As if to simply tease the 99.9% of non-Tesla car owners, Tesla has today released an over-the-air (OTA) update of its in-car software with user interface enhancements and new safety features.
The update rolls out to Model S owners in Australia in the coming weeks as part of a global roll-out which happens when the car is connected to its home WiFi network.
These OTA updates are Tesla’s most obvious middle finger to the entire automotive industry which for the most part simply refuses to provide enhancements to owners via self-installed software updates, instead relying on dealerships to install any updates if and when the owners takes the car to a dealer.
Featured in the update are strong enhancements to Autopilot which uses the radar systems in greater detail to detect surroundings, in an effort to enhance the safety of the Autopilot system.
As part of that update auto-steering is disabled when safety warnings on the dash are ignored – the performance of Autopilot in stop-and-go traffic is enhanced and the visual prompts in the dash have been improved.
Perhaps the most obvious change in 8.0 is the user interface – in particular the mapping.
A new, clearer uncluttered map looks to be moving to the clean look of modern smartphones.
The biggest safety improvement outside of Autopilot is “Cabin Overhead Protection” which will keep the car at a safe temperature for hours even when the car is off – with pets and kids in mind. Though I’d like to think a parent wouldn’t even consider taking advantage of this one.
Here are the release notes from Tesla:
General
Media Player
Maps & Navigation
Voice Commands
Autopilot
Additional Improvements
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