Sometimes, there is a seemingly minor feature in a car that might just be the one that makes you want to make the purchase. Case in point: The Passenger View camera on the 2025 Kia Carnival is a game-changer for those who have kids and need to keep an eye on them.
A little background on this one. When my kids were much younger, there were no camera views in cars, although the back-up camera had just started to emerge as an optional feature. (Now it is required in all cars, so I guess that worked out.) You couldn’t use a camera to see an approaching car like you can now when you change lanes. You also couldn’t see a bird’s eye view and make everyone wonder how it is even possible. (The camera just stitches together an overhead view from the front, side, and rear camera.)
It all seems like a miracle in some ways — we have cameras poking out of cars everywhere now. This latest innovation is not looking outside the car but inside instead.
Once you punch up the view, you can see the second row seats and whoever is occupying them. I had adults on a trip with me, so it wasn’t exactly needed, but you can also zoom in on one part of the screen to see a specific individual — say, Timmy acting up or Sally making a mess with her gum.
I liked being able to do this as opposed to what was the only option back when I was a busy dad — namely, craning my neck around to look at the kids. That’s not exactly safe and pretty bad for your beck besides, but it was the only option available.
I didn’t test this feature in the Carnival, but I have also found out that I could have used a Passenger Talk intercom system as well. When you use this feature, you can talk to everyone in the vehicle so that they hear you through the speakers. What does that actually imply? I would say — no yelling. You can speak in a normal voice to everyone in the car and they will hear you.
And, there’s yet another feature related to the littles. The Carnival always warns you when you stop and turn off the vehicle that there is something still in the backseat — such as Timmy or Sally. This is really meant to alert parents that they should not leave a child in a car after you pull over at the mall, even for a few minutes on a hot day.
This monitoring is not going to win any innovation awards. It’s honestly fairly low-tech. There’s a camera pointed to the second row so you can see the kids. Compared to self-driving cars or the ability to converse with a voicebot about your summer vacation plans, and even book a hotel, it’s not groundbreaking. Yet, there was something incredibly useful about the camera.
I could see parents using it quite often as a way to see if everyone is happy, excited to be driving, or ready to start World War III. I hope it helps parents the world over, even if there are more impressive innovations most automotive journalists will be writing about this year.