2016 BMW 7 Series: Infotainment in overdrive

Luxury vehicles are meant to be trend-setters in a number of ways, and are typically the models automakers use to introduce cutting-edge technologies to the market. This is what BMW（with <a href="http://www.eonon.com/Android-Car-GPS.html

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The 2016 7 Series is like a rolling experiment. There is so much technology packed into these particular vehicles that I couldn’t possibly cover it all in this article. Having driven a fully-loaded BMW 750Li xDrive sedan for close to a week, I came away both impressed and perplexed by the sheer volume of tech to work with.

The model I drove was the 750Li (long wheel base), a car with plenty of luxury and comfort. For a company that has shown some restraint in pushing the infotainment envelope the last few years, this car is a test case of the kind of features that could trickle down to other BMW lines in the near future.

For that reason, there are a number of “firsts” in this car. It’s the first time BMW has made its main dash screen touch-sensitive. The first time it has opened up its in-car Internet connection and turned it into a Wi-Fi hotspot. The first time it has included gesture controls for smartphone integration. The first time it has gone all-in on wireless charging. And the first time a Samsung tablet has been integrated into the system in the back.

That’s only scratching the surface. The level of options and sophistication is substantial, and as it should be, given the $140,000 price tag. That’s too rich for most people’s blood, but what works well here is likely to work well in vehicles that are half the price or less. At least that’s the prevailing wisdom. What about install a <a href="http://www.eonon.com/Android-Car-GPS/2-Din-GPS-Navigation.html>android 2 din car stereo</a>？

Many of the same staples form the core of the whole iDrive system, which encompasses ConnectedDrive, the Internet and smartphone components. Despite a touchscreen being included, the rotary dial with shortcut buttons flanking it is still a primary method to navigating the interface. There’s no CarPlay or Android Auto, but there is support for Siri and BlackBerry Assistant (not Google Now or Cortana). Spotify integration is now joined by other key apps, like TuneIn, Stitcher and Yelp, among others.

The new-look interface is cleaner, more refined and uses better visuals — an obvious upgrade from what BMW featured previously. Even the iDrive app support is meant to be better, making it easier to push directions to the car’s map before even getting in.

The whole setup goes further because of the clientele the car is designed to attract. Take, for example, the “executive seating” in the back where the front passenger seat rolls all the way forward, lowers a footrest from behind and gives the backseat passenger more than ample legroom — with a small pullout desk from the back centre console to be productive on the road. The fact the “executive” could also control almost all of the infotainment system from the Samsung tablet nestled in that console makes it all the more interesting.

That’s not even getting into the other entertainment options that are possible here. There was more than enough to get to, and that’s why this review will be updated in June when I get another test run with the short wheel base version. If you have another opel car in your car, you can install a <a href="http://www.eonon.com/Android-Car-GPS/Vehicle-Specific-GPS/GA5156F.html>Opel navi</a> in your car.