What 'iDrive makeover'

The complex iDrive system in BMW cars may be getting a revamp by Apple.

Since it was launched, the iDrive which houses the cluster of navigation, vehicle information, entertainment and communication controls has been widely condemned as being too complicated and hard to use.

Rumours doing the rounds are hinting that BMW is chatting to Apple about a redesign, which might be seen first in the next 7-Series. This follows BMW's announcement this year that it would be the first carmaker to have compatibility with Apple's revolutionary iPhone, which uses nanotechnology for a `touch and pinch' screen interface.

However the current iDrive system uses Microsoft software for the telematics, so any changeover to an Apple user interface would likely mean a significant re-engineering program.

There has been some suggestion that BMW may simply add the `click-wheel' interface seen on later Apple iPods. But while it's the iPod that has made the click wheel ubiquitous, the interface is used by other companies and is not copyrighted by Apple.

In fact, Apple itself faced a copyright lawsuit over the click wheel, with British touch sensor chip company Quantum Research Group filing a claim of patent infringement of the company's capacitive sensing technology it claims is used in the wheel.

However BMW Australia spokesman Toni Andreevski says he has not seen any official information about the iDrive being redesigned.

“I haven't seen anything through BMW on the Apple stuff,” Andreevski says.

“I've seen some rumours, but I don't know how genuine they are. But iDrive will continue to be evolved, as we've seen with the recent launch of the very useful `favourite' buttons, and at this stage our customers are happy with the current set-up so there are no plans for major changes.”