BMW’s iDrive infotainment system is undergoing a radical change. This week, the automaker rolled out a “close-to-production” version of its backbone software infrastructure at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

BMW is rethinking its infotainment systems for a new generation of electric vehicles.The Latest Tech News, Delivered to Your Inbox

The once controversial-turned-iconic infotainment system controller interface will soon be officially retired.

Central Display: This is the screen we've all come to expect in any new car, from the Tesla Model 3 to the Hyundai Ioniq 9. BMW still uses its touchscreen menu from the current iDrive, but now, up to six different widgets can be swiped from the display onto the windshield.

The terminology, in typical Germanic fashion, is a little confusing. The entire system is called "Panoramic iDrive," with “Panoramic Vision” being the funky horizontal band display across the whole dash; meanwhile, the all-new software the whole enchilada runs on is named “BMW Operating System X.”

Unveiled at CES 2024, the BMW Panoramic iDrive brings forward innovative design of the cabin to be used in future BMW Cars.

BMW’s brand new operating system the iDrive OS X will feature in the upcoming Neue Klasse models and is its biggest change in 25 years

BMW has introduced the new Panoramic iDrive and Operating System X at CES. It combines infotainment with a customizable pillar-to-pillar Panoramic Vision display. Instead of using a knob, Panoramic iDrive relies heavily on the steering wheel.

BMW's new Panoramic iDrive infotainment system ditches the round control knob that's been a staple of the company's cars since it debuted in 2001. Gesture Control has also been killed off.