Aftermarket Gps Help Please!

[phantom ute]

I have a navman had it for over 2 years and have found it to be good its a pin pocket so it's a PDA as well not that I realy use that part of it

[Falchoon]

A mate has a Tom Tom Go500 which seems very easy to use (even for me! ). This is now an outdated model though I think.

I bought an Acer (can't recall model #) that had a PDA as well and was quite complicated and required the software to be loaded and registered via the internet before it could be used. I couldn't get it to work, even after several emails to tech support and a mate that works in IT couldn't figure it out either so I returned it to the shop (no Mick, it wasn't from SuperCheap or eBay! ).

Ken and Voy from this forum both have Navman PiNs that seem to work OK but the software seems to have it's limits as according to it there are no Points of Interest in Hobart and a couple of other examples where the street sign says turn left and the GPS unit says turn right.

The other thing to be aware of with these units that every six months or so updated maps become available to purchase, usually at a cost of several hundred dollars. You may be able to download pirate versions at no cost if are computer savvy and don't care about legalities.

[Lumpen]

Ken and Voy from this forum both have Navman PiNs that seem to work OK but the software seems to have it's limits as according to it there are no Points of Interest in Hobart and a couple of other examples where the street sign says turn left and the GPS unit says turn right.

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f*cking SatNav boys

Lumpy

[XR64T]

I recently bought the Garmin Nuvi 310. Used it for a trip through VIC and up the NSW south coast. It was excellent.

The 310 has bluetooth and Text To Speech (TTS) so it can tell you the street names as well for upcoming directions. I thought it might be a wank, but it is handy sometimes to confirm you have the correct street.

The Maps were pretty accurate as well, it never gave a wrong direction and re-calculates in seconds if you miss a turn. All the usual 3D maps and touch screen and it is not much bigger than a cigarette packet so you can carry it with you.

Also includes thousands and thousands of things like attractions, restaurants, takeaways, hotels, fuel, parking, etc. Each one also has the phone number which you can then automatically dial with bluetooth hands-free.

If you shop around you should be able to get one for around $900 - $950. Map updates are approx. $120 (one of the cheapest I found).

The shop I got it from also loaded all the redlight cameras, speed cameras and school zones. It flashes a red banner and tells you the speed. If you are exceeding the speed it will continue to beep to warn you. You can grab tonnes of different POI's off the net as well.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Aaron

EDIT: Also has some other wanky stuff like MP3 player, world clock, calculator, language and currency conversion, audible books, etc.

Edited 24/10/06 02:23 PM by XR64T

[Goobz]

If you want to ask a few guru's about this stuff there's a forum I found dedicated to PDA's, GPS, and smartphones...

Mtekk Forums

They do some fantastic reviews on there to of all the different products available.

Chris

[voy74656]

Hi all!!!

Long time no see!!! ....this is me...posting

Here's a pic of precious console atm - shes got the Navman Pin 300 PDA/GPS, Creative Zen Microphoto 8GB MP3 Player, Nokia Bluetooth n UHF

When I origionally got it all in there the cables were EVERYWHERE So pulled everything out and hid all the power/autio cables in behind. Looks a lot neater imo.

Just put the 3x power thingo in the centre console n ran the GPS charger up the side. The USB charger u can see is for the Zen when it needs charging. Havnt hard wired it in till ford fix the aux whine.

Not as hard as I thought it would b 2 install it all though - hardest part was drilling the hole in the centre for the power cables !!!!!

[voy74656]

The pic below is with everything on....hear the alternator screaming????

As for actually answering your quesiton. Ive had the Navman Pin 300 now for over 1 year and its still going strong.

Its paid for itself several times over - especially when nagivating round sydney/melbourne. Set the destination - click 'Go' and follow the female voice. Im from Adelaide - so all those toll gates...multiple on/off ramps on highways suspended in mid air...OMG!!! Navman makes it so much easier!!! just sit back - relax and let her do all the hard work

The main features I like about it are...

Sliderbars for the quickest/shortest router + max/min main road usage - e.g. u can adjust the amount of freeways you go on Vs the shortest/quickest route to the destination.

e.g. If I want to go from Point A to Point B I can take a mixture of main roads/backstreets depending on where I put the slider bars. Got them set @ 1/2 each so it balances out nicely.

Auto rerouting - miss the turn -she rerouts me back on course

Touch screen navigation - drag the map to where I wanna go - hold down on the position - click 'nagivate to' and follow her.

Set favourite destinations - instant destination selection - very handy!

3D Navigation - when you're on youre way - you can select from multiple views - 2d, 3d, written instructions etc - love the 3d myself cause it gives me a 3rd person perspective of what im coming up2.

compact PDA/GPS unit - its so compact - same size as a PDA - I can take it out of precious and walk around - and with the way ive got it setup - as soon as I slot it back in the cradle - its instantly on charge.

What I dont like:

Software has a bug that it takes a lot longer for the GPS to get a lock if you plot a course before a GPS lock is obtained. Much faster to get the lock then plot the course. Doesnt happen all the time - not sure why it happens at all

That's the only bug I've found...

If you want any pics of the menu's...video live demonstrations etc lemme know - never a bad thing to drive precious around

Voy

[4runner]

I'm not looking for the top of the range - just something that will be easy for her to use and will get her from A to B...(she's USELESS with directions) 

I may even get one for myself as well if the price was right...

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I recently bought a Navman ICN 330 from Strathfield car radio (on special now for $399). It is a very basic unit but was more than ample to navigate us on our recent holiday down the NSW/VIC coast and onto and around Adelaide.

I had a couple of arguments with it , but there would have been a lot more with the missus if I didn't have the Navman

See if you can get a demo from a dealer, but this model is very easy to use.

[Muzza]

I'm waiting on the Uniden 8350. Was to be released here 3 weeks ago but for some reason it's been delayed. it's got all the features but for around $650.

Muzza

[Falchoon]

I recently bought a Navman ICN 330 from Strathfield car radio (on special now for $399). It is a very basic unit but was more than ample to navigate us on our recent holiday down the NSW/VIC coast and onto and around Adelaide.

Does this have the newish Sydney main roads M7 and Cross City Tunnel on it?