After years of trailing its rivals on technology, Kawasaki has shocked the Jet Ski industry by unveiling the largest touchscreen in the personal watercraft class – and in the process overtaken market leader Sea-Doo for bragging rights.
The new high-resolution 12.3-inch touchscreen – standard on all models in the 2027 Kawasaki Ultra 310 series – is larger than the 10.25-inch display on certain Sea-Doo models.
And larger than the 7-inch touchscreen on the current Yamaha FX series.
The rest of the Kawasaki sit-down Jet Ski range continues with the 7-inch TFT display, however it is not a touchscreen.
Kawasaki says the new 12.3-inch display can be split into one, two, or three windows – and shows engine vital signs, map instructions, music tracks, vessel speed, engine revs, water temperature, phone signal, ride modes, distance travelled, and trim settings (among other functions).
Kawasaki designed a new shroud to accomodate the larger display.
For now it is unclear how long it will take for the 12.3-inch touchscreen to find its way onto other models in the Kawasaki Jet Ski line-up.
But if history is a guide, the technology should be on non-supercharged Ultra models within a few years.
The 12.3-inch touchscreen is quite the leap for Kawasaki; the 7-inch TFT display is not a touchscreen and has fiddly controls.
Until the 12.3-inch touchscreen arrived, Kawasaki was the only Jet Ski brand to lack a touchscreen of any size.
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