nhester

For TL+Nav owners:

Is there a good rationale for why the navigation displays must be polarized? And if polarization does prove to be an engineering necessity (dubious), wouldn't it have been considerate of Acura to have aligned the polarization so as to be compatible with typical polarized sun glasses?

I find that if I wish to observe either navigation screen with any degree of clarity, I must remove my clip-on polarized sun glasses. Conventional, non-polarized sun glasses present no problem, but then you have excessive road glare to contend with!

What solutions have others found for this major annoyance (and probable safety hazzard)?

714tman

I hear a ZZ-Top song coming on......


"Go get yourself some cheap sunglasses"

zax123

I have Revo sunglasses which are polarized. I have no problem viewing the Navi screen. What I do have a SLIGHT problem with is the display above the screen with the time and temperature. The time is slightly "foggy", but only at one point on the screen.

DanL

iTrader: (2)

Same here, although my "driving glasses" are cheap polarized Walmart specials. Never have a problem with the NAVI display, but, depending on the angle, the center dash display does fade in and out.

bluenoise

I have Persol polarized sunglasses and have no trouble with any of the screens in my TL. All LCDs must be polarized. That is a key part of what makes them work. I'm sure there's a good explanation on HowStuffWorks.com, if you're curious enough.

nhester

Thanks to bluenoise...I am obliged to acknowledge that polarization is inevitable. But to those who report no significant compromise when viewing the navigation screens through polarized sunglasses, all I can say is that I'm truly amazed.

I would ask you to first view the screens without polarized glasses. Without diverting your eyes from the road ahead, peripheral vision should provide a fairly clear view of the navigation screen. Then, turn your head for a more direct view (I hope you do this while parked) and you will continue to observe little discernible change in either brightness or quality. In fact, you will find that any reasonable viewing stance will result in no compromise of the display.

Now, repeat this same procedure, but this time use your polarized sunglasses. In addition to the dimished light intensity from the displays (expected), I will truly be much surprised if you fail to observe that the quality is greatly dependent upon the viewing angle. In my case, a truly acceptable view occurs only through peripheral vision while looking directly out the passenger's window --- not recommended while driving! As for the view from a normal driving position, the obscured display naturally invites the driver to divert his attention in search for a more compatible viewing angle.

I am not saying that the navigation screen is totally useless in conjunction with polarized sunglasses... but I do insist that the display is considerably compromised (at least from the driving position).

As for the narrow upper display (temperature/time/radio info), the area just right of center is a complete washout. If I lean my head against the driver's window, I can just about make out the obscured area. Very frustrating!

I learned long ago that I would have to remove my sunglasses in order to read the payment information screens on the pumps at gasoline stations. This is just a minor annoyance... and poses no safety concern.

deandorsey

i have polorized oakleys, i have absolutley no trouble seeing the navi/audio screen.

there was a thread a long while back about polorized glasses and lcd readouts, etc. try a search.

Most of the glare that causes you to wear sunglasses comes from horizontal surfaces, such as water or a highway. When light strikes a surface, the reflected waves are polarized to match the angle of that surface. So, a highly reflective horizontal surface, such as a lake, will produce a lot of horizontally polarized light. Therefore, the polarized lenses in sunglasses are fixed at an angle that only allows vertically polarized light to enter. You can see this for yourself by putting on a pair of polarized sunglasses and looking at a horizontal reflective surface, like the hood of a car. Slowly tilt your head to the right or left. You will notice that the glare off the surface brightens as you adjust the angle of your view.

cM3go

I have polarized lenses as well and have no problems. If anything, it seems more crisp.

MyJohnson

I have polarized rayban's and no problem from the sun glasses, just sunlight washing out the nav from the sunroof or windows.

Hey deandorsey, are those Ed Norton 'Man-Breasts'?

deandorsey

hahaha yea!, you mean jimmy norton though

Nodoze2004

Ummm hate to say this, but have you considered getting your eyes checked as you are approaching 80 years old (not that there is anything wrong with that).


I find no issues with the nav screen, and find the polarization to be a cool feature.

bluenoise

I have no problem with my displays, even on gas pumps. There is the occasional ATM that I can't read, but I'm generally fine with LCDs. Perhaps your brand of lens are polarized at a 90-degree angle to most others.

nhester

I think you have attempted to treat seriously my initial posting in this thread. I say this even though you have not expierenced the polarization "problem" as I originally described.

My comments on the compromised navigation screens (particularly the upper temperature and station information) apply equally to two sets of polarized glasses (different manufacturers) which I possess. I believe that all polarized sunglasses (from respectable sources) are oriented so as to maximally darken the sky above the horizon on a clear, sunny day. But I admit that I'm not sure whether this is vertical or horizontal polarization.

As for the gasoline pump LCDs, I do find considerable variability in this feature from one station to another. The pump LCDs at my favorite local station, however, are absolutely unreadable without excessive cocking of my head or totally removing my glasses!

I am not going to "harp" any longer on this polarization issue as it has been made quite clear to me from the postings in this thread that it is simply a non-issue for those who have participated. It appears that I am probably just a bit too hypercritical.

But I do thank those who have responded.

MyJohnson

Deandorsey,

Yea, that's the guy. I watched him on Tough crowd with Colin Quinn and on Last Comic Standing. Funny guy.

Oh, yeah, Ed Norton is an actor, many movies such as Fight Club.

bluenoise

This got me to thinking, so I did a little experiment this morning while sitting at a light. I took off my glasses and slowly rotated them in front of the LCDs in my car. While the color shifted a bit, they never were blacked out. I don't know how to explain that other than, perhaps, the polarization is not completely in one direction. I am wondering if it's like the polarizing filter I have for my camera. It's a "circular polarizer" and has the same effect on the image as an ordinary polarizer, but it's compatible with my camera's autofocus. Maybe my glasses have similar polarization.

deandorsey

you can listen to him everyday on opie and anthony on XM.