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My 330i loaner review and what did they do to iDrive?

3K views 36 replies 12 participants last post by  CALWATERBOY DUE 
#1 ·
Got a 330i base model as a loaner. Car definitely rides nicely--crisp handling, handles bumps well, no creaks or rattles, and road noise is minimal. Corners sharply too, and seems to hold a straight line well. It's a good balance between ride and handling. Definitely an upgrade from my MY2014 base model as far as the drive goes. Interior is better too with the great sport seats and more aluminum trim. ASD is also louder in comfort mode which wasn't necessary IMO. Standard stereo sounds slightly more powerful too although I may be dreaming.

So what's the rub? Well, they seemed to have screwed up the iDrive graphics. The icons and fonts are now faint instead of bold, and the graphics resolution seems to be lower. The maps are totally different. They are now using white roads against a light gray background, with small fonts for the road names. There is very little contrast and color is absent. Gone is the nice "traffic" map that showed the road traffic nicely against a dark background.

Even in the arrow directions display in the split screen, all the color is gone. The only 2 map alternatives are now 'standard" and "alternative" which just adjust the brightness of the gray background. It all makes for a less legible and seemingly downgraded look. The question is, why? Did they go with lower resolution maps (smaller files) because it is now updated via over-the-air link instead of an HDD-based system? But that wouldn't explain the use of faint icons and fonts throughout the menus. Pretty disappointing. It seems that it's all change for change's sake.

Other changes include a new button for "Maps" and the loss of the "Radio" button. You now have to use the "Media" button to get to the radio which forces you to make even more button pushes for the radio stations than before. I think my MY2014 system is a lot nicer, although slightly slower.
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Yes, maps are now updated OTA

Probably uniform changes to support higher res touch screens.

I tried it on a MY17 340i and found it slower response than my MY16 but could've been caused by the cold weather
 
#4 ·
hes likely describing iDrive 5.0 which is new on 2017s. I dont have it on my 2016 either, but did not notice maps displaying like he mentioned in the 2016 7 series loaner I had earlier this year when my wifes X5 was having all the issues it had. The new interface was harder to move around, but I remember the maps being in color, etc.
 
#17 ·
Is this how new maps look like? (click on attached)

Text Line Diagram Map


If yes, this is the new HERE navigation that MB, Audi and BMW bought together. If not, disregard.
 
#24 ·
I just got an idrive 5.0 car yesterday. I can confirm what the OP has posted except the graphics are actually higher resolution but seem softer. The color choice is probably more standard but different for a regular BMW drivers so change seems bad in this case.
I will post pictures of the map and and "alternate" color that is available.
 
#25 ·
Notice the absence of color in the "arrow display" on the split screen, the volume progress bar, and the home screen icons.

When you say it's higher resolution, what are you seeing in the display that gives that impression? The icon of the jog dial on the left of the screen looks less detailed and a little smaller to me. The other graphics have a more hazy look to them in my eyes.

Also, notice how the "Owners Manual" now has much less information in it than the previous iDrive. The "Map" button on the controller is redundant--just pressing the "NAV" button always brought up the map.
 
#31 ·
Technic, are you the same person who figured out the E46 Navigation retrofit back in 2004 or so? I think I followed one of your threads when I had my E46 M3
 
#33 ·
Here is the iDrive 5 "alternative" map colors. I think it might have also fallen into night mode. Not sure. This is split screen btw. I just feel like there are more pixels per inch here but the images are softer looking. Like you increased your monitor to the next highest resolution but it doesn't necessarily make things look better.
 

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#34 · (Edited)
I just took delivery of a 2017 F31 with the new NBT unit and feel like iDrive 5.0 was a step backward. It offers most of the same functionality in a different GUI, but I'm starting a notice a lot of missing features compared to my NBT unit:
  • Only one phone can be connected. On the old NBT, I could connect two phones and answer calls from either via Bluetooth
  • Tapping the touchpad while in maps causes Nav to go into interactive mode, so I often trigger it accidentally when resting my palm on the controller
  • Enabling Bluetooth audio for a device will disable USB audio playback and force you to stream over Bluetooth
  • Bluetooth audio streaming does not support volume control for the device
  • Map animations are not as fluid as newer versions of the NBT software
  • Text messages from phones can no longer be read on iDrive (EDIT: this is because I forgot to add 6NW while ordering, ugh)
  • The shortcut buttons on the new iDrive controller require a firmer press
 
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