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A white Sony Playstation 5 shot at a high 3/4 angle against a white background

The Volkswagen ID. Life Concept is the PlayStation 5 you can’t have

Recently, at the IAA Auto Show in Munich, Germany, Volkswagen unveiled their newest electric vehicle concept, the Volkswagen ID.Life. Reportedly, you'll be able to play video games in this one, a-la Tesla Model S. Obviously, you can't drive and play. However, being able to game while you wait outside the house of the "be out in 5" friend beats sitting on Twitter wondering what's wrong with our world. Plus, with the way the chip shortage is going, you'll probably be able to get one of these before a PS5.

Recently, at the IAA Auto Show in Munich, Germany, Volkswagen unveiled their newest electric vehicle concept, the Volkswagen ID.Life. Reportedly, you’ll be able to play video games in this one, a-la Tesla Model S. Obviously, you can’t drive and play. However, being able to game while you wait outside the house of the “be out in 5” friend beats sitting on Twitter wondering what’s wrong with our world. Plus, with the way the chip shortage is going, you’ll probably be able to get one of these before a PS5.

Will the Volkswagen ID.Life come to America?

The ultra-minimalist white and grey Volkswagen ID.Life concept, shot from a high front 3/4 angle at the Munich Auto Show
The Volkswagen ID.Life will have removable roof panels a-la Porsche Targa | Volkswagen

Unfortunately, the ID.Life won’t be coming to America. Rather, whatever the production version of the Volkswagen ID.Life is won’t be coming to America. Honestly, these kinds of things change all the time. In all likelihood, VW is simply using Europe and its native Germany as a test bed for sales of the small lifted hatch to see how things go.

Frankly, the premise of the Volkwagen ID.Life is one that appeals to me, a young professional- VW’s intended market for the car, so I’m hoping for an American version soon. Regardless, the Volkswagen ID.Life is supposed to be cheap. The folks in Wolfsburg via CNN say around $24,000 MSRP for the starting price. That places the ID.Life securely below other EV city cars like the Honda E.

VW will let you play video games in their new concept

The interior of the ID.Life concept with phone integration instead of an infotainment unit and sustainable wood and cloth, as well as an F1-like steering wheel
I love the pause and play buttons on the ID.Life concept’s pedals, very Playstation 5 | Volkswagen

While this is just a concept, it looks like the Volkswagen ID.Life gives you quite a lot for the money. For starters, you’ll have a huge 34-inch screen to game or watch movies on that rises out of the dash. Bet that Playstation 5 you just bought for $300 over retail doesn’t come with a big ol’ screen. Funnily enough, there’s a lot of video game nods in the car, like the “Game On” script on the dash and the pause/play gas and brake pedals.

Howver, the infotainment details aren’t handled by that big 34-inch screen. Instead, that falls on your cell phone. Frankly, that’s not a good idea. I have near-perfect eyesight and even for me, my phone screen requires a bit too much looking at to be safe to get directions from. The big screen is there, and Volkswagen should use that for infotainment like Carplay, not just as a Playstation 5 substitute.

Tech integration is key to VW’s (ID) life(style)

The rear taillights of the white ID.Life concept car
The ID.Life’s taillights definitely need to look less ominous | Sven Hoppe via Getty Images

All that to say nothing of range and power outputs. Keep in mind this is a concept and numbers can always change. For now, we’re looking at 234 hp and about 250 miles of range. Honestly, that’s just about perfect for a city car, but I imagine batteries will have become more efficient by the time the first ID.Life rolls off the line. No matter what, I’m sure you’ll be able to buy one of these before you can get your hands on a Playstation 5. I bet the ID.Life will be cheaper too.

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