Just saw the latest issue of Consumer Reports where they rate automotive infotainment systems.....evidently Tesla owners rate our systems higher than any other make. I'm not sure if that includes the bugs, but evidently they don't affect ratings. I think the #1 rating for voice commands is especially puzzling considering there are very few commands in the car's vocabulary, but maybe that makes it harder to get the command wrong....YMMV.
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Comprehensive USB Bug List
- Thread starter supratachophobia
- Start date
This does not surprise me. People like the big screen and, since it is main interface, they use it. The nav and maps are IMO far better than others... even though I know no waypoints etc. ability to search while driving for destination is excellent. Lots of people happy with radio and streaming. It is truly unfortunate that those of us who are music nuts get shafted though. I really wish they'd fix it for us. There are only 3 or 4 things.
BertL
Active Member
I have always felt there is a connection between the MS coming out of light or deep sleep, as well as in some charging and firmware update scenarios, where unexpected USB rescans will more likely occur. I've not seen any TOD pattern to it other than that. I do keep Range Mode = ON 7x24x365 to enable dual-motor torque distribution. I no longer go through my more comprehensive list of things to try with each new firmware update, which formerly included Range Mode being on/off and its possible impact to rescans, so IDK if something may have changed in the past few months -- while some others declared it did, I never convinced myself Range Mode made a substantial difference with my own testing that ended earlier last year.
The external rescan symptoms continue appearing to me as if Tesla keeps a "checkmark" in a part of non-pervasive memory that inadvertently gets wiped when the vehicle sleeps (and maybe charges), no different than what happens when you unplug and re-plug the same USB device without changing its contents while MS is on. What puzzles and irritates me even more is when I run errands around town (my primary use); drive sometimes 5-15 minutes to my next destination; then run into a store for 10-20; to encounter a rescan when I turn my MS back on. It's not a consistent repeatable pattern, but I don't understand why my MS should go to sleep in those sort of brief periods, especially when my battery has plenty of charge, it's not freezing outside, or there is some other reason MS would be trying to preserve it's charge. To me, unexpected rescans are either bad programming or a failed USB design not considering real owner usage cases.
It is interesting, I've never had an involuntary rescan. I'll bet it is memory/storage issue. My car is pre AP, and I don't have a lot of stored locations, profiles, favorites, etc. I wonder if that's a factor.
BertL
Active Member
Yes, that may well be part of it.
Discussed previously in more detail, but I've been convinced for coming up on 2 years now that the total amount of metadata one has for all tracks on the USB device (not the number of tracks or the size of all the files combined, but the physical length of filenames and associated metadata (title, artist names, art, etc.) the interface keeps track of, has a lot to do with it. ...and as you say, the more memory someone has consumed with Nav History, Phone Contact data, AP data flowing up/down, etc. plays a factor in this, since it all has to fit in the same 2GB of available CID memory. There is no place else for it all to go, and Tesla has infamously never documented an upper limit on any of the user-controlled data like every other mfgr I know does -- so it's anyone's guess what happens when memory becomes constrained or if Tesla has even chosen to deal with that possibility in their Infotainment code design. The rescans which happen to some people and not others under varying conditions, combined with tests I did some time ago varying what I expected would change memory usage across phone contacts, nav history and aggregate USB tracks metadata size, lead me to believe memory is part of the challenge. It's why my (automated) workaround is so complex building a Tesla-unique USB stick to reduce metadata while keeping the most important info I use most of the time, so I can have a few more tracks in my MS with me, before my rescan problem gets worse than it already is.
Alas. It would only take a couple engineers at a desk somewhere to resolve so many of the problems, then begin to slowly move Infotainment functionality up to match what the competition has had for years, and eventually to get back into a leadership position once again with useful "Infotainment Easter Eggs" -- aka features owners would really use and make their Tesla Ownership even better in daily use. Unlike building a new vehicle, there are no physical prototypes, capital investments, varying laws to work within, large amounts of personnel required on an ongoing-basis, or significant cost to deploy the changes once they become available. Sadly, it just takes a Tesla Exec to decide it's important enough to do.
Or enable CarPlay or Tidal Hifi streaming. Either of those would do it for me. Or better, both!
Boatguy
Active Member
I think that dashes any hopes that Tesla will put energy into the CID apps. We are apparently a tiny minority of owners who are dissatisfied.
And note that some of those things actually worked correctly (well more correctly anyway) for a short time less than a year ago. (Compilation albums, I'm looking at you.)
I'm not sure if I agree that the nav/maps are better than others...but I'm far from an expert on well these features work across mutiple platforms (er, cars). Maybe like you say people love the huge screen and that makes up for a multitude of other flaws (such as wonky routing).
But yeah when I looked at the cover of the latest CR and saw the sidebar for "Best Infotainment" system and saw a picture of a Model S, I had to suppress a chuckle. Then when I actually went to go read the article and saw how readers rated Tesla vs. everybody else, I had a major "everything you know is wrong" moment. Still trying to process that.
Bruce.
Well, I am one of the top complainers of the media player bugs, cribbing about it day and night to anyone who'd listen. But if someone asks me as part of the survey if I am satisfied with the overall infotainment in Tesla, I will definitely respond with a big YES. And in comparison to anything else I have seen in other cars, granted I haven't experienced a lot many, I will still say Tesla's is the best I have seen, by far.
X Fan
Active Member
32.6 ca28227 installed.
I've experienced numerous rescans along with having to 'reboot' since only 10-75 albums load. Didn't have issues prior to this 'upgrade' (well, rescans anyway...other structural issues of course remain).
FWIW: I keep past destinations 'clean' and only have 6 favorites loaded.
Frustrating...
I've experienced numerous rescans along with having to 'reboot' since only 10-75 albums load. Didn't have issues prior to this 'upgrade' (well, rescans anyway...other structural issues of course remain).
FWIW: I keep past destinations 'clean' and only have 6 favorites loaded.
Frustrating...
As an additional data point - in my pre-AP S I had a memory stick with around 5K tracks and it never rescanned, unless i took it out for some reason. When i got my X, I took the exact same stick with the exact same songs/metadata and it rescanned basically every time the car was turned off and on again - even a 5 minutes stop at a store was enough to cause a rescan.
Playing with metadata, image size etc. per @BertLs findings has improved it - but it still rescans frequently, especially, it seems, after a brief stop.
On intuition I'm starting to feel this is AP related. Anyone with pre AP car getting rescans?
BertL
Active Member
SIDEBAR ON:
I too was initially surprised at the CR review, but OTOH, as a new Tesla (and EV) Owner back almost 2 years ago, I remember how enamored I was with most of the experience including "The CID", and how forgiving I was of "the little things" I had grown accustomed to in my former Lexus, MBZ and BMW over the previous 20+ years. I believed Tesla would get to those things, fix bugs and provide improvements OTA as soon as they grew up a little more. What I didn't realize at the time is how aggrevating some bugs and lack of function you're used to can become over time. I'm also an old(er) guy that still has a home land line (albeit IP-based), mostly uses his iPhone only when away from home and for playing solitaire when I am waiting for appointments, rarely texts, and when not watching satellite TV, prefers to listen and watch my rather extensive purchased music and video library. I also had two dedicated iPods with 15K+ tracks in both of my vehicles (that were easily sync'd, had playlists, and worked really well) before consolidating to my MS. Apple doesn't sell those iPods any more. I know I'm far from the more current broader demographic that lives with a smartphone practically attached to themselves 7x24, and prefers the streaming entertainment approach ...but we're talking about some basic functionality here that is broken or missing in our Tesla, which once it's done right, will not require a lot of maintenance, and simply adds to the benefits list prospective buyers can compare against for years to come.
This is our USB Bug List Thread, so I don't want to take us off-topic much longer, but for those that are interested, I did a fairly detailed piece of work back in January 2016 to compare feature/function of then current MBZ, BMW, & Lexus Infotainment capabilities against what MS had. Tesla's Software To-Do List The thread itself never took off and is now simply for the archives, but scroll down in the first long post to where it says "Missing or Incomplete Basic Capabilities", and have a look from there. Not everything is that important to everyone -- including myself -- but I bet if you look at the list of what's missing compared to other luxury brands, you'll agree with me it's not inconsequential. Then think about that list of what's missing with a lens for today's newer Tesla owner demographic as I suggested above, and I think it explains why CR came to the conclusion they did. I personally don't agree the more complete demographic may be represented in the final result, but hey, as I said, I'm just an old(er) guy that already purchased his MS, and Tesla is on to the next sale.
SIDEBAR OFF:
I too was initially surprised at the CR review, but OTOH, as a new Tesla (and EV) Owner back almost 2 years ago, I remember how enamored I was with most of the experience including "The CID", and how forgiving I was of "the little things" I had grown accustomed to in my former Lexus, MBZ and BMW over the previous 20+ years. I believed Tesla would get to those things, fix bugs and provide improvements OTA as soon as they grew up a little more. What I didn't realize at the time is how aggrevating some bugs and lack of function you're used to can become over time. I'm also an old(er) guy that still has a home land line (albeit IP-based), mostly uses his iPhone only when away from home and for playing solitaire when I am waiting for appointments, rarely texts, and when not watching satellite TV, prefers to listen and watch my rather extensive purchased music and video library. I also had two dedicated iPods with 15K+ tracks in both of my vehicles (that were easily sync'd, had playlists, and worked really well) before consolidating to my MS.
Apple doesn't sell those iPods any more. I know I'm far from the more current broader demographic that lives with a smartphone practically attached to themselves 7x24, and prefers the streaming entertainment approach ...but we're talking about some basic functionality here that is broken or missing in our Tesla, which once it's done right, will not require a lot of maintenance, and simply adds to the benefits list prospective buyers can compare against for years to come.This is our USB Bug List Thread, so I don't want to take us off-topic much longer, but for those that are interested, I did a fairly detailed piece of work back in January 2016 to compare feature/function of then current MBZ, BMW, & Lexus Infotainment capabilities against what MS had. Tesla's Software To-Do List The thread itself never took off and is now simply for the archives, but scroll down in the first long post to where it says "Missing or Incomplete Basic Capabilities", and have a look from there. Not everything is that important to everyone -- including myself -- but I bet if you look at the list of what's missing compared to other luxury brands, you'll agree with me it's not inconsequential. Then think about that list of what's missing with a lens for today's newer Tesla owner demographic as I suggested above, and I think it explains why CR came to the conclusion they did. I personally don't agree the more complete demographic may be represented in the final result, but hey, as I said, I'm just an old(er) guy that already purchased his MS, and Tesla is on to the next sale.
SIDEBAR OFF:
AcidTest
Member
I should see that CR report soon, but haven't yet. I think the overall interface is pretty good in Tesla, there are just some specific issues. It's probably a combination of having so much more screen real estate and the competitors being even less good. But I do worry that this kind of thing will lessen the chance of getting still needed USB and other fixes done.
aesculus
Still Trying to Figure This All Out
My AP1 car rarely rescans. It will do this whenever the firmware is updated but not usually otherwise. I am all flac based and cleaned up all my tags about a year ago.
Now compilation albums as @bmah stated are a whole nother kettle of fish. And the random restarts are questionable too. Sometimes I can go days with it restarting at least at the last song but other times just putting it in park and it looses it's memory.
That's the kind of attitude that won't make Tesla improve. If you are a complainer you have to voice it where it matters. Tesla always responds to CR's criticism.
It's not an attitude. It is a "step back" balanced view. It is so easy to be just a critic. Every car I've ever had has had some really annoying flaws. How do I feel in total? That's what is approprate in a response.
They didn't ask me but if I was including Navigation in infotainment it would rank it below any cars I've owned in the last 7 years. I would rate our 2010 Lexus #1 and Tesla last.
It's very interesting. I've never driven Lexus but I've driven 5 cars with nav. Every one but Tesla required you to enter whole destination address prior to departure. Then it showed nav route, but very condensed vs even half of 17" display. I very very seldom used it. The Tesla approach, where I can search for destination by name and I get full google map, is better for me and I use all the time. I have heard of people getting goofy routings but that has not happened to me. I find the integration with energy app and supercharger info very useful on trips. I guess it is personal taste, but the Tesla nav far better to me.
I'm AP1 and I don't get rescans. I've tested it with different USB drives of different sizes with my same library and nada.
@bmah - it might be a regional issue with Nav. For me it fails to give me accurate directions about 20% of the time (enough to not trust it) however in 2015 when I first took delivery it failed about 40% of the time. So it's improved fo me but no where near as good as my previous cars.
@tomas - I'm okay with the features (except for missing way points), display and voice recognition as you are but the "goofy routes" at such a high failure rate ~20% (for me) are what puts it at the bottom of my list. It's also Elon's acknowledgment in tweets that it's broken and failed promises to fix it that irks me.
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