corradoMR2

I own an RX and IS and I got a loaner ES 350 for my servicing today.

Just some feedback on my experience. Sure it does not handle as well as both my vehicles (they're both F-Sports), but the ES is actually a little smoother, quieter, and a more comfortable cruiser with a huge back seat. I love the interior design and I don't know why there's been some criticism on the materials being cheap. I've drive a past gen ES on several occasions as past loaner cars and the new ES is a step up in all aspects. Very impressed and great value for $40K. I can see why it's a Lexus best seller.

Enjoy your ES's !

milirx450h

I agree. I got a 2013 ES as a loaner in Tucson a few months back and was impressed with the car in just about every aspect. One thing I didn't like was the square-shaped "mouse" used to navigate around the nav/menu system. I don't know how they can make it better but someone out there should.

LexRuger

Just takes some time to get used to it. It's like second nature now.

boe

They could let you input with the mouse and the screen like most new laptops do. I think there must be a reasonable demand for touch as an option as VW proudly says their navi is touchscreen on their commercials.

scutmud

I prefer that it isn't a touchscreen. Too far to reach and the screens get all smudged up with fingerprints and smears.

Arty101

I believe most if not all BMW and Mercedes use the mouse too.

mspearl95

I like the idea of having the screen up on the dash. Much easier to look at and still keep eyes on the road. The joystick thing works ok, but I'd much prefer to have a multitouch pad in its place, like what apple uses on their laptops.

lesz

With the screen location set high and far back in the dash, that location puts it too far away for use as a touch screen. But that screen location has two distinct advantages. First, the driver can glance at the screen with a simple movement of the eyes and without a need to turn his/her head away from the road. With screens that are lower and closer to the driver, looking at the screen requires the driver to actually move his/her head and not just the eyes. Thus, I would think that a screen location that requires less movement of the driver's head and eyes from the road should be safer. Secondly, with the screen set back in its recessed location, it is much less prone to be washed out by sunlight. Of the 4 or 5 vehicles that I've owned with navigation systems, including 2 other Lexus vehicles, the screen on the ES350 is, by far, the easiest to view under even conditions with bright sunlight.

I found that, within a few minutes, I was used to using the mouse, and it quickly became second nature. Additionally, while there are nice things about using a touch screen, I find that, whether it is with a tablet, a smart phone, or a Windows 8 touch screen computer, the finger prints on the screen quickly become annoying. Thus, while there are trade-offs involved with the mouse versus a touch screen, I'm more than happy with the design route that Lexus chose to take, and I'd rather have to use the mouse than have a screen location that is close enough to use as a touch screen but that requires more head movement to view and that is more subject to being washed out by glare.

boe

I have a 36" sleeve. I can check the headlights in a compact car by sticking my hand out the window I assure you, I can easily reach the screen on the dash. People with arms like a T-Rex are free to use the mouse/joystick but for many people I know, a touchscreen would be preferable. Who is it going to kill to have an option for both?

As far as turning your head from the road - worse argument yet - I see women watching their hand on the joystick then darting back to the screen to make sure they got it right and back again. Are you telling me that people input information using the joystick without ever looking at the screen? They just know when they are spelling something correctly by the "feel" of the joystick? I'm not denying your right to use the mouse but please don't be closed minded about people wanting the option of a touchscreen as well.

amphipri0n

Fully agree with the positioning of the screen and how much easier it is to glance at while driving versus typical touchscreens. Another thing I like about the mouse/dial interface is that the screen never has any prints

gmanusmc

My wife was a bit wary of the controller at first but quickly mastered it and I have witnessed her move through her selections with ease - none of the "darting" stuff boe refers to. I think some of the females on this site might disagree with his depiction of how some of them operate the system. There is a thread on this forum dedicated to the "mouse" and it seems there is a learning/getting used to curve that folks go through to get comfortable. Given where the screen is located, I'm not sure touchscreen would be a good idea (but I'd be ok if you had the choice of either/or).

Bill G

SW17LS

I've had the touchscreen for years, now I have the RTC and still have a touchscreen in our Jeep. Overall I prefer the RTC.

The screen is too far away and too inset in the dash to be a touchscreen...whether someone with long arms can reach it or not

lesz

Even with long arms, I still have to reach forward a good distance to touch the ES screen because long arms often come with long legs, and that means having the driver's seat positioned well back. Thus, I think that it is likely that someone with long arms and the seat positioned well toward the back is going to have to reach just as far as someone with short arms (and legs) who has the seat in a forward position.

I can't imagine Lexus changing to a touch screen, even with the option of using it with the mouse or as a touch screen, unless they completely repositioned the screen if, for no other reasons, for fear of liability when someone gets into an accident and claims that the cause of the accident was having to reach far forward to use the touch screen. And, as I said above, the recessed position of the current screen has some real advantages. I've compared trying to take a quick glance at my ES350 screen and trying to do the same thing on the screen in my GX, and there is an easily noticeable difference related to how much more quickly I can take that quick glance at the ES screen. Again, there are design tradeoffs, and, for those who don't like the mouse-controlled screen of the ES, perhaps, that means that a choice of another vehicle is more appropriate for them.

SW17LS

They switched from a touchscreen to the RTC. They aren't going to switch back...