Hello ,
I am not sure if i am asking in right place . I am looking to buy a GPS navigator and i dont really know which one to choose. Any advice on getting good GPS ? price around 150 to 200$ . Thanks You
Need advice for Car GPS Navigator
Ltriplenet on 07/02/2015 - 02:55
Comments
For stand alone SatNav, I switched from TomTom to Garmin Nuvi devices with traffic a few years back and have not looked back since.
In fact when they switched from one map provider to the other (after warranty) and I complained my "lifetime" maps weren't getting updated half as often as their new models, they sent me a brand new better model one within a week.
Can't recommend Garmin enough.
I inherited a Navman when we bought a used car so I didn't get to choose one with the features I wanted.
Some of the features I would be looking for are the ability to:
specify street and cross street as destination. Navman only allows house number or centre of street. Garmin has this feature.
plan a route from B to C rather than from current location A to B only.
add way points or via points to the route, eg A to B to C to D, so that you can control the route taken so that eg you follow the scenic route rather than the fastest route that the satnav insists on. (i) The PocketPC version of TomTom I had years ago could do this.
save a pre-planned route for future use. Ditto (i).
display digital speedo when not being used for navigation. (ii) My Navman model can't do this. A Garmin model I borrowed for a recent trip overseas could.
auto-on when vehicle starts. Ditto (ii).
add third party maps for your own country so you can get updates or other countries if travelling without having to pay the extortionate rates charged by the satnav manufacturer such as OpenStreetMaps or South East Asian Mapping Group's maps of Malaysia and Thailand. Ditto (ii).
be used away from the vehicle so a reasonable battery life is useful. (iii) Less important these days as most people have smartphones that they can use for this.
remember where the vehicle was parked so you can find it again. Ditto (iii). My Motorola Moto G Second Gen does this.
Remember that "Lifetime Map Upgrades" means the lifetime on sale of the model you are buying so it really means 1 to 2 years max.
If you are going to use your smartphone as a satnav you need to be aware that viewing maps such as Google Maps uses mobile data. If you exceed your monthly quota or you use roaming while overseas you will quickly find out what "bill shock" means. Use satnav software such as NavFree that downloads the map for the entire country while you are connected to your home or work network so they can be used while offline.
I numbered points below as 10, 11 and 12 but the website software changes them to 1, 2 and 3.
have built-in points of interest (POIs) such as speed cameras and school zones and give warnings when approaching. Much better if it gives "on route" warnings rather than "proximity" warnings, eg if you're driving on the freeway it doesn't warn you that there is a camera at the off ramp traffic lights as you drive under the flyover bridge just because you are 200m from it. Navman does this.
add your own POIs for such things as scenic lookouts or towns.
not be obsessive about not suggesting U-turns. With Navman if you are supposed to say turn left at an intersection but instead you pull up 10m beyond the intersection Navman won't tell you to U-turn. It will quite happily tell you to drive 10km onwards on a much longer route so you don't have to U-turn. As I recall, TomTom was obsessive the other way, because it was always saying "Make a U-turn" when you could quite easily turn at the next intersection to get back on route.
Thanks all for the advice . I can't use my mobile for GPS as my monthly data is only 1G .
You can just use an app that doesn't need an internet connection to run. E.g. HERE Maps is free, has speed warnings and downloads maps to the storage so you don't need to use mobile data.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.here.app.m…
yes—- it's true , we do not use data —- all maps are downloaded for oz , I looked at Here maps BUT they made my bluetooth play up
I posted my comments on a dedicated GPS website I am a member of.
The response was that "The Garmin Montana is about the only device that will meet all the requirements."
That's if you think that you need all the features I listed. If you only require a subset of them you may be able to use other brands or models.
Hmm! I just checked price - $540.
Use your mobile phone with an available when offline maps satnav app.
Use a cheap android smartphone and download Here map, its an offline map from Nokia and a rather fantastic one!
I just want one with minimal voice instructions. Drives me nuts when you get turn left in 10km, 1k, 300m, turn left now. Why not just one notification with a little warning. There are times when you probably want the extra warnings, but most of the time I've got voice finance off and end up looking at the screen too much.
but most of the time I've got voice finance off and end up looking at the screen too much.
…
sounds like the smart way to go —— dumbarse waiting for a rear-ender !!But it's ok to watch as its not a handheld. ;)
that above two looks very nice . Anyone review for it ?
navdy has not been released yet, it'll be shipped out in 2015.
Satnavs are old hat now. Get an android phone and install Here maps ..and it is free!
NO INTERNET NEEDED… you install the full map for aust or whatever country you need.
They are regularly updated and work just like a dedicated satnav.
Sygic is another very good satnav program that does not need internet support to work.
Have you a tablet or smartphone , we use Tom Tom maps through these , my phone is 5.5" so gives a good display
running android not windows phone WP