Hey guys! I’m proud to be a new lucid air GT owner! However, I got the car last week, drove it for one day, and then had to take it to service for camera and charging issues. That’s very annoying but other than that, my driving experience with the car is great! The software on the other hand, is very lackluster. Apple CarPlay for google maps always lags behind, CarPlay is so small on the screen, the lucid internet speed and UX for music is horrible, and many other things. I understand they did a massive update with lucid 2.0 and made it a lot better but the software is still horrendous and embarrassing. I was wonder if there will be another lucid 3.0 update to overhaul these major issues anytime soon in 2024? Thanks for the feedback guys!
Speculation Lucid UX 3.0
- Thread starter Knea
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I think there is a high chance that a UX3.0 will appear on our Airs in 2024, after software development for Gravity is mostly complete. Gravity is due to initially ship in late 2024. So I don't expect a major update to our Airs soon. A switch to a new UX could possibly be the reason for long delays on "easy" changes like uncovering the HomeLink controls during reversing, or adding a "stop" time to scheduled charging. These could both be addressed in a major rewrite rather than patching the existing UX.
3.0 is basically what you see in the promos for Gravity. That will likely launch on Gravity at the end of next year. And then some features of it will be seen in Air sometime after that.
In the meantime, we’ll likely see a continued steady stream of more minor improvements throughout 2024. And hopefully some major advances to ADAS, which I know they are working on.
I have to take exception with your use of “horrendous and embarrassing” to describe the current software on Air, though. There’s just no universe where that’s an appropriate description of the current software. 1.0, sure. But that’s ancient history. The latest version is doing everything I need a car to do. And doing it well. I greatly prefer the visual design and most of the UX to any other car I’ve owned.
There’s always room for improvement, of course. And there are still bugs to iron out. (That lag on CarPlay screen refresh is somewhat new and hopefully will be addressed soon.)
But I wonder what folks think car software is supposed to do. It’s not a PlayStation. It’s a car. Set your temp, put on some tunes, and drive.
Each person has his own goals and requirements for software in a vehicle. Here’s my question to you: did you test drive the vehicle and evaluate the functions before you chose to purchase it? Personally, I think that they are definitely some features and functions that could improve but it doesn’t affect my enjoyment of the car or the drive.
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Software UX 1.0 was horrible. Present software 2.0 is about 95% there. Car play on small screen not really a big deal. You don't watch videos on it. Software is not horrendous or embarassing in my experience. In fact, its much much better with all the recent improvements. Cameras come on much faster.
Maybe your software is not the latest.
xponents
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Waiting for the movie directed by you, “Doomsday 1.0” about owners getting locked out by their cars
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I think it’s all relative lol.
For you early birds, v1.0 was the true definition of horrendous.
For us new buyers, I’d say 2.0 is still far far behind what other manufacturers provide in terms of features, functionality, and customizations.
I can see your point of view. For someone who simply needs a vehicle for basic commuting, standard functionality suffices. Yet, my expectations for electric vehicles lean towards the advanced software capabilities found in brands like Tesla, Rivian, or Mercedes, all of which I've had the opportunity to drive, giving me a firsthand understanding of their driving dynamics and software systems. My use of terms such as "horrendous" and "embarrassing" is relative to these competitors, not an earlier user experience version. Moreover, when it comes to listening to music, I prefer utilizing Lucid's native software. Unfortunately, I've encountered issues with Spotify's performance, such as playlist accessibility, persistent internet connectivity requiring car restarts, and a user interface that certainly could be improved. My feedback is meant to be constructive and is based on comparisons with other vehicles in the same price bracket that I've owned. I believe these issues can be resolved with software updates, which I hope will be implemented promptly. I've also heard about the upcoming Apple CarPlay 2.0 integration in Lucid vehicles, so perhaps that's a factor in the current software development focus, anticipating it might supersede the existing system.
I had the opportunity to take the car for a test drive prior to my purchase. The experience met my expectations, offering a ride that was a little bit more comfortable than a Tesla yet firmer and less luxurious than the Mercedes EQS. It struck a good balance between comfort and performance, which was my priority this time around. For me, software considerations are secondary to the driving experience, which ultimately influenced my decision to lease the car. Through this post, my hope is to catch the attention of someone in a position of influence at Lucid so they might address the areas where improvement is needed. Although my initial experience was somewhat dampened by the need for immediate service post-purchase, I am still optimistic about enjoying many great drives in the time to come.
That is the perfect way to put it!
The worst one for me was after one update and for a week or so I had no trips less than 3000 miles (@46 hours). My Nav system froze my location as the HQS in Newark, CA, so I couldn't use my NAV till the system was fixed.
I would tend to agree with you and have been vocal of such. A lot of people here seem to like the lucid UI quite a bit. Many friendly arguments have happened over this same topic. I’m like you and came from some of the other EV brands. Many here believe that other brands are worse which I still don’t quite get.
I too hope they can catch up with other car brands from my perspective. The Spotify integration isn’t very good. I wish I could click recents and actually see my recent playlists. I wish I could skip songs on the bottom panel instead of reaching to the right smaller screen (there’s a ton of dead space towards the bottom). I wish we had native google maps integration. I wish I could see my maps and music at the same time. I wish a lot of simple things and hope those things come in 3.0. I just hope 3.0 comes quicker than we think.
I too hope they can catch up with other car brands from my perspective. The Spotify integration isn’t very good. I wish I could click recents and actually see my recent playlists. I wish I could skip songs on the bottom panel instead of reaching to the right smaller screen (there’s a ton of dead space towards the bottom). I wish we had native google maps integration. I wish I could see my maps and music at the same time. I wish a lot of simple things and hope those things come in 3.0. I just hope 3.0 comes quicker than we think.
You and I have very different definitions of what good vehicle user experience design is.
If you think better = longer list of features like fart noises and utterly superfluous distracting graphics, then sure.
Personally, I prefer usability.
I've owned a Tesla. I thought its software was terrible. Took a drive with a friend recently in his Model Y. Hasn't gotten much better. Not at all conducive to distraction-free driving. Emphasizes “wow” factors over things you actually need to see. Buries most functions behind tiny ugly icons that you can’t easily discern, and then covers important other visuals with giant panels of text and switches when you need to get anything done. Don't get me started on having to look sideways to see anything.
Everything about Tesla's software is designed to make you look at the screen. Which is, to put it midly, not what you're supposed to be doing while driving.
Rivian basically copies everything Tesla does. Which is a great strategy if you want to grab headlines about how good your software is, since every journalist thinks Tesla's software is actually good. At least it's slightly better looking.
Mercedes makes decent user interfaces. But they are visually dated. I feel like I'm running Windows Vista every time I look at them. But at least the organization and execution is decent.
Lucid has better design language and a much better sense of user interaction. They adhere to the principles of limiting distraction and making functions as easy to find as possible. Don't get me wrong; the bugs need to be ironed out more (although I personally experience almost none of what folks report here). And there are many things I'd do differently. But at least they understand what a driver actually needs. They have a solid foundation, which is more than I can say for many other manufacturers.
I can't speak to the Spotify app, as I don't use Spotify. CarPlay takes care of all my infotainment needs.
Wow. Just dont get it. I must have low expectations. I think CarPlay is great. No complaints at all.
This is one of the reasons I didn't even look at Teslas. I've never owned one but have ridden in a few from the other seat. I thought it was great playing with the screen as a passenger, but definitely didn't want to be doing that as a driver. It seemed like you had to look away from the road to do just about anything.
Only a brave few can really be in the Never forget 1.0.4
xponents
Active Member
I’ve heard about how bad it is but never seen a detailed explanation of what specifically was bad other than load times, latency, etc. Could you elaborate?
I have found that using CarPlay with the phone in the wireless charger causes the nav to lag. For some reason, the phone cannot receive the satellite signal and either hangs or lags. If you take the phone out of the charger and put it on the armrest between the seats, the nav works well with CarPlay.
