Do I need sat nav now?
Discussion
VW App Connect is an add-on service for Composition Media, Discover Navigation, and Discover Navigation Pro head units.
It requires activation by a VW dealer, and gives access to Android Auto and Apple CarPlay - once it's activated. If you buy a car where its installed but not activated, (mine) the fee is £200+. On older VW's you may need a new USB socket. Dealer will advise.
Comparison with a stand-alone Sat Nav:
The stand-alone has mapping and points of interest built-in. It doesn't need a live data feed, whereas the phone will, unless you download maps to it or use an app like Here Maps which stores offline maps. Upmarket Sat Navs have live traffic feeds, so does Google Maps and Waze.
The phone app is more likely to be up to date than a Sat Nav, unless you update the Sat Nav every six months or so.
App Connect with Android Auto lets you use Waze etc on the head unit screen so there's more choice.
Getting Android Auto to actually connect with VW car head units can be a faff, and occasionally impossible.
At the moment A. Auto requires a wired connection to the VW head unit, plus BlueTooth for the phone features, so you'll still have a snake farm in your cockpit whichever you use.
It requires activation by a VW dealer, and gives access to Android Auto and Apple CarPlay - once it's activated. If you buy a car where its installed but not activated, (mine) the fee is £200+. On older VW's you may need a new USB socket. Dealer will advise.
Comparison with a stand-alone Sat Nav:
The stand-alone has mapping and points of interest built-in. It doesn't need a live data feed, whereas the phone will, unless you download maps to it or use an app like Here Maps which stores offline maps. Upmarket Sat Navs have live traffic feeds, so does Google Maps and Waze.
The phone app is more likely to be up to date than a Sat Nav, unless you update the Sat Nav every six months or so.
App Connect with Android Auto lets you use Waze etc on the head unit screen so there's more choice.
Getting Android Auto to actually connect with VW car head units can be a faff, and occasionally impossible.
At the moment A. Auto requires a wired connection to the VW head unit, plus BlueTooth for the phone features, so you'll still have a snake farm in your cockpit whichever you use.
wjwren said:
Im after a new car - the VW Golf has 'Car Net App' does this do away with having a sat nav built in, and is it as good? My phone is a Samsung S7. Or would a proper built in sat nav be better?
No idea. The car net app in the Golf R Estate which I leased for 2 years never worked properly, as it wouldn't complete the online registration process. Went through 6 months of dealer visits and very slow support action from VW in Germany... still didn't work. Got bored of trying and just used my phone on a mount.Jimi.K. said:
Are you saying some built-in sat navs would be updated with temporary road closures before google maps or Waze would?
It's possible. Many of more expensive head units (and Garmin Sat Navs) have real-time RDS Traffic and will dynamically re-route around jams and closures. Slushbox said:
It's possible. Many of more expensive head units (and Garmin Sat Navs) have real-time RDS Traffic and will dynamically re-route around jams and closures.
Unless it’s a Volvo where it will do its level best to try and find a traffic jam for you to sit in and then when you’ve been stationary for 10 minutes proudly proclaim your journey will be delayed.With the much larger storage capacities of mobiles these days stuff like Navmii is very viable - but as others have said you can very quickly download and store the UK (or any country in the world) road system and store locally. Google will always win with its search capability, I can type in the company name I am visiting and boom there it is, no need need for selecting a postcode/address and getting somewhere near it with a sat nav then hoping to spot it.
valiant said:
Unless it’s a Volvo where it will do its level best to try and find a traffic jam for you to sit in and then when you’ve been stationary for 10 minutes proudly proclaim your journey will be delayed.
My last Dacia was fond of interpreting postcodes by converting them into gibberish, then diverting the trip from London to Bristol via Lands End. Garmin Nuvi has TNC traffic updates which generally arrive as you slew to a stop in the tailback but occasionally they are almost instant.Garmin does tend to beat the RDS radio 'Traffic Updates' from Radio Berkshire, which tend to arrive as the cops are sweeping up the last debris from the RTA.
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