Mercedes-Benz says that its upcoming EQS electric car will have an entire dashboard composed of a 56-inch screen. The dazzling display is so bright and so powerful that it has its own computer-grade eight-core processor and 24 gigabytes of RAM.
The German automaker calls it the Hyperscreen, and it consists of three separate sections all housed under a single pane of ultra-durable, low-sheen Gorilla Glass that automatically dims and brightens so as not to overwhelm at night. A configurable instrument cluster sits behind the steering wheel, while the middle section serves as the main input interface for audio, navigation, climate, and vehicle settings accessed through the automaker’s MBUX software now available on most of its new cars.
Off to the right in front of the passenger is a third section that Mercedes says can let occupants watch their own content thanks to artificial intelligence capable of storing up to seven profiles detected by a camera. Hop in the right seat and, theoretically, the passenger may be able to continue watching the movie they started at home, for instance.
Mercedes Hyperscreen is highly advanced
To be fair, Mercedes says that whatever is shown on the right-hand side will be subject to “country-specific legal regulations,” so it’s unlikely that the driver will be able to binge Netflix out of the corner of their eye. When the car senses that the right seat is unoccupied, the screen can either be set to turn off, or it can show a starry scene designed to be attractive but not distracting.
The display itself uses OLED technology with self-luminous pixels that offer an especially dark black to increase contrast.
Mercedes’ screen is the biggest — literally — news for in-car tech, eclipsing even the curved OLED display Cadillac fits to its new Escalade SUV, and it certainly makes the vertical displays in Teslas, Subarus, and Ram pickups feel like Palm Pilots.
A screen of any sort is essentially mandatory in every new car sold in America thanks to backup camera requirements.
