (which are of course edited) shots, you can see the screens washing out some. I also laugh at their web 2.0 aspects (where the digital graphics will have stuff like gloss on them). And its across the board, as the ones that attempt to look like older dash/instrument panels look cheesy and stupid, but then you see stuff like Mercedes' version and it looks probably worse, not to mention would be horrible for glare.

These companies really need to rethink these displays, especially the instrument panel ones. At least give the option for making them basic monochrome with easy to read contrast/fonts (if they have them, I haven't seen them ever be mentioned or shown). And give people knobs that they can put on the touch screens (like the Surface knob that Microsoft came up with, but probably smaller) and then define what they do (so that you have easy knobs for stuff like speaker volume, adjusting the HVAC), or just put like a bunch of knobs and some buttons and then have people choose what they want them to do.

Hearing about stuff like having to use the touchscreen to activate the wipers on a Model 3, just sounds like a disaster. Which, voice control is fine (but not everyone wants, and in some cases can do that stuff so they need to figure out ways to make it accessible).

 

[Greenman]

All of this stuff has been thought through, and in many cases done very well, the problem is the consumer. People want gadgets, they want an app for EVERYTHING. They want flashing lights and dancing bar graphs, they want futuristic sounds and colors, and they'll pay for them, they'll pay plenty for them. For the auto makers it's cheap bling that they can markup a 1000%. That it often doesn't work as well as a simple toggle switch doesn't matter.
What I find hysterical is people that buy this crap then complain that's it difficult to navigate.

 

[mindless1]

All of this stuff has been thought through, and in many cases done very well, the problem is the consumer. People want gadgets, they want an app for EVERYTHING. They want flashing lights and dancing bar graphs, they want futuristic sounds and colors, and they'll pay for them, they'll pay plenty for them. For the auto makers it's cheap bling that they can markup a 1000%. That it often doesn't work as well as a simple toggle switch doesn't matter.
What I find hysterical is people that buy this crap then complain that's it difficult to navigate.

I just wanted a specific vehicle enough to put up with that no-choice crap, but would have gladly paid $1K less for 20 year old style mechanical controls instead.