A great feature that all Teslas have is the ability to browse the web using the car's touch screen.
All Teslas have a Chromium-based browser, which is the same engine that powers Google Chrome. Although the browser is much faster in newer models, it's a great tool to have at your disposal.
With update 2022.12.1 (release notes) Tesla has made several improvements to make the browsing experience even better. Thanks to Dan Burkland (@DBurkland) on Twitter, we now have details and images on everything Tesla updated with its browser in 2022.12.
Top Row
In Tesla v11, the browser became a part of the Entertainment section, which meant that the browser now had an additional bar on top. The bar displayed the word Entertainment, and let you easily switch between Aracade, Theater, Toybox, or the Browser. Unfortunately, it also decreased the amount of space available to display a website's contents.
With 2022.12.1, this bar has been removed, so that back, forward and the address bar are now at the very top again.
Autocomplete
When typing in a URL or search phrase in the address bar, the browser will now display autocomplete results underneath the address bar.
The autocomplete results are similar to what you'd see on a desktop or mobile device, providing helpful suggestions based on your query or browsing history.
The browser itself has been updated to a newer version of Chromium which brings improved security and browser rendering.
Favorites
Your browser favorites dialog has also received a minor facelift. The information that is displayed remains the same, but the UI now has a cleaner look.
Tesla favorites received a minor facelift
DBurkland/Twitter
New Welcome Screen
The loading screen for the browser has been updated from a generic icon to the Tesla logo.
In addition to your favorites showing up in the Favorites menu, Tesla appears to now show you your most visited sites directly on the welcome screen as well. This is similar to how other major browser will display your most used sites when opening a new tab.
New Tesla browser loading screen
DBurkland/Twitter
Browsing History
Since your browsing history is now used for search autocomplete, Tesla has also added the ability to clear your browser history.
You can now clear your Tesla's browsing data
DBurkland/Twitter
You can remove a single result from your history by tapping on the X button in the address bar autocomplete dropdown, or you can clear your complete browsing history by navigating to Controls > Service and tapping on Delete Browser Data.
The web browser is certainly a useful function in Teslas, as it gives you the ability to view sites or open web-based apps that you might otherwise not have access to.
Since Tesla doesn't yet support apps, one use for the browser is to display web-based apps or games.
One feature I'd love to see Tesla add in the near future is a "full screen" mode that will let you browse the web using your vehicle's entire screen.
Update 2022.12.1 has brought many improvements to Tesla vehicles. One of the other major improvements included in this update is the ability to add seat heaters, wiper and window defrosts back to the launcher.
This update has just started rolling out, with only 2% of the entire fleet having access to the update so far, so be sure to keep an eye out for these exciting features.
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Tesla has begun to reach out to customers in the United States and is offering demo drives of the Cybertruck on an invite-only basis. @brandonhd on X shared the first invite image, and it looks like it's going out quite quickly to multiple locations that have Cybertrucks on display.
Up until now, display vehicles have been for just that – looking, but no touching. Some Tesla delivery centers and showrooms have also allowed viewers to take a seat inside and open it up, but most are still locked away behind the velvet rope.
It’s exciting to see that Tesla has begun to demo them – and it can only be so long until demo drives open up to everyone.
Advisor-led Demo
This Demo Drive is led by a Tesla Advisor – while you’re driving, the advisor will be in the passenger seat, walking you through the experience. They’ll explain steer-by-wire, off-road controls, and will introduce new-to-Tesla buyers to all the features that are currently available.
The list of locations so far for demo drives appears to be fairly limited, but we will hopefully see demo drives roll out throughout the United States, and eventually Canada too. Here is the current list of city/state locations that have seen demo drive invites.
Actually Smart Summon, the successor to Tesla’s Smart Summon feature, has been confirmed to be coming as soon as next month as per Elon Musk. Colloquially known as “ASS”, Actually Smart Summon is supposed to improve on the regular Smart Summon capabilities, which have historically used ultrasonic sensors (USS) to navigate parking lots.
We’re looking forward to Actually Smart Summon, and we’re quite excited about what other features will be unlocked once it finally shows up at our doorstep.
Vision-based Improvements
ASS is supposed to bring Smart Summon to vehicles that don’t have USS – using Tesla Vision. Most recently, Tesla has brought Autopark to vehicles without USS, and Vision-based Autopark has been a huge success. It is faster, more reliable, and smoother than the older USS-based solution. It can also park and maneuver in tighter locations.
Today, Smart Summon is sometimes useful at best, usually a party trick, or downright dangerous at worst. It’s excellent and best used in straight lines, where you have a clear line of sight of the vehicle, and can stop it if doesn’t see an obstacle.
I used Smart Summon today, just before writing this article – my 2022 Model Y (with USS) – did manage to show up just fine – in a straight-line location from where I was parked, after exiting the parking spot fairly cleanly. However, I’ve previously used Smart Summon and have had the vehicle turn towards obstacles, such as cart returns or curbs. Overall, it’s a sometimes-useful feature that has a lot of drawbacks right now.
Smart Summon is also restricted to a certain distance – and it's pretty small. The max distance is shorter than most parking lots, being only about 215 ft (65m). If you’re lucky enough to park close, it's very useful to bring your car right to you.
Actually Smart Summon
ASS will bring FSD V12-like capabilities to Smart Summon – the vehicle will primarily use Vision to drive toward you (or the location you’ve indicated). ASS has been supposed to be coming since about September 2022 and has seen many delays – we’re almost at the 2-year point today.
We’re looking forward to Actually Smart Summon being able to bring the vehicle – safely – right to you. ASS is also one of the key steps towards bringing some other cool features that Elon Musk has previously mentioned – Park Seek and Banish Autopark.
We’re also hopeful that Actually Smart Summon will increase the maximum range a vehicle can be summoned, because the current range is fairly small. Alongside Park Seek and Banish Autopark, we’re closing in on a Robotaxi-based future.
Park Seek and Banish Autopark
When the FSD v12.4 showed up, Elon also mentioned that going forward, vehicles would automatically park themselves when arriving in a parking lot – Park Seek – and that if you got out of the car at the entrance to a business, you could get it to automatically park itself in the parking lot – Banish Autopark. These are two features that are needed for Robotaxi to work – which itself is delayed to October 10th of this year. We’re looking quite forward to them – as in combination with Actually Smart Summon, Tesla has reached the cusp of vehicle autonomy.
A vehicle that arrives, driverless, at the location you’re at, then drives somewhere, parks itself there, and waits for you – is the definition of a Robotaxi.
While we’re likely to have to wait for Banish Autopark and Park Seek just a bit longer, Actually Smart Summon being around the corner is exciting! Gone will be the days of having to run out to your car when you forgot your umbrella – your car will just come right to you instead.
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