BMW rolled out the latest operating system 7 last year. This new update brings a lot of improvements to the existing layout as well as it offers some new features too. BMW has lately launched the 6 Series Gran Turismo that comes with the top-spec Live Cockpit Professional package with the OS 7. Let us find out what has exactly changed in this infotainment of the 6 Series GT.
Arguably, BMW iDrive is one of the best infotainment systems in any car. The story of iDrive began in 2001 when the German carmaker introduced a colour display in the instrument panel with a rotary dial named the iDrive controller. The 7 Series was the first car to be equipped with the then-new system. Presently, almost all cars in the BMW line-up get the dual-screen high-resolution display setup.
BMW has three different infotainment setups for all its car line-up. There is Live Cockpit, Live Cockpit Plus, and lastly the high-end Live Cockpit Professional. Every car and its variant in the inventory of the brand gets a different setup. For instance, the BMW 3 Series 330i Sport has the Live Cockpit while the 330i M Sport gets the Live Cockpit Professional with a 10.25-inch infotainment screen. Similarly, all the 6 Series GT models are equipped with BMW’s latest Live Cockpit Professional.
The 6 Series GT has a dual-screen setup. There is a 12.3-inch digital driver display with another 12.3-inch (1920x720 pixels) touchscreen infotainment display. The central information display can be operated via touch, iDrive dial, voice commands, and gesture control. The iDrive dial supports touch functionality as well as handwriting recognition.
The touchscreen infotainment system now features live tiles on the home page. You can add up to ten tiles with multiple widgets such as media/radio, maps with route preview, sports display, driving information, weather, communication, etc. Additionally, there is a shortcut bar that gives access to media, communications, navigation, car setting, and app control centre.
BMW Virtual Assistant helps you set directions through voice command by saying ’Hey, BMW’. Moreover, the voice activation word can be changed to your favourite word. The navigation function is also designed to find nearby parking spots, cafés, restaurants, petrol stations, as well as set your home location. Besides, the system lets you create individual accounts of your family members or friends to have their preferred settings saved while one of them is driving the car. It even saves your account setting in a cloud database to give you the privilege to access your data in any other BMW car.
The updated secure valet mode in the new OS 7 restricts another person from going through the infotainment system. To switch the mode on, you need to set a password. Once it is set, you can switch on the valet mode which secures your iDrive data such as contacts, messages, addresses, etc. Furthermore, it gives an option to lock the tailgate of the car while the car is in valet mode.
An intelligent voice command feature can adjust the temperature, switch on/off heated or cooled seat function, set a radio frequency, play a song, and so on. BMW offers wireless connectivity of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with compatible phones. Both features give you access to emails, a calendar, and a task list for business purposes. You can also utilise screen mirroring by connecting your smartphone.
The 6 Series Gran Turismo also comes with two rear entertainment touchscreens. The 10.2-inch (1920x1080 pixels) screen allows you to connect MP3 players, Blu-ray discs, and USB devices and HDMI cable to cast either data or media. A dedicated 3.5mm port enables the connection of headphones. Additionally, some functions of the infotainment screen can be accessed via these rear screens such as radio and maps.
In conclusion, BMW offers feature-rich entertainment systems in the 6 Series GT. The central information display is reasonable for everyday use. It lets you toggle through a wide range of functions that keep you entertained while you go on a long journey as well as letting you check work emails, calendar, and task list en route to your office. Also, the BMW app allows you to execute some commands remotely.
Did you know?
When you say ‘Hey, BMW’ the system switches on a microphone to detect your command and later switches it off to not listen further. It helps the Virtual Assistant to listen to specific words in command to provide accurate output and not get distracted by further speaking or conversation.
