Saying the upcoming Mercedes-Benz EQS electric car will feature the largest screen in the business is like saying Moby Dick was big. It’s true, but misses the scale of the thing.
Mercedes unveiled the screen today for the online-only 2021 Consumer Electronics Show. As promised, the Hyperscreen spans the entire width of the car. It takes over the dashboard to offer a comprehensive entertainment and information experience. The driver and front passenger, each of whom “has their own display and operating area” on the curved glass.
The passenger’s side of the screen can display personalized entertainment, the company says, where permitted by law. If the passenger’s seat is unoccupied, the screen “becomes a digital decorative part” displaying an animated stars.
The screen responds to touch, using 12 actuators to enable haptic feedback.
Mercedes says that “artificial intelligence and learn-capable software enable the control and display concept to adapt to the user and make personalized suggestions for a variety of functions from infotainment to comfort and even vehicle functions.”
A “zero-layer feature” ends scrolling through menus, “as the most important applications are always available in a situational and contextual way at the top of the screen and in the driver’s direct field of vision.”
Only air vents break the smooth surface, which, Mercedes says, serves to “connect the digital and physical worlds.”
The EQS is the only vehicle so far that will offer the Hyperscreen. Pricing hasn’t been announced, but given its position in the Mercedes-Benz stable, we expect it to start around $110,000.
