From the time I picked up my R7 in January to the test drive I had just one month ago, FEIFAN has brought the first wave of OTA upgrades to my vehicle. As soon as I received the push notification, I couldn’t wait to update the system, which covers various aspects including in-car entertainment and intelligent driving systems. Today, starting from the perspective of what updates have been made and combining them with the impact on our actual use, I will share with you the following:
【Supplementary Energy】
Update:
Supplementary energy planner, cost accountant
I think these two “masters” are quite impressive. The “supplementary energy planner” will plan the charging stations along the way based on the current actual mileage and route, eliminating the previous trouble of having to judge range and plan charging on our own. As for the effect, it remains to be seen. I will go on a long-distance trip and try it out after a while. “Cost accountant” is more grounded since the electricity prices at each charging station are different, and even the difference of time-of-use electricity prices is significant. After this OTA upgrade, the vehicle system will automatically calculate the comprehensive cost of electricity price and distance, and plan the route to recharge, which deserves praise!
【Intelligent Driving System】
Update:
Enable more smart navigation on city roads; enhance the visual experience of intelligent driving maps~
This time, the intelligent navigation on highways of four cities, Chengdu, Chongqing, Tianjin, and Zhengzhou, is newly added. Combined with the previous seven cities, a total of 10 cities have enabled the intelligent navigation on highways. For FEIFAN, as a manufacturer who develops its own autonomous driving algorithm and calibration for navigation, intelligent driving is indeed a long way to go. However, luckily the progress has been steady and solid. Judging from the content of this OTA upgrade, the previously available seven cities now have newly added navigational segments. Speaking of my experience in Guangzhou, the newly added segments are located in the suburbs northeast of Guangzhou, such as Conghua and Zengcheng. All these new segments make up highways that enable smart navigation from Guangzhou to Shanghai, which is pretty awesome! However, there is one segment, Dongguan, that urgently needs an update in the middle of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen route. After all, the four cities of Guangzhou, Foshan, Dongguan, and Shenzhen can be connected to form the backbone of Guangdong’s economy, and I hope it can be updated soon~The visual experience of the intelligent driving map is concentrated on the optimization of the UI display and the polishing updates in details.
【Cabin Entertainment】
Update:
Added the “MiGu Quick Game” cloud gaming platform, supporting Bluetooth connection and mobile virtual gamepad; Added “iQtalk”, which can listen to contents like QQ music and WeChat reading; The instrument panel supports displaying lyrics; Optimized the AR-HUD projection of iQiYi, added gesture control and so on …
My son should love the newly added gaming platform, and now the R7 front three screens have more room to play, making the entertainment richer. In my test, the gaming resources are good, and the advantage of “MiGu Quick Game” is that it is an independent vendor platform. In theory, it can provide long-term optimization with independent functions and resources from the vendor. Car manufacturers only need to provide platforms and network support, but playing cloud games still relies heavily on high-speed networks, so try to make sure the car receives signals better in open areas. I tested the connection of XBOX with Bluetooth gamepad, it was OK but there was a little delay. I don’t know if it will be better with the official RisingAuto Bluetooth gamepad. If you have any, you can comment and share your experience.
In addition to the gaming platform, other functions are new or improvements. It’s good that the instrument panel can display lyrics, so I, a driver who likes to sing while driving, won’t always forget the lyrics hahaha!
【System Function】
Update:
Added zero obstruction streaming rearview mirror, added Super Energy-saving mode
By waking up the streaming rearview mirror through voice, it can be displayed on the big screen. It is really a blessing for low-end car models! The visual effect displayed on the central control screen is also much better~ As for the Super Energy-saving mode, it should be the logic optimization of the electronic control system, and the interlocking closure of the central control display screen can increase some mileage. As the saying goes, “keep some tricks before hibernation”. Referring to the charging piles all over the place in Guangzhou, it’s already enough for me to have a full charge before hibernation.The other updates include upgrades to the system ecology UI, such as custom scene modes, and the voice assistant can also complete more commands. These will not be discussed in detail.
Summary
The OTA update this time is quite significant, mainly reflected in the many updates to the vehicle system. For electric platform vehicles, OTA updates can extend the product’s life cycle as much as possible. Similar to updating the system on our phones on demand, compared to traditional cars where we pay one yuan for one product, now when we buy cars like the R7, it’s more like getting two yuan worth for our one yuan! Therefore, every OTA update is worth looking forward to, and we hope that Flying Pigeon can continue to improve the system and make it even better. Looking forward to it~
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.