Satellite Navigation systems

[Silk]

I wish TomTom would just put the itinerary feature back - weird to have been taken away in the first place.

I have CoPilot on Android and it has the itinerary feature. I've used it on the last couple of ADUK days I've been to and its works great. Although I tend to prefer Google maps for everyday use as it's a bit more flexible, as well as being free.

To be honest, I can't understand why people are still using stand-alone satnavs when smartphones are so much better. There's not even that much difference in price these days.

Oh, and to the luddites sniping from the side-lines about how much better paper maps are/were, you need to learn to talk from the correct orifice. In the days before satnavs, it was a case of crawling through city streets with an AtoZ on your lap (assuming the vast library that's filling every spare inch of storage space includes the one you want) trying to work out where you are on the page, or even which page you should be on, and what the street you just passed was called, whilst at the same time trying to keep up with the flow of traffic and trying not to hit anything. I'd hardly call that safe.

As far as I'm concerned, glancing at a screen occasionally has a negligible effect on safety, especially when compared to the alternative as described above.

If most of your driving only involves going to work, to the shops, and to the seaside once a year, then I can perhaps understand the absence of a clue. For those of us who do real driving, satnavs have become an indispensable tool.

[fungus]

If most of your driving only involves going to work, to the shops, and to the seaside once a year, then I can perhaps understand the absence of a clue. For those of us who do real driving, satnavs have become an indispensable tool.

They're ok, and I do use mine very occasionally, but I still prefer an old fashioned map. But then again I am rather technophobic.

[TheInsanity1234]

I must say, it's rather intriguing to have sat navs of two different makes, as they quite often find different routes.

For instance, my dad's TomTom, when set to "fastest route" usually takes you on motorways and the fastest roads available.

My sister's boyfriend's Garmin, when set to "fastest route" often takes you along a mix of small country roads and dual carriageways, but when you trace the route, it often comes out as very short compared to the motorway/fast roads combinations.

However, setting my dad's TomTom to "shortest route" takes it along almost exactly the same routes that the Garmin considers to be the "fastest route".

[waremark]

I've used TYRE for years. The latest TomToms won't work with TYRE, but this one wil:

http://www.tesco.com/direct/tomtom-xxl-classic-series-sat-nav-5-screen-with-uk-and-ireland-maps/544-6527.prd?pageLevel=&skuId=544-6527

I've just bought one. Brand new and sealed. A bargain.

That's a good find but I can't justify replacing my old one just for ADUK days. I have new TomTom live which I use most - it's great unless I need itineraries!

Just read up on the TomTom user forum and it seems the very latest ones now have itineraries back! This makes it even less likely they will bother fixing the earlier ones like mine...annoying since I only bought it 12 months ago.

But as I read the TT forum the itinerary feature in the 5000/6000 does not allow you to create routes using Google Maps/Tyre on your PC and transfer them between PC and satnav and between different satnav as you can with the 9X0 generation. Can anyone confirm? I find it maddening that I cannot get a newer unit with the features which I value in my old Go 950.

Can you create Copilot routes using Google Maps? Does Copilot have an equivalent of HD Traffic?

[vonhosen]

If you have Navigon on your iPhone you can apparently use Google maps/TYRE to create itineraries & load them onto your phone.

[jont]

The biggest problem I still have with TomTom is that if you slightly mis-plot an itinerary point, it will continue to try to send your there unless you go into the menus and mark it visited. Garmin seems a bit more intelligent in that if you get back onto your route, it carries on (so a mis-plot 50m down a side road is ignored).

[TheInsanity1234]

The biggest problem I still have with TomTom is that if you slightly mis-plot an itinerary point, it will continue to try to send your there unless you go into the menus and mark it visited. Garmin seems a bit more intelligent in that if you get back onto your route, it carries on (so a mis-plot 50m down a side road is ignored).

The Garmin routing engine does seem to be more intelligent than the TomTom one.

In fact, I remember when I was on holiday with my dad, sister and her boyfriend, the boyfriend's Garmin was set for the same place as my dad's TomTom, but when we arrived there, my dad's TomTom took him to an deliveries only entrance, whereas the Garmin took us to the main entrance.

[waremark]

My past experience has been that TT arrival times are very accurate, Garmin less so, and TT routeing has been better. I like that TT HD traffic does not need data from a phone contract but has its own connection.

I am still using a 3 year old TT since newer models have a much reduced set of features. If people can reassure me about Garmin traffic, routeing and journey times I might change back to Garmin. ??

[TripleS]

....I am rather technophobic.

Aye well, form an orderly queue, behind me.

While we're about it, can anybody suggest a suitable replacement for my old Navman iCN630. OK, don't laugh, I know it's old and relatively primitive, but I like it.

One of the things I like about the Navman is that the screen display is rather like looking at a map, whereas some of the others I have seen have map displays that look diagrammatic or schematic etc. Eileen has a Garmin 'Nuvi' 205 (I thinki it is) and I don't like the style of the display on that one.

I'd just like a straighforward stand-alone touch screen sat-nav, rather than a set-up linked to a mobile phone or other device. There is no way I'd ever understand that and get it working!

[TheInsanity1234]

My past experience has been that TT arrival times are very accurate, Garmin less so, and TT routeing has been better. I like that TT HD traffic does not need data from a phone contract but has its own connection.

I am still using a 3 year old TT since newer models have a much reduced set of features. If people can reassure me about Garmin traffic, routeing and journey times I might change back to Garmin. ??

I know that the TomTom 5000 and 6000 both have the data receiver built in, however, on the 600, and below, they all require you to pair a smartphone to the satnav so it can use your mobile data for the traffic.

Does mean I'm more inclined to go for the more expensive thousands, rather than the hundreds and tens.
However, it also depends on my parents and what they think is going to be good for them.
Mum's habit of obsessive bargain hunting, and her lack of technological understanding does mean she often finds the cheap satnavs, then when I explain to her why they're not the one to go for, she replies with "but it's cheap!".
Grrrrr

[jont]

My past experience has been that TT arrival times are very accurate, Garmin less so, and TT routeing has been better. I like that TT HD traffic does not need data from a phone contract but has its own connection.

I found the opposite (although 5y/o models). Tomtom I could consistently beat by quite a large margin, while Garmin appears to "learn" (and I think that may also feed into its routing algorithms). If you're not careful, you can end up "racing" yourself

[jcochrane]

If you have Navigon on your iPhone you can apparently use Google maps/TYRE to create itineraries & load them onto your phone.

Your right, you can certainly if using ITNConverter. It's a bit fiddly but quite doable.

[trashbat]

To be honest, I can't understand why people are still using stand-alone satnavs when smartphones are so much better. There's not even that much difference in price these days.

I can't speak for paid-for phone apps, but Google Navigation is merely tolerable as opposed to good, and doesn't compare favourably to my standalone TomTom.

[jcochrane]

If you have Navigon on your iPhone you can apparently use Google maps/TYRE to create itineraries & load them onto your phone.

Your right, you can certainly if using ITNConverter. It's a bit fiddly but quite doable.

At last discovered Route Converter Mac. No need to run Windows in a partition just to convert routes with ITNConverter or TYRE.

[TheInsanity1234]

Perhaps I should let my parents buy a TomTom then I can buy a Garmin for myself!

Finally, I can race myself to Wales!