Sat Nav

[Deleted Member S]

I've been thinking of getting sat nav for a bit now :roll: as driving & reading maps is not that good. I was wondering if any of you could give me a bit of advice on what to get & what to stay clear of :? :? :? I've been looking on ebay & the prices where great till the last minute when they just shot up :evil: I'm looking at the lower end of the price range as we are poor :cry: :cry: (I can't work because of medical probs & NOT that i'm just tight)
In advance thanks for any help :smile: :smile: :smile: :smile:

If you do a search there are a few threads on this. http://www.nissan4x4ownersclub.co.uk/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=4409&highlight=tomtom

I use tomtom go 500 because in my opinion its the best, it gives street level europe and blue tooth for hands free phone use.

It has the most accurate and up to date mapping.

It has a cheaper (much cheaper since when I bought mine) version and an updated version tom tom one which is what my son uses.

Tomtom also has most of the lanes we drive off road on too, but that should not be a factor to consider when buying.

There are other models availablre from tomtom but I only have experiance of the two versions.

Most of the people I work with have some form of satnav (I'm a lorry driver) but in discussions tomtom seems to rate the best. Its certainly the one most have.

Sure you'll hear from others what they have and if there any good. If you were a little closer to me I'd lend you mine for a trial. I did with another member and he subsequently bought one (I ought to be on commission :wink: ) If you come down for a lane day, you can have a play with it.

If you want to know any specifics on it please ask.

http://www.tomtom.com/

[Terranosaurus]

I've got a Navman, was about £125 at Argos 3 months ago. Internal battery is rubbish but I only use it in vehicle so thats not a problem and it doesn't come with leads and software etc so you can plug it into a PC for extras but for my use doing what is sort of multi-drop work plus also personal use it does the job fine. Occasionally you have to ignore it if you know the area but its usually quite good just likes motorways a bit too much at times and like with the Tomtom most of the green lanes arte on it, certainly were last weekend for instance.

[wolf]

i have a garmin from halfords cant remember price but was cheaper than most and has street maps for ireland uk and mainland europe.

but only reason it stood out for me is it has 90% coverage of irish roads where others including tomtom only have up to 60%.

[theduck]

I have a tomtom 300 and have used it on europe as well wouldn't ne with out it............. and for lorry drivers did you know :?: www,londonlorryroutes.com :smile:

[jims-terrano]

I have the older version of Tomtom One and have seen the later version, though both will do the same job and probably just as well I found the older version better. The tomtom One is also a bit smaller than higher versions of Tomtom so is easier to carry around. Have not tried it on green lanes but I would of thought it was more of a road map than anything else.

Jim T

[jace]

i got the tom tom 910 off ebay for price halfords (who are about cheapest) wanted for a 510 it was bnib with all leads/software guy had tonnes off them my father in law has tomtom 1 early one we bought him for christmass last yr and apart from few features(photo storage,mp3,etc etc) which u never use anyway there equaly good,tomtom do seem to be easiest to use but they can get it wrong!

[Thomas-the-Terrano2]

I would recommend the Tomtom, for GB work the One is suficient though its also available with Europe mapping.

Thanks to Cameraman for loaning his 500, also had a Garmin on test but it was very slow to find satellites and didnt like the thermal windscreen in my dad's pug 406. Ok not an issue in terranos but one to consider if planning to use in more modern vehicles.

I like the fact that there are so many reasonably priced accessories on ebay, and there are also loads of points of interest available on cd.

A tip is to watch net prices on pcworld and currys .co.uk the prices frequently are reduced in web exclusive prices though usually posible to reserve this at a local store or take free or reduced postage. Of course if doing a web hunt dont forget amazon and the dealers on ebay.

[jace]

for the insulated windscreens u can get an external ariel suposed to do trick

[Deleted Member S]

Many thanks guy's -mex- you have given me alot of food for thought on this :smile: so many thanks again 8)

[JonathanM]

I use the PDA option, a Mitac Mio P350, with Mapopolis software for sat nav, and Memory Map for off road activities.

Price wise I bought mine for £140, and the Mapopolis software was approx £60 for all of western europe. Mapping has some "quirks" shall we say, but on the whole is reliable & accurate.

I went along the PDA route because I've used one as an alternative to a paper diary for a few years now. Added to the ability to use Memory Map it just gives a bit more flexibility in terms of usage.

The wife has an older Medion sat nav, OK for its time but the heat-reflective windscreen on her Picasso is a nusance, the newer GPS system in my PDA doesn't seem to have as much of a problem.

I wouldn't necessarily promote a PDA above a purpose designed GPS unit, however if you feel youwill use the functions, they can be a good buy.

[KillerPete]

I've a Navman F50 it has bluetooth handsfree and a traffic thingy that tells you when there is traffic jams and should re-route you. Seems to be ok, I'm happy with it.

Pete.

[baskie]

Garmin Nuvi 300. PentagonGPS sell them on Ebay, average £120. In the box is everything including secrren mounts, cables etc. It automatically plugs in the power cable when you put it into the screen mount and auto off's when you switch off the engine.

V9 maps are excellent, even has tiny farm tracks and lanes here in NI.