> Turns out it's pretty useful to be able to control the volume of your stereo without taking your eyes off the road when operating a car.
I do agree the volume slider is a terrible choice of interface, but TBF there is a tactile, physical volume control on your car within reach of your hands while they're on the wheel. There is a volume adjustment on your steering wheel, so theoretically you shouldn't even have to use the volume control on the stereo while you're driving.
I still prefer the knob. Among the myriad of buttons, levers, and paddles on the steering wheel, with tiny symbols on them, I have to look down and figure out which ones are the volume control. It's much better on the other car where there are fewer buttons.
The slider is a bad idea because the car is bouncing up and down, so your hand isn't stable unless you pin it down with your thumb or something like that, and you have to look away from the road. The car doesn't roll as much, so a knob is inherently more stable, and can be found by peripheral vision plus feel.
Why is it a collection of physical controls literally in front of you all the time while in the driver's seat somehow impossible to remember but a collection of physical controls further away from you easier to remember? I would think the controls you're literally holding constantly would be easier to remember than the controls further away and farther from your normal vision when driving.
Why would you have to look down at the wheel but not the dashboard?
I do agree the volume slider is a terrible choice of interface, but TBF there is a tactile, physical volume control on your car within reach of your hands while they're on the wheel. There is a volume adjustment on your steering wheel, so theoretically you shouldn't even have to use the volume control on the stereo while you're driving.