Making Tech Headlines · Page 4

Slate Offers Hundreds of Choices, Except the One That Drives All Four Wheels

October 28, 2026 at 6:00 AM EDT · New York time

The Slate truck offers hundreds of customization options, but four-wheel drive is not currently among them. For truck enthusiasts who consider that feature essential, the absence could matter more than a long catalog of accessories. Slate's appeal includes the ability to personalize the vehicle, giving buyers a range of choices about how their truck looks and what it carries. That is a different proposition from offering every mechanical configuration a shopper might want. An accessory can make a vehicle feel individual, but it does not necessarily replace a drivetrain option. The missing feature is especially noticeable because pickup buyers often approach their shopping list with specific uses in mind. Someone who wants four-wheel drive may have little reason to celebrate an abundance of other choices if none addresses that requirement. For someone who does not need it, the customization menu may be the more relevant attraction. The contrast makes the configurator a small lesson in the limits of abundance. Hundreds of options can look like freedom until the desired checkbox is not on the list. Slate can offer shoppers many ways to make the truck their own, but a buyer who wants power at all four wheels still has to decide whether the available version suits the job. Personal expression, it turns out, does not automatically come with a matching drivetrain.

Satire. Not factual reporting. Read the original reporting from the linked publishers.