Best Sat Nav... standalone unit and iPhone
Best Sat Nav... standalone unit and iPhone
Author
Discussion

Luca Brazzi

Original Poster:

3,983 posts

296 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
What can you recommend re a standalone unit (ideally with speed camera alerts), and what can you recommend for an iPhone?

I have a very old TomTom on iPhone for Europe and USA, which gets used with rental cars abroad. What are the latest things to look for in Sat Nav , whether as a standalone gadget or via a phone?

Best kit for £££?

Cheers :-)

RicksAlfas

14,586 posts

275 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
Waze works very well in the UK. Not tried it abroad.

The_Jackal

4,854 posts

228 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
You cant beat the latest TomToms with traffic and camera alerts connected through your phones internet.
They even know about average speed zones and give you your current average speed on the fly. Also tells you how far to the end of the zone. It will also give you alternatives around sudden traffic delays on the fly.
For a standalone unit it can't be beat.
Failing that, I just use Google maps if I dont fancy plugging in the power cable and connecting to bluetooth for quick journeys.

Melman Giraffe

6,794 posts

249 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
RicksAlfas said:
Waze works very well in the UK. Not tried it abroad.
I used it last year in France and it worked perfectly

RicksAlfas

14,586 posts

275 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
Très bon!

AJB88

15,979 posts

202 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
Waze, going to use it next week in Europe along side my built in sat nav which has been updated to 2019 maps.

Tycho

12,296 posts

304 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
Don't waste your money on a standalone unit, just get Waze. It has everything you need.

A900ss

3,314 posts

183 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
Everybody (including me) slates Apple Maps as when launched, they were awful.

However, after reviewing my privacy, I re-tried Apple Maps about 6 months ago and they have come on leaps and bounds. I actually think the routing is better than Google now. The only place it lets itself down is the last 30 yards. Sometimes shops/garages/etc are slightly off their actual position but only by 30 yards or so.

AM also works better than GM/Waze in CarPlay as you can control it fully by your voice.

I’m prepared to accept that minor irritation over Google Maps as the main routing is fine and I feel happier knowing that my location/personal habits isn’t being sold to some advertisers.

Good luck either way.

Riley Blue

23,217 posts

257 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
Tycho said:
Don't waste your money on a standalone unit, just get Waze. It has everything you need.
I do wish it would warn of speed cameras when you're driving slower than the limit though and used 'yards' rather than 'feet' as a measure of distance. Other than that it's OK and has replaced my TomTom.

A900ss

3,314 posts

183 months

Friday 26th April 2019
quotequote all
Riley Blue said:
I do wish it would warn of speed cameras when you're driving slower than the limit though and used 'yards' rather than 'feet' as a measure of distance. Other than that it's OK and has replaced my TomTom.
Use Cyclops app if you have iOS or TomTom speed camera app if you’re in Android. Both give good audible notifications regardless of being under the speed limit as an alternative to Waze.

Riley Blue

23,217 posts

257 months

Saturday 27th April 2019
quotequote all
A900ss said:
Riley Blue said:
I do wish it would warn of speed cameras when you're driving slower than the limit though and used 'yards' rather than 'feet' as a measure of distance. Other than that it's OK and has replaced my TomTom.
Use Cyclops app if you have iOS or TomTom speed camera app if you’re in Android. Both give good audible notifications regardless of being under the speed limit as an alternative to Waze.
I also have CamerAlert from Pocket GPS World installed but I shouldn't need to if Waze's alerts worked as all others do.

funinhounslow

2,020 posts

173 months

Saturday 27th April 2019
quotequote all
As you're using it abroad it is worth noting that the Here app downloads the maps (by country) so you have the option of using it offline.

Saves burning through your mobile data allowance when you're on holiday...

robsa

2,472 posts

215 months

Sunday 28th April 2019
quotequote all
A900ss said:
Everybody (including me) slates Apple Maps as when launched, they were awful.

However, after reviewing my privacy, I re-tried Apple Maps about 6 months ago and they have come on leaps and bounds. I actually think the routing is better than Google now. The only place it lets itself down is the last 30 yards. Sometimes shops/garages/etc are slightly off their actual position but only by 30 yards or so.

AM also works better than GM/Waze in CarPlay as you can control it fully by your voice.

I’m prepared to accept that minor irritation over Google Maps as the main routing is fine and I feel happier knowing that my location/personal habits isn’t being sold to some advertisers.

Good luck either way.
I'm with you! I prefer it as well, and it has speed limits which Google doesn't. I don't get on with Waze personally.

A900ss

3,314 posts

183 months

Sunday 28th April 2019
quotequote all
PS - forgot to add, the TomTom iPhone app is also very good. It is a ‘paid’ app but you get good traffic, excellent speed camera notification and offline maps.

It is coming to CarPlay soon if you have CarPlay. I’m beta testing the CarPlay version and in all honesty, the normal app is way better than the CarPlay app.

TomTom also has excellent privacy measures (now!).

Good luck.

AJB88

15,979 posts

202 months

Saturday 4th May 2019
quotequote all
Just back from European jaunt (Germany and Italy via Austria, Switzerland, Belgium and France.

Using Waze (Pixel XL 2) and Porsche 981 PCM 3.1 (Updated to 2019).

Got to admit, Waze really let itself down once in Austria, Italy and Switzerland. Kept closing.

It Switzerland it wanted me to turn around and go back to Italy, our ETA on Porsche PCM was 2030, Waze wanted us to turn around with an ETA of 0300!

A900ss

3,314 posts

183 months

Saturday 4th May 2019
quotequote all
AJB88 said:
Just back from European jaunt (Germany and Italy via Austria, Switzerland, Belgium and France.

Using Waze (Pixel XL 2) and Porsche 981 PCM 3.1 (Updated to 2019).

Got to admit, Waze really let itself down once in Austria, Italy and Switzerland. Kept closing.

It Switzerland it wanted me to turn around and go back to Italy, our ETA on Porsche PCM was 2030, Waze wanted us to turn around with an ETA of 0300!
Did you input into the Waze settings that you had Swiss and Austrian vignettes?

AJB88

15,979 posts

202 months

Saturday 4th May 2019
quotequote all
Yes, even then it seemed to want to turn around. One of the tunnels there was a queue for about 45 minutes but even still it wasn't worth adding another 5 hours driving to turn around.

checked the settings to make sure tolls weren't off etc as well.