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Mercedes-Benz shows off concept car interior with HUD and gesture controls

Mercedes-Benz shows off concept car interior with HUD and gesture controls

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Mercedes-Benz showed off the dashboard of the future at CES 2012, which it referred to as the Dynamic and Intuitive Control Experience (DICE). This system features no buttons, switches, or knobs; instead there's a giant display with a series of proximity sensors.

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Mercedes-Benz Concept Dashboard
Mercedes-Benz Concept Dashboard

We saw plenty of gesture- and motion-based interfaces in our time at CES this year, and even some major automakers are getting in on the action. Mercedes-Benz showed off the dashboard of the future, which it referred to as the Dynamic and Intuitive Control Experience (DICE). This system features no buttons, switches, or knobs; instead there's a giant display with a series of proximity sensors. Moving your hand left or right scrolls through the lists, and moving your hand towards the dashboard simulates pressing a button to activate your choice. The demo included standard features like navigation and music, but there's also some phone integration, as well. The windshield itself looks like a giant HUD, with messaging or call notification icons appears in the corner that you can activate and read off to the side. There's also augmented reality technology, with icons appearing over restaurants for users to select to make reservations and get other info. This system is reportedly a concept in the purest sense of the word — Mercedes-Benz doesn't expect to ship this technology for several decades. That's probably for the best, because it feels more inaccurate (and potentially dangerous) than useful at this point.