MINI has always been ahead of the pack in understanding how to bring together your digital life and real-world urban adventures. Perhaps its secret is not losing sight of the simple fact that driving a MINI is fun. It’s the kind of vehicle that transforms the most mundane journey into an occasion for enjoyment. So, it follows that a digital operating system should add to the pleasure quotient, too.

Our digital lives are about more than just convenience (although that’s an important part of the mix). They supplement, enrich and extend our lifestyles in the digital realm. And that’s what MINI’s digital operating systems have done for driving. They’ve never forgotten the importance of the “fun” in functionality.

MINI’s new operating system is without doubt one of the major highlights of the new-edition MINI 3-Door Hatch, MINI 5-Door Hatch and MINI Convertible, available in SA from June 2021.

The first thing you’ll notice as you slip behind the wheel of these models is the redesigned centre console. The 8.8-inch touch display, surrounded with a laser-engraved, LED-lit ring, now comes standard. Its touch-sensitive Piano Black high-gloss surface has a display that has been updated to be more intuitive than ever, while looking modern and classic at the same time.

It’s easy to swipe through the “Live Widgets” on the screen to select the function you want, very much like a smartphone. Select one, and it fills the screen. The graphics for the widgets display the status you left on – the last song you were playing on the audio or the last route you took on the map, for example, for easy reference. And you can configure them as you please.

The decor ring can be set to subtly signal useful info, such as the temperature of the aircon, for example. Depending on your mood, you can set the graphic display to “Lounge” or “Sport”, in a calming petrol blue and turquoise or exhilarating red and anthracite, respectively. It’s amazing how the ambience adds to the driving experience. The display modes are linked to the driving mode, so if you switch to sport, the colour on the screen switches too. And if your MINI includes the Ambient Light option, the colours on the screen can be linked to the lighting of the whole interior.

In the new all-electric MINI Cooper SE, the eDrive display keeps you updated on all the vital statistics you need to know to stay on track and get where you’re going. It updates you on energy flow, range and how to extend it, as well as where you can find charging stations along your route. There’s even a “Green Driving Assistant”, which will calculate the most efficient route to your destination, taking into account your personal driving style and real-time traffic.

Of course, the MINI App has been updated to fuse your digital life with your MINI more closely. You can check in on your MINI remotely from your smartphone at any time, and even lock or unlock the door remotely from the app. In the MINI Cooper SE, you can set and activate the climate control while your MINI is charging, so that it’s already pleasantly cool (or warm, if it’s winter) inside before you get in. You can also check the charging status remotely, find out whether you have enough range to get you to where you’re going, and optimise the charging process. The MINI App also puts you in direct contact with your service partner, breakdown service and online shop.

So now a journey in a MINI is more exciting and comfortable than ever, with digital life doing just what it should: connecting you to the pleasure of driving your MINI, making urban mobility more fun, and keeping you closer to that inimitable MINI feeling.