So What Do You Recommend Gang?

Rick1486

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Hi - I'm after an all in one satnav and would appreciate your advice/opinions please gang.

Basically I'm not too bothered about dearest/cheapest etc. etc. I just want it to work and do the things I want of it which are as follows;

1. Be well made, good looking and not too bulky.

2. Have a touchscreen, colour display and good interface.

3. Be easily upgradeable via p.c./internet.

4. Have the latest maps either supplied on dvd or preinstalled on card.

5. Have street level mapping of the UK & Europe particularly Spain/Majorca.

6. Comes supplied with charger & mounts & hopefully case or have one available to buy at a reasonable price.

7. Is quick to update screens/quick to reroute should I go wrong/change the route of my own accord.

8. Comes from a company with good customer service who don't take the p**s pricewise charging customers for upgrades.

9. Has or has the ability to have poi's, cameras etc. loaded onto it.

I'll post more if I think of anything else lol!

Hope you can help.

Cheers
Rick
:hiya:
 
Forgot to say that some of the models I was thinking of are;

1. MIO C710.

2. TOMTOM ONE.

3. NUVI 360.

4. NAVMAN (Don't know which one though).

Or anything else you can think to recommend.

Cheers
Rick
 
I have the Nuvi 350, which covers everything you have on your list (which was pretty similar to my list of requirements). Only difference between the Nuvi 350 and 360 is that the 360 has Bluetooth: if you don't need this then the 350 is a lot cheaper (and both have street level European mapping pre-installed).

Have updated the software, added custom POI's etc - all very quick and easy. I get an email alert from Garmin whenever there are upgrades to the software (all of which are free).

Overall very pleased with it, have had no problems and is very accurate. I was between the Nuvi 350 and the TomTom 710 but what swung it for me was:

- at the time I got it (a couple of months ago), the launch date for the Tomtom was getting pushed back and back
- reported problems with the new Tomtom suction mounts
- the Tomtom is a lot bigger, whereas I can fit the Nuvi in my pocket

Hope this helps
 
Cheers mate very helpful.

You say European street level mapping is preinstalled. Is that on the unit itself or on a card or a cd/dvd from which you can download what you want to the unit?

Is it quick to update screens and to reroute if you go wrong or just ignore it to test it on routes you already know are quicker than the one it initially suggests?

Also is it like TomTom where you can tell it you want either the shortest/quickest route, avoid roadworks, congestion charge area in London etc.?

Did you get the custom POI's from anywhere in particular or were they just things/places you knew of and wanted to add yourself?

Cheers
Rick
 
Hi Rick

Answers to your questions as follows:

- European mapping is pre-installed on the unit itself. Garmin release mapping updates from time to time which you can download to the unit.

- The screens seem quick enough to update from my perspective. It was something I had seen a couple of people post comments on before I got the unit (i.e. that screen updates were a little slow), as it was my first satnav I don't have anything to compare it to but it seems fine to me. Also the spoken instructions are very clear, and always alert me in enough time to slow down/indicate/turn. You can't choose different voices etc but personally I couldn't care less about having a 'celebrity voice' telling me to turn right! In terms of recalculating routes, I have found this takes maximum of a few seconds (alerts you audibly: "Recalculating", then 2-3 seconds later new route is up)

- You can tell it whether you want shortest route, fastest route, avoiding motorways, avoiding unpaved roads etc. I haven't found anything regarding avoiding roadworks/congestion zones (I'll have alook later and see if there is anything), but I have downloaded a congestion zone POI file which alerts audibly/visually when you approach congestion zone areas.

- There were some POI files I knew I wanted (especially safety cameras, which I subscribe to at pocketgpsworld). Others I either searched for in the forums on pocketgpsworld, or got from the maft database on garmin (all free and you can pick and choose which ones you want - see here for the full list. You can only do one custom POI download each time to the Nuvi (i.e. it overwrites the custom POI's you previously downloaded), but is easy to sort by just putting all your custom POI files into a folder on your computer and then downloading the folder to your unit. i.e. I have a folder that contains speed cam files, congestion zones, and the selected POI's from maft (Tesco, football grounds etc), so these all appear individually on my unit with their own bitmap, and each time I want to update speed cams I just change those specific files within the folder, and re-download the whole lot which is quick to do.

Hope this helps, let me know if you have any more questions.

Cheers
Dave
 
Thanks very much for that.

I see it takes an SD card - what goes on that then? Is it maps or mp3's or POI's?

Sorry for all the questions mate.

Cheers
Rick
 
No problem on the questions Rick.

The SD card slot is a general memory expansion slot - for additional maps, MP3's, audio books, photos, or the other software upgrades garmin sell (travel guides, language guides etc) - haven't used it myself yet though.
Not sure whether it can be used for POI's.

Incidentally, I got my unit online from handtec (can recommend them, very quick delivery), just noticed that they have an offer on the Nuvi 310 - free DVD containing full street-level European mapping - so total price less than £300 which seems pretty damn good. The 310 normally only has UK/Ireland mapping (also has Bluetooth which the 350 doesn't, but doesn't have the audible street name announcements which the 350 does). The 350 is just over £350 on handtec.

Cheers
Dave
 
As an additional point to add to this...

I have a Mio Digiwalker P550 - this is a PDA, running Windows Mobile, and having an inbuild 20 channel SiRFStarIII GPS receiver. The antenna for this is built into the top of the PDA, so there is no fold-out flappy business. It has a bright touchscreen for accessing all the applications.

I have Tom-Tom Navigator 5 running on it for when I'm driving and Memory-Map running OS-Landranger scale maps for when I'm out walking. TomTom and Memory-Maps are upgradable (though this is less a case for memory-map - you can get Explorer scale maps or the UK at Landranger scale, but getting all of these would be quite costly - Landranger scale national parks maps were £25). Both these apps work very well. I used the TomTom to get about on the roads, and the memory-map application for wandering about the Yorkshire Dales for the last 2 weeks. Sometimes the TomTom application takes an age to generate a solution from the available sats. However, once a solution is generated, it works a treat.

Answering your points... It came with a charger, car charger, a car mount and TomTom on a SD card. I have upgraded the SD card to a 1G chip. Being Windows based, it'll run MP3s, films, Pocket Office applications etc. This one is WiFi and Bluetooth enabled, but I mainly connect it to my PC via a USB 2 wire.

I got it from www.globalpositioningsystems.co.uk as a package... I paid about £300 for the P550 and TomTom package. They were fast, efficient and the thing came within 2 days (I ordered it on a Sunday).

(edit..) Oh... forgot... As part of the package - I got the pocketgps speed camera database loaded too!

hope that helps

Paul
 
The Nuvi 360 does all you want it to do and more. I've not had it long but before that I had a Tom Tom 910 for a couple of weeks - that was okay when it worked - took it back twice and eventually got my money back. Bloody bulky though.
 
Cheers lads for all the replies and the help.

That LOOX seems like a good piece of kit as does the nuvi. I'm also quite smitten by the look of the MIO - I particularly like the cartoony interfaces and the 3d poi show in the LOOX.

Anyone got any other suggestions?

Cheers
Rick
 
Rick1486 said:
Cheers lads for all the replies and the help.

That LOOX seems like a good piece of kit as does the nuvi. I'm also quite smitten by the look of the MIO - I particularly like the cartoony interfaces and the 3d poi show in the LOOX.

Anyone got any other suggestions?

Cheers
Rick

I really do think you should consider either the TomTom ONE or GO 910. They both are very unique but are definitely two of the best devices you're gonna find out there.
 
Thanks for that - I understand what you're saying about TomTom's range. I've had TT on a pda in the past, and on the whole it wasn't too bad but did suffer from missing roads, silly routing to known places etc., but what p****d me off the most was TT's seemingly high prices for upgrades and with my situation now the fact that I want European mapping for next years' hols.

I've looked a bit more at the MIO on pgpsw.com and it seems that it does have some real issues according to some owners so not sure that one will be on my shortlist.

Keep it coming gang all help much appreciated.

Cheers
Rick
 
Another thought I've had - does the nuvi/any of the others have an itinerary function as TT does whereby you can set a start and end point and a number of destinations in between?

Cheers
Rick
 
What about navman are they any good? Do they do what I want? Anyone got any experience?

Rick
 
Rick

I havd had a Mio c710 for about a month now and it works well. Neat unit with good touchscreen, comes with cradles for car and bike as well as a carry case which fits in your pocket. I also managed to find it on the net supplied with the TMC FM antenna included on www.easydevices.co.uk for £357.

Has the maps (European - 24 countries) preloaded onto the device hard drive but also has an SD card slot for you to put MP3 and photos on if you want. Comes with free 1 year of speed cameras and is easy to connect to the pc for updates.

You can add poi's quite easily and the general interface is good with plenty of settings options to make sure you get it how you want it. Re-routing is good and very quick if you drive away from the set route it will re-route with ease.

Also works well as handsfree for mobile phone via bluetooth although the volume for that is a bit low when driving fast.

Basically a great unit with lots of extras, I have had no problems with it yet.

Cheers
Sam
 
I think if you want a Sat/Nav system that's well made, does what it says on the tin, has great audio quality and never lets you down, then the choices are these but in no particular order - TomTom, TomTom, or finally TomTom, and any model will do you. I have had my TomTom Go for nearly two years now and wouldn't even think of using anything else. It has got me around Europe the last few years whilst on holiday through cities such as central Paris at rush hour and never taken me on one wrong turn (truly). Paris my god, without TomTom I think I would have still been there or have had to request the assistance of the SAS to airlift me out. It has taken me to rural villages in South-West France that were not even listed on a Michelin map. I never tire of telling people who will listen that Sat/Nav is one of the best bits of kit I have ever spent my hard earned cash on.
 
We recommend the Snooper Indago at work, we've all tried it out on long journeys and it's excellent. Easy to use navigation, speed camera detection and very stylish looks. Any questions about it or other sat nav/in car audio just drop me a line, always happy to help.
 
Garmin 310d. Superb. In south west france my friends tom tom was trying to send him al over the shop whilst garmin was superb. Works superbly around paris (as well as england). Can't fault it although haven't tried TMC yet.
 
Rick1486 said:
What about navman are they any good? Do they do what I want? Anyone got any experience?

Rick

The higher speced Navmans are good, i use a 6xx model, however a word of warning,Navman customer service sucks!
 
Bl**dy hell lads thanks for all that. So many differing opinions, and quite a bit of brand loyalty coming through. I really do appreciate all your help and will go off again and have a look at the systems you're recommending.

Keep 'em coming, the more information the better!

Lynx made a good point about customer service from navman. What about the other systems? Has anyone had any good or bad experiences with their units cs depts.?

Cheers
Rick
 
I have had the Navman ICN530 for a few weeks now and I am pretty pleased with it. I have nothing to compare it with, but I cn confirm that is very quick to find a signal and even works well inside which I am told the previous generation of receivers did not do.

I bought the pack from global positioning systems which included the travel module. To be honest the jury is out on this as I haven't done a decnt journey with it since I got round to connecting it. In addition, it is a bit cumbersome to set up as the traffic module needs its own aerial so there are cales all over the place.
 
I have to admit gang that having trawled various forums & reading about people's experiences with various systems it's got me quite worried!

It seems that each manufacturer has it's own pitfalls;

TomTom seem to charge for everything most of which is mediocre.
Garmin seem to have poor customer service.
Navman seem to be behind in technology compared to the others and it's apparently difficult to update their wares.
MIO support is apparently non existent.

Coupled with this maps seem to be out of date, software can be buggy.

Is there anything which really stands out from the crowd?
Also it seems that a new nuvi is forthcoming (the 6xxx series) - should I wait?

Help!!!

Cheers
Rick
 
Mio P550

I have Igo / tom tom/ memory map. I think igo is best but it has no speed cams yet
all run brill

I have not found anything I cant do with this little machine
I have a 2gig sd card in(just about to see if a 4gb works, they are now £42)

It connects to any wireless access point to get on the net
It plays games even scumm works for all the old lucas games

I can even remotely connect to my house computer and use it to change music and stuff or stream music from my house computer

It even runs google earth and divx movies
battery could be better
the screen is bright and clear but on a sunny day it hard to see but I think they are all like that

and it has bluetooth but I have not got it connected to my headset yet but it should do it

you can get bike mounts for it aswell £10
I cant fault it
:clap:
 

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