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Best car infotainment systems: From UConnect to MBUX, these are our favorites

Declaring one infotainment system the best over any other is an inherently subjective matter. You can look at quantitative testing for things like input response time and various screen load times, but ask a room full of people that have tried all car infotainment systems what their favorite is, and you’re likely to get a lot of different responses. For the most part, the various infotainment systems available all share a similar purpose. They aim to help the driver get where they're going with navigation, play their favorite tunes via all sorts of media playback options and allow folks to stay connected with others via phone connectivity. Of course, most go way beyond the basics these days and offer features like streaming services, in-car performance data and much more. Unique features are aplenty when you start diving through menus, but how they go about their most important tasks vary widely. Some of our editors prefer systems that are exclusively touch-based and chock full of boundary-pushing features. Others may prefer a back-to-basics non-touch system that is navigable via a scroll wheel. You can compare it to the phone operating system wars. Just like some prefer Android phones over iPhones, we all have our own opinions for what makes up the best infotainment interface. All that said, our combined experience tells us that a number of infotainment systems are at least better than the rest. WeÂ’ve narrowed it down to five total systems in their own subcategories that stand out to us. Read on below to see our picks, and feel free to make your own arguments in the comments. Best infotainment overall: UConnect 5, various Stellantis products Ram 1500 Uconnect Infotainment System Review If thereÂ’s one infotainment system that all of us agree is excellent, itÂ’s UConnect. It has numerous qualities that make it great, but above all else, UConnect is simple and straightforward to use. Ease of operation is one of the most (if not the single most) vital parts of any infotainment system interface. If youÂ’re expected to be able to tap away on a touchscreen while driving and still pay attention to the road, a complex infotainment system is going to remove your attention from the number one task at hand: driving. UConnect uses a simple interface that puts all of your key functions in a clearly-represented row on the bottom of the screen. Tap any of them, and it instantly pulls up that menu.

Maserati GranTurismo Folgore teases itself around Monterrey

Maserati began teasing the GranTurismo Folgore toward the end of Car Week on Twitter and Instagram with a caption that read, "A rose gold wrap suited to the Golden Coast. Impossible to keep it secret. We’re touring California with the new GranTurismo Folgore and an audacious Italian-American entertainer. The air is electric. Keep following us down this road." Maserati seems to have meant the line about not keeping secrets more literally than one would expect, because it nonchalantly parked an uncamouflaged car in the same rose gold wrap at a charging station on the Monterey peninsula before the teases began. It had been thought that the automaker might debut the coupe over the weekend, which could have happened. Autocar says the Italians hosted a private preview for potential customers — that, apparently, was the secret.  This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Maserati teased a different prototype draped in a blue wrap earlier this year before the Formula E grand prix in Rome. This version, with its Homeric rosy hue and quasi-three-spoke wheels is what we've been waiting for. We like what we see. Yes, it's highly reminiscent of the GranTurismo that went off the market in 2019. Why should that bother us? That coupe is still beautiful. From what we can tell of the Folgore, the updated lines should make the coming EV even more so. Guests at that putative private event might know what powers the 2+2, but we don't. We know the battery-electric Grecale crossover will get an EV powertrain with 590 horsepower, the much more expensive GranTurismo should handily outdo that even if it doesn't touch the 1,200-hp figure some believe possible. We expect to get that info when the official debut happens in the coming months. The official GranTurismo Folgore launch is scheduled for next year, probably joined sometime in the year by its droptop sibling, the GranCabrio Folgore. It's thought there will be an ICE-powered version for the two-door as well, maybe offering the choice of an unaided 3.0-liter Nettuno V6 or a hybrid centered around the V6 or a 2.0-liter four-cylinder. Certain markets sell the Ghibli sedan with a 2.0-liter hybrid; however, that option is viewed as a long shot for the new GranTurismo.  Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Maserati makes 328-foot-long trident with 80 Grecale test mules

Maserati delayed the launch of the Grecale, its long-awaited second SUV, from November 2021 to the spring of 2022, but that doesn't mean the test mules and the engineers tasked with driving them are taking a sabbatical. The company is still testing prototypes all over the world, and it brought 80 pre-production models fully draped in camouflage to a test track in Modena, Italy, to create a giant trident emblem. Over 250 development models are racking up miles in Italy, Finland, the United Arab Emirates, China, Japan and the United States, according to the Italian firm. About a third of them gathered near the company's home town to form the 328-foot trident. It's a stunt that allowed Maserati to release a handful of cool images, but it teaches us little about the Levante's baby brother, which will be aimed at the Porsche Macan. Luckily, Maserati also released a couple of images that show four prototypes parked in front of the Milan Cathedral. We can tell that the Grecale borrows a handful of styling cues from the MC20; it's not simply a scaled-down Levante. Its headlights are oval and nearly vertical (the Levante's are thin and almost horizontal) and its grille looks wider and thinner. Earlier spy shots suggest that the Grecale wears a roofline that leans more towards sport than utility; it's not a utilitarian people-hauler with the proportions of a school bus. Unverified reports claim that Maserati will build the Grecale on an evolution of the Giorgio platform that underpins Alfa Romeo's Stelvio and Giulia models. If that's accurate, rear-wheel drive will likely come standard (at least in some markets) and all-wheel drive will be offered at an extra cost. We're guessing that four- and six-cylinder engines will be available, though full specifications haven't been published yet, and Maserati previously confirmed that a high-performance version worthy of the Trofeo emblem will join the range at some point.  More details about the Maserati Grecale will emerge in the coming months.  Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.