Nissan Qashqai vs Kia Sportage vs Hyundai Tucson: The infotainment shootout!

By Stuart Johnston

The Nissan Qashqai was one of the pioneers in the Cross Over market segment, but very soon had strong competition from Kia’s Sportage and Hyundai’s Tucson (previously known as the ix35). Here we compare their infotainment systems.

 

Nissan Qashqai: This pioneering Cross Over from Nissan was refreshed in early 2018 and received some major interior upgrades, to go with the sharper exterior.

Here we took a look at the infotainment system featured in the top Tekna model, which has a seven-inch touch screen.

This infotainment system is all but identical to that fitted to the Nissan XTrail model and is located in the dashboard above the console area.

Apple and Android compatibility

The system has all the functions you would expect it to have, including, voice activation, and smart-phone pairing for Apple and Android systems, and these can be plugged in via a USB port. But the system has Navigation as a standard feature as well and this can be accessed instantly via a button to the left of the touch screen

The system works well, offering all the usual functions for Personal Audio, Navigation, Telephone pairing, and Radio. The touch screen is augmented by buttons for the various functions located in vertical arrangement down either side of the touch screen.

An interesting feature on the infotainment system is an “Eco Driving Score”. Activate this function and you can rate how economically you are driving, with graphics showing pull-away, cruising and deceleration habits. A digital score is given in an easy-to-read size, and there is a driving history function as well.

360 degree surround camera system

Very handy is the 360 degree surround camera system on the Qashqai Tekna, enabling safe manoeuvring and the reassurance that you are not going to damage that smart paintwork or grind them alloy wheels.

Appearance-wise, the Qashqai’s system is a little bit on the staid side of things. It perhaps lacks some of the visual drama and crispness of its rivals in the infotainment arena. Also the graphics aren’t as razor sharp as they could be.

We do like the fact that the major functions are backed up by buttons which can be operated intuitively to change the screen menu, and to activate these functions is very easy.

The Rivals

Hyundai Tucson Elite: The Elite is the top model in the Hyundai Tucson range and was updated towards the end of 2018. Chief amongst these upgrades was a pod-style infotainment system located on top of the dashboard.

The design of the pod is very modern and smart looking. Perhaps the only negative is that it looks like it was an added afterthought, not developed with the rest of the car’s interior. This same criticism goes for the likes of Mercedes-Benz with the touch screen in its new A-Class.

The Hyundai system has Navigation as well as Apple and Android compatibility and the graphics on the screen are excellent. Voice activation is also a feature, as is a reverse camera function.

Kia Sportage EX Plus: The Kia Sportage has a highly-rated infotainment system that was also upgraded late last year. Almost every function available on the eight-inch touch screen is duplicated with an array of buttons located between the lower edge of the screen and the climate controls on he console.

Just below that is a charging platform for cell phones, as well as a SSB port for Apple or Android phone connectivity.

The Kia system also enables a number of functions to be operated via controls on the left spoke of the steering wheel.

The graphics on this Kia system are the best of the three devices under review here, and there are alternative “favourite” screen menus that come up enabling quick switches to various other often-used functions, such as the radio tuner, the time, Navigations, and a tab to return to all menus.

In addition to the crispness of the graphics, the Kia system has the most modern look allied with ease of operation. And as a unit it also has the most integrated look of all the infotainment systems on review here. It also includes a dynamic reverse camera.

The Winner

For us then, it’s the Kia system that wins, followed by the Hyundai system and the Nissan system. But all three are in fact very easy to live with, once you gain familiarity with their functionality.

You may like to read  more about other aspects of these cars. Click here for reviews on Hyundai's Tucson, Kia's Sportage and Nissan's Qashqai.