sat nav

[tim west]

I find TomTom awful.

A lot of my colleagues have it, and it often sends them down dead-end streets. Went out with one of the guys and from my house it tried to send him back to the main road via a street that has been severed since time immemorial!

I have Garmin C310 which I find good. It cost £175 a year ago. It has a screen mount that means you don't have to unplug the charging lead before removing the unit. It has two speakers for clearer sound: good for my deafness.

It is easier to enter the address details - some other satnavs require a space between the two halves of the postcode - a small point, but it niggles.

The only thing that bothers me is its shape. It is bulky, which means carrying it in pockets in awkward - you look like you have a strange bulge in your pants.

The "C" range of satnavs seem to be slowly disappearing, in place the Nuvi range is appearing.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/products/206909/portable_satnavs.html

I've had the original tom tom for many years now and have found it a godsend at times. same as securespark's the screen mount means you don't have to plug or unplug any lead to remove the unit.

All Satnav's are only as good as the maps supplied to them, usually by third party mapsellers and dependant on the user base for informing about changes or inaccuracies of said maps between releases.
I find the tom tom very easy to update with the latest Speedcams or other POI's which can't be said of some satnavs on the market, some are unable to be updated by the user.
In the end it's up to personal preference so i would suggest buying a satnav magazine guide and read it to help with deciding.

 

[Thermo]

i still dont get lost more than ever before!

 

[gcol]

Chalk up another vote for the tomtom one. Excellent piece of kit!

 

[empip]

21 y/o will probably like the fact that the Nuvi plays mp3s - can fit headphones, also has a card slot, windscreen support has cable connect...
Nuvi works a treat on the hoof !

Measured including wallet .. 105x79x28 mm

 

[Stulz]

I find TomTom awful.

A lot of my colleagues have it, and it often sends them down dead-end streets. Went out with one of the guys and from my house it tried to send him back to the main road via a street that has been severed since time immemorial!

I have Garmin C310 which I find good. It cost £175 a year ago. It has a screen mount that means you don't have to unplug the charging lead before removing the unit. It has two speakers for clearer sound: good for my deafness.

It is easier to enter the address details - some other satnavs require a space between the two halves of the postcode - a small point, but it niggles.

The only thing that bothers me is its shape. It is bulky, which means carrying it in pockets in awkward - you look like you have a strange bulge in your pants.

The "C" range of satnavs seem to be slowly disappearing, in place the Nuvi range is appearing.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/products/206909/portable_satnavs.html

I think this prooves the point many safety campaigners have latched onto. Those using SatNav systems seem to leave common sense and good road use skills behind when using SatNav equipment. Dead end roads are usually marked, so driving into one is just stupid. SatNavs are a GUIDE, not a replacement for good common sense and driving skills.

If you watch the world outside your sindscreen you should, in most cases, be able to see that your going wrong by also observing the terrain and the road signs.

Personally I use Co-Pilot on my new T-Mobile MDA III Pocket PC/Phone..The software is by Nuvii, as are the maps, and it is very accurate and has yet to take me the wrong way..(Time will tell)

 

[sm1thson]

I run tomtom on my smartphone (nokia n80). and i like what i have used (friends units) of the tomtom devices. the maps are sometimes old, as i understand it there are two main mapping companies and the one tomtom uses isnt the best of the two, but it is so easy to use.

 

[Softus]

I think this prooves the point many safety campaigners have latched onto. Those using SatNav systems seem to leave common sense and good road use skills behind when using SatNav equipment.

I don't think that it shows anything other than the fact that some car drivers are stupid. 'Twas ever thus - it isn't satnav devices that made them so.

 

[Stulz]

I think this prooves the point many safety campaigners have latched onto. Those using SatNav systems seem to leave common sense and good road use skills behind when using SatNav equipment.

I don't think that it shows anything other than the fact that some car drivers are stupid. 'Twas ever thus - it isn't satnav devices that made them so.

That is certainly true Softus, but SatNavs have certainly made things worse.

 

[Softus]

I'd have to see some objective measurements before I could come to that conclusion.

 

[Stulz]

I'd have to see some objective measurements before I could come to that conclusion.

Try driving about London and the surrounding areas, you see people trying to play with thier SatNavs all the time, making last minute turns onto or off of slip roads, at traffic lights, roundabouts etc.

I would accept that these people are likely to be a hazard at the best of times and likely not the best of drivers regardless of the presence of a SatNav, unfortunately it is these people that campaigners are latching onto in an attempt to get the law changed to ban SatNavs in Cars, although I think an outright ban unlikely.

 

[Thermo]

i drove to a place id never been to today, and it was to visit a newly built house. didnt even use my map book just followed the road signs!

 

[gcol]

Do you have something against satnavs Thermo - you don't seem your usual objective and rational self?

I'd have to agree with Softus here. You're acting out of the norm Thermo - what's up with Sat Navs?

 

[Thermo]

dont like them, waste of money and technology when other methods are just as effective, its just symptomatic of todays lazy society, where we have to rely on technology to do anything. I also think they are another distraction.

Just my opinion.

 

[gcol]

I also think they are another distraction.

So you've never driven with a map on your knee? You always stop to make even the quickest glance at a map? Come on now Thermo. If you can look past the "sending you the wrong way down a one way street issue" then I reckon they're safer than maps. The other flaw with maps is that women can't read them - it's not their fault, it's just that they aren't made that way.

 

[Thermo]

i can honestly say no i dont. i plan where im going and if i need to look at a map i pull over. each to their own, but i just think they are another gimmick for a lot of people.