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In this thread you may ask any Sat Nav based question.
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PLEASE NOTE:
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Edited by Webmaster on 15/12/2008 at 00:21
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Is a Mercedes Dealership the only place one can buy updated/new sat nav discs for factory fitted navigation systems. They quote circa £194 for a disc covering the UK and similar money for individual european countries. Seems a huge cost for such a simple piece of kit.
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 25/06/2008 at 18:46
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This direct link to Teleatlas themselves (I've posted it before but its relevant) might help you purchase maps more cheaply. They cover lots of makes including some Mercedes.
navigation.teleatlas.com/en/shop/
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 25/06/2008 at 18:46
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Thank's Dipstick will give them a try.
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 25/06/2008 at 18:47
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There are also Teleatlas licensed re-sellers who might be cheaper. Put Comand into Google and it should give you a link.
There are of course copied discs out there, perish the thought. I've got one and it works fine!
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Has anybody got one of the above in current use and are the maps up to date please.
Regards......MD
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Garmin did use Mapsource maps. Before buying one of the units check the Mpsource webpage for the latest version of the maps.
IIRC Mapsource used to provide one free upgrade if the maps provided on the unit were out of sync with the current release.
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Latest map is City Navigator Europe NT 2008. You can check it out on their Mapviewer:
www8.garmin.com/cartography/
There wasn't a great change this year from the previous one (version 9 - they've changed to a year designation now), particularly for Western Europe; mainly addition of more POIs
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Thanks for the replies so far, but is it any good?? I was going to go for TT One XL, but thE Nuvi comes with a home charger and a case. Will mainly be used shortly for my horrible work jaunt in and around Wandsworth...yuk
VBR..............MD
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believe the 350T in now out of production - probably why the deal with the charger. Garmin UK site shows full range and has a useful comparison tool for their numerous models.
I have Garmin 250 with European mapping and have found the basic model does everything I need. Mapping in excellent and Garmin products are very easy to use although don't tend to have as many features as TT I prefer them. If you do buy 350T make sure that it has this year's maps - Up date is £59.99 To my mind they have a more quality feel about them, Device proved invaluable on recent trip to France - negotiated the back steets of Rouen like local!
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Owning a TT 7 and Garmin 2610 (bike use) I can only agree, the Garmin is clunkier than the TT but ultimately I feel a better product - I will no doubt love the TT again after using it next week in the States, just programmed it for the journey from Logan to the Hotel we're staying for the first couple of nights.....I have to say the clunky old Garmin does it quicker and better (storing routes that is), but it doesn't have US mapping so no contest on which one to take.
Another plus point with the Garmin is the been bag type car mount. Set up in seconds, its easily removed and leaves no tell-tale marks on the windscreen.
The Garmin is easier to programme waypoints into it as well, it also has multiple screens - straight mapping, Heads Up Dashboard display and one I came to particularly like, the text mode with time and mileage countdowns - so much easier on the eye and brakes up a boring autoroute ride.
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For powering Sat-Nav - Have I read somewhere that they are different sizes ? My TT7 is ok for around 4 hours driving on its power pack, but just in case.
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Has anyone had experience of or dealings with satnaveasy of Newton Abbot, Devon. Their site looks professional and they seem to sell a lot of re-packaged 'white box units', but I always tread carefully. Just asking. Looking at a Nuvi 350 T at £125.00.
Regards..........MD
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 29/06/2008 at 13:44
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MD,
This might be worth a look - Garmin 250 with European maps
www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/5041387/...m
as mentioned on Martins money saving tips
www.moneysavingexpert.com/tipnote/sat-nav
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I'm after a new portable SatNav as I want to bin our current one after 18 months.
It is rubbish...
I was looking at ones that can be put on a motorbike or used in a car. The Garmin Zumo 400 looks pretty good value at the moment at 209.99 including Europe map on DVD as it's being replaced by the 550. I don't need Bluetooth connectivity so not worth paying extra for the latest.
One piece of information which appears to be missing from all manufacturers is whether the unit has TMC or not. Not an issue on the bike but a definite omission for use in the car.
Does anyone know if there is a bike navi system out there with TMC for use in the car ?
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 01/07/2008 at 22:05
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Bought a Garmin 760 traffic model. So far 'Emily' has performed faultlessly bar one direction up a one way street the wrong way. Re-calcs are quick and it has got me through the London maze brilliantly. Bought from Amazon £216.00 and what a service they provide. Highly recommended both.
Best regards to all........MD
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I thought there was a specific SatNav thread (as the Computing thread), but I didn't find it. {now moved}
The car originated in Germany, coming with an Audi nav system installed, with a CD detailed for Germany and covering major routes in other European countries. The handbook is a nightmare - even in English.
The car now resides in France, but in the corner near Switzerland and Germany.
A navigation CD detailed for all three countries would be useful, Mulhouse is proving rather difficult to penetrate, for instance.
Any suggestions on obtaining a 'European' CD would be welcome, either directly or indirectly, thus: 'it's an XYZ system, so ask your question at this ... site'.
Thanks.
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 21/07/2008 at 19:32
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I would think you'd get a disk for the country and major roads for the others. So for you, you'd get France.
The problem you have is the space on a CD. France will take up most of that as would Germany and is the reason modern in-car sat navs use DVDs.
For a better answer try Audi?
Or for a little more than the cost of a disk of France, you could get something will a TomTom 720 or TomTom XL Europe and have all the countries with street level mapping.
Edited by rtj70 on 23/07/2008 at 12:56
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More by luck than technical skill, I have got my PDA running Tomtom Navigator 5 to have Tomtom Traffic enabled. My question is, what do the white dots with red borders on the summary traffic map signify ? They can also be seen on Traffic on the Go 300, 500 and 700. They don't seem to relate to towns, roads or anything. Just curious; can anyone help ?
TIA
If you want to see what they look like, a sample is here (first image);
www.pocketgpsworld.com/tomtom-go-traffic.php
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The white dots with red borders signify a traffic incident. If you zoom in on them, the data will display what the incident/hold-up is.
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Yes the dots are incidents. When you zoom to a road not only does the icon say what the incident type is but the the colour/animation on the road tells you the direction and severity of the holdup.
It would all be in the manual you know ;-)
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Thank you for your replies. According to the manual (yes I have RTFM), incidents are the square-ish blobs with a graphic inside to indicate accident, queue, lane closure or whatever. If you look at the link, there are maybe 30 white dots, many of them away from main roads or even towns. Hard to believe they are all incidents.
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When you zoom out it's not possible to use the icons with pictures inside the squares hence the small dots. And yes there can be many incidents!
Luckily it does not download all details for them just the delays otherwise the data tranferred would be huge. I find TomTom traffic quite good.
Something that TomTom5 did but the later v7/v8 software on the dedicated units does not is tell you there is more up to date traffic info than has been downloaded. The green circle in the top right corner will turn yellow if TomTom service has more recent data and you can force a manual update. When it is getting older the green circle end up with segments missing that are coloured black.
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I have a navman 520 - must be four or five years old now.
In the routing section, you express preferences for quickets/shortest route, and for motorway and 'urban roads'.
I got these sorted to my preference years ago, and haven't changed them since
I do a trip across the M62 at least once a week, and on the westbound ONLY, it has actually started to direct me off the motorway and through Birch services, which it never did before
Any idea how and why ? My theory is that those blokes who want to sell you a leather jacket 'before they go back to milan' have hacked into the US defence system and hijacked the satellites
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Wife wants sat nav as her employer is moving.
Seen this in Argos and a lot cheaper than similar TomTom. I use TomTom.
Anyone used this and how does it compare to TomTom WRT features and usability?
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Looking for any recommendations for a sat nav system with European maps. Looking to spend no more than £150 - less if possible.
Any experiences / thoughts gratefully heard.
Cheers
DP
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I have a Tomtom one XL Europe and it has been faultless so far, both in the UK and Europe. It would cost more than £150 though, but the Tomtom one Europe should be under your budget if you shop around
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Thanks, PR. Unbeknown to me, SWMBO has this afternoon ordered a Garmin Nuvi 250 with Europe maps for an incredible £99 from Amazon. Basic, no frills navigation, but reviews quite well.
Thanks again for your help, and sorry mods for originally posting this in the wrong place.
Cheers
DP
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I can't speak highly enough of my Nuvi 250W apart from the fact that it cost me £150 !! I think that the 'W' adds about £30 to the cost of the square (shaped) version.
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Have had Nuvi 250 for a year now and found it to be all I need. - very easy to operate and is solidly built piece of kit. You won't need an instruction book which is just as well as they don't give you one! Used it in France this year and took me through the streets of Rouen with no problems. Excellent buy for £99 - Believe the new 255 is coming out soon so 250 on run out.
Doesn't come with a mains charger or usb lead but these cheap to buy on the net. Will run for up to 5 hours on single charge so don't usually have it plugged in whilst driving
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Thanks guys. Its first proper test will be to get us from Calais to our friends place near Rovereto, Northern Italy next month.
Good to hear it's well regarded! That's comforting. £99 is cheap, but not if it's rubbish, if you know what I mean. Sounds like it's a good unit.
Cheers
DP
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No probs DP. I was talking with my boss and he has a Garmin and reckons its great. I think either have a good reputation so it will be fine Im sure.
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Have been using TomTom V5 for some time but am becoming concerned that having to look at the screen when an alert sounds, is drawing my attention away from the road.
I am told that TomTom V6 gives all alerts by voice ( meaning that I could go from A to B without needing to refer to the screen at all ) but I have no positive confirmation on this. If anyone out there has V6, could you please advise if this is the case?
If TomTom does not do this, is anyone using a system that does?
Thank you.
{over here in discussion it's not compulsory to select make/model from the drop down lists - also this may well get moved to the 'sat nav questions' thread at some point; if one of us remembers}
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 20/09/2008 at 14:37
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Our tomtom 520 (running v7 software? not sure) does speak directions to you - such as "in 100 metres, turn left onto kensington way" - you can also tailor the POI warnings with your own message which is read using the computer voice "Scamera in 50 metres" etc
Oh, and I have the traffic aerial and you can have the traffic situation read to you too - "long delays between m62 j32 and j33" Not automatic that bit though although the redirection-ing can be
hth
Edited by Citroënian {P} on 20/09/2008 at 16:37
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TomTom 5 does this. Cannot you not just listen to the voice for guidance. Are we or am I missing something? TomTom 3 even gave voice guidance for sat nav.
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Many thanks to Citroenian and rtj70 for your replies.
My TomTom V5 speaks directional instructions but gives a dingdong noise for an alert ( Hotel, Petrol Station, Scamera etc ) at which point, I have to take my attention off the road to look at the screen.
I am asking if V6 of TomTom gives directions and all alerts in voice? Citroenian says that his TomTom V7 does do this.
I am looking for a system which gives all information by voice, so that I do not have to look at a screen unless and until I consider it safe to do so.
Many thanks.
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Why do you need an alert when you approach all hotels, petrol stations etc.? Alerts are selectable for particular types of POI. If you only got a warning for speed cameras then you'd know it was a speed camera.
To have a voice alert that perhas said "GATSO 30" you'd need TomTom 7 or 8 for which you need a dedicated device that is capable of text to speech. So basically a Tomtom 520/720/920 or 530/730/930.
The question you need to think about is do you need an alert from all POIs?
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Many thanks rtj70, this is the kind of information that I was looking for.
Much apreciated.
Edited by Petel on 20/09/2008 at 18:32
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Bit late to this, sorry.
I have an original TomTom (when they cost a lot!!) - I think it's a 700 - and that gives me voice warning of speed cameras with speed limit e.g. Gatso 30. The method involved replacing some of the inbuilt alert sounds with downloaded files (.wav I think), then selecting the appropriate alert as the POI warning. I'd have to Google to find it all again, but apart from the botehr of setting the alerts it really wasn't tricky. But you'd only have a limited repertoire of alerts to customise, and only to pre-set phrases - it wasn't text to speech
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I also have a Tom Tom 700 Smokie. Still very very good and works well anywhere in Europe with the notable exception of Ireland where it is rubbish. Amused me the other week when it found a car park in Folkestone without bother when the all singing all dancing inbuilt BMW system in my friend's new X5 couldn't. He could get The X factor on its TV function on Calais docks but I can live without that. I have the TT mounted on a bracket low down on the dash so it doesn't get in my line of sight but is visible if I need it.
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Agreed that our vintage TT700 (cost around £400.00 !) gave more reliable directions than the built in BMW system. Its still at 4 years old a cracking bit of kit and proved very useful in the USA on holiday. Bit of a bummer thought that most of Boston's roads seem to be underground.....!
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I can remember exactly how much my TT 700 was nearly 4 years ago. It was £449.95 on special offer down from £499.95 via the Comet website. No real complaints though in fairness, it is still very much in use and is easy to update on a USB port. It has, in my case paid for itself ten times over and gets used almost daily in my cars or hired ones in this country and abroad.
Only foible is that it very occasionally just crashes ( the TomTom not the car ). A very very rare occurance but inevitably when you least need that to happen. It can then sulk for an hour or more despite re-setting and then like something prodigal just decide to come back for no apparent reason. Maybe 5 times in 4 years it has done this. I have found that by taking off all the stuff I don't want like other language voices and so on it seems to cope better. Tried having the "safety" camera downloads on it for a year, I think that cost about £30 or something. Not majorly helpful as it seemed to always be quite out of date despite regular downloads.
I also tried using it as a handsfree device for a week or so but found it to be really poor at that task. Nearly lost my voice bellowing at the thing.
It does seem quite cumbersome now by comparison to the newer kit but I am in no rush to replace it. I go to many different places on a regular basis and it has been a great help in reducing the stress of memorising routes or trying to read a map or A-Z while on the move.
Only downside I have found is that you become so reliant on it that you fail to remember landmarks for future use as you would if self navigating. You become so trusting of it that it no longer comes naturally to make mental notes of journeys for future reference.
The feature I like is even when travelling on a familiar journey it continually updates your ETA and remaining distance to travel so it becomes easier to confirm meeting times and so on during the course of a day's work.
It can of course, like all these devices, also give you bad advice, but you learn to defy it when necessary despite the rather dominatrix persona it has been programmed with.
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We went to the Lakes this year sat-free - we didn;t get lost once and found our way home. Most odd.
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"Only downside I have found is that you become so reliant on it that you fail to remember landmarks for future use ..."
Had exactly that conversation today with a colleague who got lost on her way to a place she was at only last week...
Think I paid £420, and was surprised to see maps for UK and the Canaries. I remembered to take it on a trip to Lanzarote easrlier this year, but the mapping didn't seem to be as accurate as the UK.
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Many thanks Smokie, appreciate the input.
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A friend of mine bought a Tom Tom One (3rd edition) in July.
All has gone well, until now. On a journey a day or two ago the voice went silent and his BH had to keep her eyes on the screen and relay info to him whenever turns had to be made. The device was powered by the cigar lighter at the time. Turning-up the volume control made no difference.
Please can anyone suggest what has caused this problem and say whether there is anything he can do by way of adjustment to settings to restore the voice.
Please keep replies easy to follow as, like me, he is a bit 'all thumbs' with these devices.
TIA
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Has he disabled the voice on the front end menu ? A reset with a pin might solve it otherwise.
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Has anyone seen this before please?
Have TomTom V5 running on an HP Ipaq. Wish to clear all previous addresses and destinations that have been entered in but the factory reset function of the V5 will not do this.
Screen asks me if I want to, next screen asks me to confirm that I want to and system then fails to do so.
Re booting the Ipaq itself makes no difference.
Can anyone throw any light on this please?
Thank you
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Evening,
My father gave me his TomTom one a few days ago to "play with" as he couldnt get it to work correctly.
Thing is, it was working fine, but he is an ex HGV Driver so knows most of the roads and the way to places so when the little computer on the windscreen told him to go a different way it werent working right!!!
Anyway, onto the problem. All was fine with the TT one for 3 or 4 days, got to a customers lunchtime and switched it off (as per the norm), and stowed it in the boot.
Came out from the job, got it out of the boot and tried to turn it on but it wouldnt work. The little green LED came on but the screen wouldnt.
I have attempted to reset the thing but it wont reset as it wont switch on.
Hopefully someone will be able to point me in the right direction.
Luckily I still have the wife's satnav to go back to, and as I have used that one for over a year I do trust it!!
Thanks in advance
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Mine (TomTom One XL) did that once, but recovered when I charged it up for 24 hours.
A question. My little old Trafficmaster Freeview seems to have given up: what's the current best traffic info gadget on the market? I seem to remember people saying on here that the TomTom floppy wire round the windscreen doesn't work well.
Edited by Avant on 24/09/2008 at 23:44
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A question. My little old Trafficmaster Freeview seems to have given up: what's the current best traffic info gadget on the market? I seem to remember people saying on here that the TomTom floppy wire round the windscreen doesn't work well.
I just got the TT TMC module (v1) for 19.99 on amazon. Its cheap because its the v1, and I knew it had a rubbish reputation, but at 19.99 i was prepared to take a punt on it.
After much cursing and trial and error I have it working. you have to have the aerial set up EXACTLY as it says on the tin (vertical down the centre of the screen then horizontal along the bottom) if it doesnt signal lock within 5 minutes then turn it off and on after you have moved down the road and it will (if it doesent lock on its first scan i think it gives up)
once you have its foibles worked out, it works ok - re-routed me round the A1 southbound when it was closed. At 19.99 one payment it worth it if you can still get it.
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Down to £14.99 - How does it work - will it work with my ancient but worthy TT700 ?
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It uses the TMC-RDS info on ClassicFM to get the traffic info much like your sat nav on the 5 series used to. Except the problem with the aerial is it's poor and the signal is weak (currently) for TMC-RDS in the UK. It's meant to improve real soon but the TomTom aerial is poor. Well the v1 was.
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It uses the TMC-RDS info on ClassicFM to get the traffic info much like your sat nav on the 5 series used to. Except the problem with the aerial is it's poor and the signal is weak (currently) for TMC-RDS in the UK. It's meant to improve real soon but the TomTom aerial is poor. Well the v1 was.
Ok its not brilliant but not that bad, once locked on it hangs in very well. I have lost it out on the regions of the norfolk coast, but it may have possibly have been re-aquired if I fiddled.
At home it works and aquires TMC if laid out on the coffee table (but not if attached to the french windows!)
As i said, based on my radio knowledge and my experience of the device, I strongly suspect when activated it does one scan of FM and if nothing found just stops scanning and doesent bother to try and re-aquire. If you move 100 yards / mile etc and restart (either by unplugging TMC or Rebooting TomTom - it will find signal. One locked it hangs in well. I have done a 250mile journey so it must have used different Calssic FM frequncies as well.
At 50 quid I would have described as rubbish, at 14.95 I would describe it as excelent value for money. Its unsightly stuck in the middle of your screen and draped over your dash tho.
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Down to £14.99 - How does it work - will it work with my ancient but worthy TT700 ?
No - requires TTX20 models.
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Been looking for a sat nav for the long suffering wife and came across the Navman S80. It's available for about £140 at Halfords and apparently does support Text To Speech (a feature we're keen on) even though the Halfords website says it doesn't ??? Can anyone confirm which is corrrect?
Two other specific questions:
I notice the camera alerts are free for year one but thereafter charegeable - can the user simply forego the service at the end of the trial and save the fee if it these alerts aren't required?
Also map updates are apparently offered every 10 months or so but again can the user decide not to update and simply continue using the older versions withouit any issues?
Has anyone got any experience of or feedback on this (or similar) models please?
Cheers!
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Can't comment on S80 but I personally use S30 and happy so far. You don't need to pay for upgrade after a year. Roads don't change that much.
Also see here if you get any feedback
www.pocketgpsworld.com/
I'm sure moderators will soon move this to Sat Nav thread.
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Cheers for that - didn't realise there's a thread for this sort of stuff.
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Bought a very nifty looking 20 channel Bluetooth GPS receiver which will work with my mobile. Where will I get the mapping software from. The phone has full internet access as well.
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go on give us a clue - make and type of mobile?
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go on give us a clue - make and type of mobile?
Clue in the title?
Any more clues? Its not a Bluetooth GPS Decoder, or a "and a".......
Sorry, couldnt resist.
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Depends what sort of mapping you want to do and whether you mind paying. On my Nokia E51 I have:
- TomTom Mobile 5 for navigation (I don't always have the TomTom 720 with me) and have a BT GPS receiver from years ago.
- Viewranger Ordnance Survey maps for walking - got most of the UK at 1:50,000 for about £25
You could also play with Nokia's own mapping software which is free. But you need a license to use it for route navigation. Lots of maps to download for free though.
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How do I get Nokia's - that would do for me !
Cancel the above - Googled it !
Edited by Pugugly on 27/09/2008 at 16:47
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I'm not impressed with the Nokia software - poor user interface. They got it when they bought smart2go.
I'd have thought you'd download it straight off their website.
When you try to install maps using a card reader to your memory card it first has to have been in the phone and the application run - it must write something to it.
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Did it via the Nokia Browser - took all of ten minutes. Thanks. Wait for GPS thingy to arrive now so I can play with it.
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You can play with maps before you have the GPS receiver to look at maps etc.
If you walk in Wales when there then take a look at Viewranger maps too.
I assume you have google maps - my E51 located itself reasonably okay via the mobile network
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Thanks for that - I'll give it a go.
I've just realized that my Blackberry has built in GPS and mapping ! Trouble is it means carrying it around when I'm not working, don;t want to do that :-(
Edited by Pugugly on 28/09/2008 at 02:10
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Trivial Blackberry aside. The key for the letter "T" has stopped working on my B/Berry. Haven't had time or found energy to get it sorted out. I use text messages to confirm meetings etc.
Quite a challenge to find ways of saying "appointment", "meeting", "tomorrow", "time", "thanks" etc without a "T".
Wretched thing.
:-(
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Reminds me of when George 'Dubya' Bush became US president.
Story was that to mark their displeasure, the outgoing lot wrenched all the 'W' tiles off computer keyboards in the White House.
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EG - " Jus' 'o confirm our mee'ing in Leices'er on 'uesday a' 10.00. Look forward 'o mee'ing you 'hen.
:-(
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Does anyone know how to update a Magellen Maestro sat nav. I have looked on their website and can only see updates to purchase. I have a USB lead and thought I could just plug this in and download updates, but I can't find anything on the site to do this. Just wondered if anyone has a Magellen and could help. Thanks.
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 29/09/2008 at 11:32
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ok gps suction cup keeps falling off
whats the solution to keep the gps sticking to the screen?
any ideas?
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A bit of lick before applying? My TomTom bracket has a lever which you move across after applying, it sticks just fine
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I had a GPS bracket with suction cup that kept falling off the screen from new. I concluded that it probably had a pinhole in it and had it exchanged by the supplying shop.
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Mine did the same - intelligent routing, traffic updates, bluetooth, safety cameras all brilliant but doesn't stick to the screen! A quick lick and it sticks and stays stuck.
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mine does the same must be to do with heat because it never happens in the cold i think you can get them with the tension levers for most makes and models of GPS
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or buy one of the little brackets that will be purpose made for your car.
Must admit Tom Toms do make a bit of a thump when they fall off the windscreen and bounce down your dash.
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Brodit make all sorts of brackets and holders for satnavs and stuff. Saves all those give-away marks on the windscreen.
www.brodit.com/
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Clean the screen well and the suction cup. Moisten the cup and push firmly. Mine has never fallen off - TT720
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On my TomTom One (original version), the suction cup has a lever to tension it. The lever got stiffer and stiffer, though I couldn't see anything fixable on it, and it eventually broke. The assembly still kinda works with the satnav balanced on the dashboard between instrument box and A-pillar, but it's a bit clumsy.
I haven't found a replacement for less than £20, which seem too much
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I bought a friction mount for my Garmin as I didn't fancy using the suction cups, and give away that I had a sat nav in the car.
The friction mount sits on the dash and just does not move. I bought it from Amazon but it's a Garmin product. Try looking for something like this from Tom Tom.
Here's the link to Garmin.buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=8100
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A smear of glycerine(tho' spit is cheaper).
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I would like santa to bring me a Sat Nav for Christmas, but which one ?
Please will anyone add their opinions & reasons.
1.Budget up to £150 2. must cover France ( small Town detail).
3 must be easy to use and accurate in built up areas.
I thank you all
{This will be moved to the current "Sat Nav Q & A" thread at some point in the very near future}
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 05/11/2008 at 21:33
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Hi Ken
The TomTom One Europe comes with European mapping and you can subscribe to traffic monitoring and speed camera information.
It is easy to use and can be had for £120.
One problem with it is that it doesn't tell you when it's rerouting you, so if you make a wrong turn, you may not realise it until afterwards!
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I'm wondering what is going on with the SatNav market.
Back in August I posted a link to the next generation system from Blaupunkt which was supposed to be emerging which had a camera on the back of the unit so the map overlayed the actual road.
www.blaupunkt.com/de/7612201660_main.asp
Does anyone have an update of where this is at ?
I've just checked the Blaupunkt site and they have pulled the video. Maybe right product wrong time (pricing issue).
The reason for this long winded reply is if new tech. is about to come out then it could be worth hanging on for a little while longer as the old tech. stuff, which is still perfectly servicable, may be that bit cheaper getting you a better system for your money.
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I was interested in that Blaupunkt too (it was the Travelpilot 500 and 700 that offered the camera overlay feature).
It was supposed to be launched in Berlin in September, but I can find only one online retailer who purports to sell them, and their site doesn't inspire any confidence that they actually might have them. The prices they show though seem lower than I anticipated.
Blaupunkt's site has pulled the video, yes, but a site search there shows a number of accessories suitable for those two models, so it must have been a real possibility. Maybe, as someone pointed out with a succint "how well does that work in the dark then", they've realised it might not be perfect yet and delayed it.
As to new tech, is the Tomtom "pinpoint you to within 30 cms so it now tells you which actual lane to get in" feature out yet?
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Amazon have Garmin 250 with European mapping for £79.99 ( I paid £149 or this piece of kit 15 months ago.) Excellent device, very simple to use and good European mapping. Got me thought the back streets of Rouen fine this summer If you want the wide screen version its £112.99
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Also interested in a sat nav... speed cameras, european maps etc are great, however do any have bluetooth capabilities so I can link my phone as the new car I'm interested in doesn't?
Please if I'm talking rubbish ignore me as this is only a thought and I haven't started looking for 1 yet!!!
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Yes to the BT handsfree capability, e.g. some but not all TomToms. But you probably won't stick the sat nav unit in all the time so another handsfree solution might be better.
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WH Smith have a Navigo for £69.99 reduced from £99.99.
Anyone any experience of this one?
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Simple question I hope!!
Have just bought above and have downloaded Speed camera data from TomTom. I get a visual alert on screen but, unlike my previous Navman unit, there is no audible alert and I can find nothing in the manual (yes I have read it!) or under preferences to set audible alerts. In fact, can't find speed cameras under POIs or anywhere else either!
Any suggestions on how to get audible alerts? Don't like peering at screen to often - prefer voice/ audible guidance and alerts.
Thanks
Phil
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Sorry, cancel that - found it under "TomTom Services" - for some reason the alerts were disabled.
Phil
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Hi peoples.
Not really a technical matter on Ford just sat navs.
I have just been given a Binatone A350 as a present and I wondered if anyone else has one because I am not sure if you can get updates for it and if so where to get a USB cable from.
Any ideas? You clever clogs!!
{Moves to sat nav questions thread}
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 19/11/2008 at 12:30
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My Garmin has decided that it does not like picking up Sat. Signals, so therefore is FUBAR'd. Garmin want £100 to repair it, but that makes no sense to me as I can buy a new one without EU maps for £100 and put my maps on it!
Does anyone know of a new Sat Nav that does the following:
-OSGB Grid Refs
-Bluetooth Connectivitiy
-Traffic Alerts
-EU Mapping
Under £150ish
Ideally I'd like Garmin again as I've got all my favorites ready to load across and have a preference for their operating system over the TomTom
Any suggestions as well as where to source one at a reasonable price?
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Sat Navs again
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cumbria/7769077.stm
Oh dear.
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Oh I see
Sat navs are now to blame for the weather are they? of course they are - how silly of me.
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No, they are to blame for drivers disengaging their common sense, as the comments from Cumbria Police suggest (and all the other stories posted here with depressing regularity).
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No they are to blame for drivers disengaging their common sense as the comments from Cumbria Police suggest (and all the other stories posted here with depressing regularity).
A stupid driver is a stupid driver - sat nav or not.
I do hate it when the press blindly blame the technology and not the stupid users. Stupidity has been around far longer than technology.
Anyway - You should be grateful, the sat nav is gathering them all in one place.
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>>Stupidity has been around far longer than technology.<<
Quite so, but sat nav is giving it a new form of expression.
You're right on your last point, I am grateful in one sense - I can spot an idiot more efficiently!
Edited by Nsar on 06/12/2008 at 17:33
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You're right on your last point I am grateful in one sense - I can spot an idiot more efficiently!
Indeed - its a serious point. If you can see a sat nav, and its working, its a fair bet the guy is lost and wont be concentrating on whats around him.
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This is the well-known steep and narrow way up Kirkstone where the coach famously got stuck a year or two ago. As for sat-navs, I can understand why people like delivery drivers need them, but for 'ordinary' drivers - forget it and use commonsense.
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In favour of satnavs, I have mine switched on even on a journey I know.
It tells me how many miles I still have to travel and gives an ETA. Useful for planning stops for rest and fuel.
If there is a hold-up ahead I can turn off and a new route is indicated without shuffling around with maps. Did this last weekend on the A1 approaching the Stamford roadworks. Saved a bit of time and an awful lot of frustration sitting in a traffic jam (improved fuel consumption as well).
Provides reminder of speed limits, shows some speed cameras and on level roads gives an accurate speed reading.
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In favour of satnavs I have mine switched on even on a journey I know.
Totally agree with doctorchris, I'm tired of people knocking sat navs when the issue is with the people using them, not the technology.
Last weekend, I did a trip from my front door in Eastbourne, to a B&B in Belgium, into the centre of Bruges and then shopping on the way back. In case I ran into any problems, I also had my European road atlas with me.
I find the journey a lot less stressful when I use the sat nav and I can concentrate more on my journey and not have to worry about working out where I am on paper maps.
IMHO the people who have problems with sat navs like you read in the news are the sort of people who couldn't read a paper map anyway.......
Chris.
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In favour of satnavs I have mine switched on even on a journey I know
Totally agree. Satnav is just tool as is a map. The best way to get familiar with its use and understand its benefits and limitations is to use it regularly even on journeys with which you are familiar.
In my book its one of the most useful modern inventions and I really would not like to go back to driving around unfamilar cities without one. I suspect that sometimes the anti sat nav views are expressed by those who have never really used one or who find modern technology a little beyond them.
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Had one in a hire car in Italy. Chuffing useless. Anyway must dash my Large Hadron Collider is on the blink again...
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A spokesman said the route-finders do not take into account weather conditions or road types.
So just like a map then.
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Had one in a hire car in Italy. Chuffing useless. Anyway must dash my Large Hadron Collider is on the blink again...
Thats cost us a small fortune so far. I hope its coming out of your wages.
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In t'old days that would have been swear filtered !
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