Written on September 11, 2008 – 9:10 am | by Bogdan Alex |
If you are a happy MINI 1 car owner, you know the Central Display unit sitting in the middle of the dashboard is one of the coolest things inside that car. I know the girls dig that multimedia center feel of the display unit, ain’t nothing wrong with that. However, the guys that designed the MINI interior are now thinking of replacing the unit with something more futuristic, mind you. Something like a crystal ball. Of course it doesn’t show what’ll happen in the future, but at least it’s shiny and round!

So what’s the deal with the MINI Center Globe? Well, it features a three-dimensional layout which is supposed to consistently integrate a lot of car functions with an appropriate presentation of information and entertainment options. The three-dimensional aspect of the Globe is given by its multiple displays stratified on various levels and highlighted to a greater or lesser degree, depending on the driver's and front passenger's requirements. Moreover, the MINI Center Globe comes with ultra-modern laser projection technology, which allows simultaneous presentation of pictures on various levels, with a varying focus and optimal color contrast.

Jalopnik informs that the Center Globe also integrates what the designers call the Crossover Concept. This translates into the fact that the Globe can be optically split into two hemispheres. These adjustable, moving hemispheres then enable the driver and front passenger to present and view different pictures recognizable only from their individual perspective. This special function is activated through the hemisphere facing the front passenger, which closes down from the other side and acts as a projection surface presenting the pictures required.

The designers imagined an intuitive way of controlling the Globe. This way, the driver and/or front passenger operate the MINI Centre Globe by a touch-sensitive surface, a trackball on the steering wheel, buttons and slide controls in the lower section of the MINI Centre Globe, and a keyboard on the front passenger's side extending at the touch of a button from the dashboard.

The Center Globe might get integrated into MINI 1 cars in ca couple of years.