Sorry for double-post/bandwidth. This should have gone w/AP cars thread.
I have my own list of takeaways, with a net negative impression of 8.0. The hidden "+, -" zoom buttons, on the map, not only require an extra screen tap. They also become moving targets as the icons of the top row push them down. It is about a ~1 second animation. I bet I'm not the only one who has ended up zooming in, when attempting to zoom out, because he didn't realize the place where the minus was, was where the plus was going! Help.
Likes:
-I like the radar bounce, and seeing two cars ahead, and look forward to earlier braking under AP, which remains awesome.
-I like the simultaneous deactivation of both AutoSteer and TACC, instead of just AutoSteer
-I like blended favorites, in the media center
-I like being able to activate AP, while stopped. However, the car did already once creep upon the next until the forward proximity was amber.
What's still missing:
-The largest available battery electric vehicle cannot accept a programmed charging schedule. The simple 24 hour charge-start time has no 'stop', and requires manual over-rides on weekends. Electric utilities with off-peak offerings, almost without exception, remain off-peak during weekends, and holidays. Some Tesla owners don't find this an issue, but consider worst-case places like AZ, where on peak can cost $.49/kwh, and off peak $.05/kwh. Then, consider we humans sometimes forget to turn things back on. Ouch $$. It's a common feature to other PHEV makers. Gas now becomes cheaper than electricity, above about 30 cents/kwh.
-The ability to regain your dash board, and lose the AutoPilot display when not using it. I can see better than my parking sensors, but still cannot see what my high beams and other functions are doing behind the top of the steering wheel.
From worst, to least bad:
-Contrast, with maps and media appears to have weakened again. I thought V7 was a gain, as the milky bright backgrounds were reduced. V8 seems to keep the 17in screen's top row contrast, but the shades of grey and blu are too close together within a number of other graphics. Someday, maybe users can set their own contrast?
-maps appear to render more slowly
-major traffic routes are no longer as pronounced a green/yellow/red, as they once were, and are harder to pick out. thinner lanes.
-The pixel zones, for expanding to whole screen, or flipping screens, seem to be more tightly bordered. Their graphic is also less defined. This seems to be causing more double-strikes, or hitting the lower left driver controls when aiming to expand the bottom of the two running apps.
-Generally speaking, command areas of the display which surround its borders (homelink, charging, etc), also seem a little tighter to these borders and harder to reliably select.
-Media alphabet, for USB mp3
-Road name fonts sometimes completely cover the traffic color of the road underneath.
-map zoom faulty, as noted. won't stay zoomed out.
-left selector arrow top/bottom, on steering wheel, seizes when landing on an internet station, now that favorites can mix radio and internet together. The same thing happens with GM, when XM stations are preset next to radio stations. It won't scan to the next preset. Now, that we can group favorites, it would be great to avoid getting marooned.
With 8.0, I had 6 or maybe 7 occurrences in 600 miles over 3 days on i15 / i60 / i57 /i5 (and purposely turned AP off in the construction zone stretches). Those roads are otherwise well marked.
