It's minimalism for the sake of it, form well over function - the lack of virtually anything tactile for often used functions/features is actually a safety issue.
I agree with this. I don't like having to take my eyes off the road to see the screen & I don't like the little steering wheel control nonsense. Ford did a fabulous job on their current line of steering wheels:
* The middle controls on the left & right are thumb-accessible
* Each button is dedicated to a control group
* You can slide your hand lower to the second set of controls on each side
The groupings are logical:
* Left side has audio controls, so you can skip tracks, quickly mute, or nudge the volume up or down. Like a Tivo remote, each button is dedicated & has a unique location & shape, making it very easy to operate mindlessly & in the dark
* The bottom left side is for cruise control
* The center console also has physical buttons that you don't have to look at, all of which are dedicated to their functions, so you can put your hand on the layout & learn them by heart without looking