Mercedes-Benz
- Mercedes-Benz unveiled its 2024 E-Class on Wednesday.
- It features a giant touchscreen that extends across the passenger side.
- And a new app store that lets drivers watch TikToks, play Angry Birds, or attend Zoom meetings.
If you've ever wanted to watch TikTok videos, play Angry Birds, or attend Zoom meetings through the luxury of your car's touchscreen – you're in luck.
Mercedes-Benz unveiled its 2024 E-Class on Wednesday, featuring a giant touchscreen extending across the passenger side. Its entertainment system allows users to install third-party apps. TikTok, Angry Birds, and Zoom are already set up on the display.
It doesn't require a smartphone to be connected like Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, and the apps will be available on both the passenger side and central screen.
While Teslas and some other Mercedes models already let you surf the internet, the upcoming E-Class will make it available to the person in the front passenger seat too, using the Vivaldi app.
Last June, Elon Musk described Tesla's web browser as "trash." Tesla uses its own software, which is powered by Google's open-source Chromium project.
"I think we've got a lot of work to do actually with the basic software in the car. Our web browser sucks," Musk said during an interview posted to the Tesla Owners Silicon Valley YouTube channel.
Mercedes-Benz
E-Class drivers will be able to take part in video conferences via Zoom or Cisco Webex when parked, thanks to a selfie and video camera.
The passenger side will also have access to a range of around 30 streaming services – including live sports, news, and on-demand content – via the Zync portal app.
The selfie camera will also track the driver's eye movements to make sure they aren't looking over at the passenger screen too much. If they do, the car can automatically dim the screen so it's invisible to the driver, but not the passenger.
Last month, Mercedes said it had achieved Level-3 automation – giving it self-driving technology more advanced than Tesla. The company said the feature would only be available on the 2024 S-Class and EQS Sedan models.
The first batch of Mercedes' 2024 E-Class is expected to arrive in European dealerships this summer, and in the USA in autumn. Prices haven't been announced yet, but the 2023 E-Class started at around $56,000, per CNN.