Discussion
Hi Chaps,
Can anyone recommend a good SatNav for the Chim please, I've never had or used one, tomtom has been suggested but I'm wondering if there's any that particularly suit the Chim (thinking size ease of mounting and where etc). I was thinking of one for my iphone, but it's a small screen and not very loud (being slightly blind and deaf)..
Cheers and thanks in advance,
Chilli
Can anyone recommend a good SatNav for the Chim please, I've never had or used one, tomtom has been suggested but I'm wondering if there's any that particularly suit the Chim (thinking size ease of mounting and where etc). I was thinking of one for my iphone, but it's a small screen and not very loud (being slightly blind and deaf)..
Cheers and thanks in advance,
Chilli
GasMunkey said:
I've just bought a garmin with free lifetime map and traffic updates,
Seems good to me, automatically diverts me away from traffic jams for the fastest way
Garmin gets my vote to what with continuous speed limit notification and speed camera locations incuding europe etc in addition to Traffic Master Seems good to me, automatically diverts me away from traffic jams for the fastest way
Edited by Bluebottle on Monday 22 April 13:12
I downloaded one of the apps onto my iPhone. I chose the Tomtom Europe, but the Garmin app is also good. It was fairly pricey for an app, but cheaper than buying the Tomtom unit. It has the European maps, traffic and lifetime updates for free.
The advantage of this is I have a stereo with a 3.5mm line in jack on the front. I simply connect my iPhone headphone out to the line in on the stereo and I can use my iPhone for music and satnav. I get the full volume of the speakers in the car, so you can hear instructions over the music, and when the satnav lady speaks, my music (played on the phone) mutes for a moment. Perfect.
The advantage of this is I have a stereo with a 3.5mm line in jack on the front. I simply connect my iPhone headphone out to the line in on the stereo and I can use my iPhone for music and satnav. I get the full volume of the speakers in the car, so you can hear instructions over the music, and when the satnav lady speaks, my music (played on the phone) mutes for a moment. Perfect.
Bluebottle said:
Garmin gets my vote to what with continuous speed limit notification and speed camera locations incuding europe etc in addition to Traffic Master
FAO Bluebottle/Hamish, PMd you, but as usual your SPAM filter may trash it - can you use your Garmin to find your spare wheel I've had for 3-ish years?? I'm sure it would like to be reunited, No 4, SN12 6TH??Edited by Bluebottle on Monday 22 April 13:12
Trev
Until recently, I would have recommended the tomtom. I have had one for years and used it all over Europe and the USA and it has been brilliant.
I have just bought one of the new tomtoms with live services and its a total pile of poo. The first one went back as it took for ever to get a signal and both of them seem to want to take you down weird routes.
I was suspicious about it then tried it on a few local 10 mile journeys. It seems to have a setting/route preference called single track roads and cut-throughs with speed humps that is selected but hidden in the menus.
Driving back from Bedford, via the M1 instead of the 20 mile cross country roads to the A1 it routed me along on the way-up, it kept telling me to turn around at every junction on the motorway and decided it had found a better route once I was on the M25 ffs!
I wish I had not bought it!
I have just bought one of the new tomtoms with live services and its a total pile of poo. The first one went back as it took for ever to get a signal and both of them seem to want to take you down weird routes.
I was suspicious about it then tried it on a few local 10 mile journeys. It seems to have a setting/route preference called single track roads and cut-throughs with speed humps that is selected but hidden in the menus.
Driving back from Bedford, via the M1 instead of the 20 mile cross country roads to the A1 it routed me along on the way-up, it kept telling me to turn around at every junction on the motorway and decided it had found a better route once I was on the M25 ffs!
I wish I had not bought it!
Edited by TV8 on Monday 22 April 13:56
I personally despise having stuff stuck to the windscreen - esp. int eh chim where the screen isnt that big an is curved.
I also like the fact that integrated navigation systems can carry on working and are more accurate than just GPS.
Dated, but does the job:
About £100 off ebay and a better sound system than the radio the car had before.
I also like the fact that integrated navigation systems can carry on working and are more accurate than just GPS.
Dated, but does the job:
About £100 off ebay and a better sound system than the radio the car had before.
Chilli,
I found, as you have suggested it's all down to ease of mounting.
Given the power socket is in the drivers door having wires all over the shop is messy and awkward when opening the door.
After much messing around I have found the best solution for me so far is a really small and neat Nokia suction mount and using the android sat nav function of my phone.
I put the suction mount on the door mirror glass in the triangle just forward of the aluminium upright or tucked into the bottom right corner of the windscreen with the power lead straight into the door socket.
The Nokia suction mount works by twisting the body to lock it rather than a lever and it's very short which means it doesn't suffer from vibration as much as bigger mounts.
I've used the Android sat nav that comes on my HTC phone across europe and it's excellent, OK you are downloading data and need to assess the costs on the networks you might be using.
I found, as you have suggested it's all down to ease of mounting.
Given the power socket is in the drivers door having wires all over the shop is messy and awkward when opening the door.
After much messing around I have found the best solution for me so far is a really small and neat Nokia suction mount and using the android sat nav function of my phone.
I put the suction mount on the door mirror glass in the triangle just forward of the aluminium upright or tucked into the bottom right corner of the windscreen with the power lead straight into the door socket.
The Nokia suction mount works by twisting the body to lock it rather than a lever and it's very short which means it doesn't suffer from vibration as much as bigger mounts.
I've used the Android sat nav that comes on my HTC phone across europe and it's excellent, OK you are downloading data and need to assess the costs on the networks you might be using.
Guys,
Thanks for all the recommendations and advice, certainly a few choices there
Given the volume of traffic on main roads these days, I find it impossible to look at a map, work out signs (particularly on 'multiple' junctions), concentrate on what other road users are doing, and be in the right lane, doing the right speed for where I need to be
Add to this all the numptys that seem to be populating our roads these days and it's a recipe for disaster... And there's not much tolerance or manners about these days, there's an awful lot of uptight in a hurry unforgiving drivers out there
It's easy enough to say feck it, floor it, and leave them all behind, but that's when I then get hopelessly lost
Thanks again guys,
Chilli
Thanks for all the recommendations and advice, certainly a few choices there
Given the volume of traffic on main roads these days, I find it impossible to look at a map, work out signs (particularly on 'multiple' junctions), concentrate on what other road users are doing, and be in the right lane, doing the right speed for where I need to be
Add to this all the numptys that seem to be populating our roads these days and it's a recipe for disaster... And there's not much tolerance or manners about these days, there's an awful lot of uptight in a hurry unforgiving drivers out there
It's easy enough to say feck it, floor it, and leave them all behind, but that's when I then get hopelessly lost Thanks again guys,
Chilli
I wired in an additional lighter socket in the passenger footwell, attached to the board in front of the battery to save having cables routing to the door.
Screen mounting can be a pain because the curvature of the screen makes suction mounts a bit hit and miss so I use a weighted satnav mat to mount the sat nav on and sit that on the dash, but that can slip around with enthusiastic driving.
Personally I use a TomTom Europe XL, I picked it up for £100 a few years back. If you are interested in run outs and the kind of thing where you aren't just wanting to use the quickest/shortest route then you want to have itinerary planning. This works with things like TYRE to allow you to upload a particular route that you've planned on your PC or if someone else has created an itinerary file you can just load that. Garmin have a similar feature but not sure what they call it.
Not sure if itinerary planning is available on the mobile phone apps, I also find on my iPhone that GPS tends to drain the battery pretty quickly so you'll still need in car charging for that.
Screen mounting can be a pain because the curvature of the screen makes suction mounts a bit hit and miss so I use a weighted satnav mat to mount the sat nav on and sit that on the dash, but that can slip around with enthusiastic driving.
Personally I use a TomTom Europe XL, I picked it up for £100 a few years back. If you are interested in run outs and the kind of thing where you aren't just wanting to use the quickest/shortest route then you want to have itinerary planning. This works with things like TYRE to allow you to upload a particular route that you've planned on your PC or if someone else has created an itinerary file you can just load that. Garmin have a similar feature but not sure what they call it.
Not sure if itinerary planning is available on the mobile phone apps, I also find on my iPhone that GPS tends to drain the battery pretty quickly so you'll still need in car charging for that.
Maybe something like this? (alternatives to halfords are available)
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...
Single din, but has a screen that pops out. Not sure if they're crap, never had one
Ordinary sat-navs come in at 1/6th of the price though!
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...
Single din, but has a screen that pops out. Not sure if they're crap, never had one
Ordinary sat-navs come in at 1/6th of the price though!
Edited by Meths on Monday 22 April 21:35
Meths said:
Maybe something like this? (alternatives to halfords are available)
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...
Single din, but has a screen that pops out. Not sure if they're crap, never had one
Ordinary sat-navs come in at 1/6th of the price though! :
That Clarion screen will probably hit the dashtop when it opens ...... unfortuneatlyhttp://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...
Single din, but has a screen that pops out. Not sure if they're crap, never had one
Ordinary sat-navs come in at 1/6th of the price though! :
I have an ancient TomTom One which must be at least 10 years old. It's looking a bit chunky by today's standards, but I still haven't found a satnav that I prefer. I've upgraded the flash card to a larger one and installed the European map, and I also had to replace the windscreen mount because the original broke (and the after-market replacement is way better).
I attach it high up on the windscreen, just to the left of the rear-view mirror. Here, it doesn't restrict my view too much; the only downside is that the passenger can't lower their sun visor. I run the cable behind the rear-view mirror, along the top of the driver's sun visor, and behind the metal strut in the driver's side window. This keeps everything nice and neat; I just have to remember to unplug it before opening the driver's door fully.
Oh yes, +1 on using "Tyre" for route planning. If you want to program a complex route it's a much quicker way of doing it.
I attach it high up on the windscreen, just to the left of the rear-view mirror. Here, it doesn't restrict my view too much; the only downside is that the passenger can't lower their sun visor. I run the cable behind the rear-view mirror, along the top of the driver's sun visor, and behind the metal strut in the driver's side window. This keeps everything nice and neat; I just have to remember to unplug it before opening the driver's door fully.
Oh yes, +1 on using "Tyre" for route planning. If you want to program a complex route it's a much quicker way of doing it.
I use an old TomTom One - It's dead easy to use, has European maps and is small enough to attatch to the bottom corner drivers side of the windscreen.
I run just enough cable to the fag lighter to allow the door to be opened, the rest neatly tucks into the grooves between dash/roll top at base of windscreen and dash/a pillar.
I run just enough cable to the fag lighter to allow the door to be opened, the rest neatly tucks into the grooves between dash/roll top at base of windscreen and dash/a pillar.
+2 for using Tyre ... but be aware not all Tom Toms or Garmins have the ability to load a predefined itinerary/route.
I searched and found a new TT Go 750 a couple of years ago, even though they were officially replaced by the 1000 model for just this reason.
There was a lot of complaints that TT had removed this capability, not sure if they ever put it back in.
ETA - just checked and TT failed to put this ability back into their units. You can preplan a route on the Sat Nav itself with just 3 waypoints - big deal!!!!
If you want to plan routes and load to a Sat Nav do NOT buy a TT - you will be very disappointed.
Only some Garmins have this capability BTW, so choose carefully if you want this capability.
My TT 750 is struggling now so I will be looking at a replacement soon .... Co Pilot LIVE is looking more and more attractive, installed on a smartphone or maybe 7" tablet. With Co Pilot there is a desktop package as well for use in route planning.
I used CPL USA version on my HTC phone when working in the US for a year and it was frankly very good. Also, it's cheap.
I searched and found a new TT Go 750 a couple of years ago, even though they were officially replaced by the 1000 model for just this reason.
There was a lot of complaints that TT had removed this capability, not sure if they ever put it back in.
ETA - just checked and TT failed to put this ability back into their units. You can preplan a route on the Sat Nav itself with just 3 waypoints - big deal!!!!
If you want to plan routes and load to a Sat Nav do NOT buy a TT - you will be very disappointed.
Only some Garmins have this capability BTW, so choose carefully if you want this capability.
My TT 750 is struggling now so I will be looking at a replacement soon .... Co Pilot LIVE is looking more and more attractive, installed on a smartphone or maybe 7" tablet. With Co Pilot there is a desktop package as well for use in route planning.
I used CPL USA version on my HTC phone when working in the US for a year and it was frankly very good. Also, it's cheap.
Edited by sgrimshaw on Tuesday 23 April 11:38
sgrimshaw said:
+2 for using Tyre ... but be aware not all Tom Toms or Garmins have the ability to load a predefined itinerary/route.
I searched and found a new TT Go 750 a couple of years ago, even though they were officially replaced by the 1000 model for just this reason.
There was a lot of complaints that TT had removed this capability, not sure if they ever put it back in.
ETA - just checked and TT failed to put this ability back into their units. You can preplan a route on the Sat Nav itself with just 3 waypoints - big deal!!!!
If you want to plan routes and load to a Sat Nav do NOT buy a TT - you will be very disappointed.
Just an update, had an email from Tyre this week. Apparantly the latest version of Tyre Pro is able to upload a route to all Tom Tom's.I searched and found a new TT Go 750 a couple of years ago, even though they were officially replaced by the 1000 model for just this reason.
There was a lot of complaints that TT had removed this capability, not sure if they ever put it back in.
ETA - just checked and TT failed to put this ability back into their units. You can preplan a route on the Sat Nav itself with just 3 waypoints - big deal!!!!
If you want to plan routes and load to a Sat Nav do NOT buy a TT - you will be very disappointed.
Got one of these pushed in to the glove compartment ,if I can call it that ! It connects to the lead I use for the accunmate..That cigar lighter in the door is in a silly place ..
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ACCUMATE-OPTIMATE-TM68-C...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ACCUMATE-OPTIMATE-TM68-C...
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