The tyranny of touch screens may be coming to an end.
Companies have spent nearly two decades cramming ever more functions onto tappable, swipeable displays. Now buttons, knobs, sliders and other physical controls are making a comeback in vehicles, appliances and personal electronics.
In cars, the widely emulated ultra-minimalism of Tesla’s touch-screen-centric control panels is giving way to actual buttons, knobs and toggles in new models from Kia, BMW’s Mini, and Volkswagen, among others. This trend is delighting reviewers and making the display-focused interiors of Tesla and its imitators feel passé.
Similar re-buttonization is occurring in everything from e-readers to induction stoves.
I’m fine with the phone as is, but vehicles need tactile control panels.
As for tablets, I just buy a keyboard case that folds open and closed like a laptop. That screen will twist around and lay flat to use as a proper tablet, if need be.
I don’t really want to sacrifice screen space on either mobile device, to buttons.