Penny Pinching in Features

Owner of a 2001 Accord LX Standard here.

I recently happened to rent a Chevy Cobalt coupe. That was such a
basic car; it didn't have power windows or power mirrors etc. Yet it
had very good instrument panel, with a nice trip computer that had
mpg, thermometer, fuel range, oil life, and it even had a Radio
Broadcast Data System. Same with a cheaper Corolla. It always had a
decent thermometer.

My carpool partner(we do that in NJ :-) ) has a 2006 Accord EX (4
cyl). He paid a good money for that car. None of the features I
mentioned above were included in his car, with the exception of
Maintenance Minder.

How much would it cost extra for Honda to have nice trip information
system a very basic one that's comparable with that Chevy? Why do they
cut corners like this? In my book, what they win in terms of
reliability and fuel efficiency, they lose when it comes to features.

I'm in the market now for my next car, but I can't afford the top end
Accord that may or may not have it. Does Accord's navigation system
include Trip computer or is it just navigation? Trip computer and
compass are important for me for business reasons. So if I have to
rule out Accord, what other make/models have a decent Trip computer /
compass?

Thanks all.