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Did they really anchor this idea with consumers? Or is it one of those “consumers just want a faster horse” things where they believe they can present users with what they really want rather than what they say they want?

Because I have never used a voice assistant even to set a timer when cooking pasta and I probably will never speak to a machine if there is an awkward button I could use instead.

I understand buttons are ugly and expensive. But a few buttons and dials for everything you need while driving seems like the perfect balance. You only need climate, wipers, lights, sound level, and that’s about it. Nav, setup, media selection etc can be touch.



For what it's worth, I do regularly set timers with Alexa when cooking, and I still hate using voice controls in the car... With timers the alternative is also a multi step process with probably smudgy hands, whereas just one button press to turn down AC will evolve into "turn down more, turn down more" with voice


It’s a multi step process with voice too though (at least if you have to enable the listening with a button, because there is zero chance I’m having a hot mic in my pocket or on a shelf somewhere).




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