GPS car

[Autocon]

which is the best navigation system to use?

i want easy user interface
runs on batteries as i have no cigarette thing

[blackie]

how do you not have a cig lighter in your car?

[Sky Shadow]

how do you not have a cig lighter in your car?

It was a fire hazard?

[Hursticon]

Depending on it's make and age, Cigarette lighters are now an 'Option' as opposed to being standard in cars nowadays. ;)

[5FDP]

Depending on it's make and age, Cigarette lighters are now an 'Option' as opposed to being standard in cars nowadays. ;)

Really :confused: I thought all cars had the ability to plug in a lighter... whether or not it actually comes with one is optional.

My car has an outlet but it just has a plastic cap covering it.

[Vector Prime]

Depending on it's make and age, Cigarette lighters are now an 'Option' as opposed to being standard in cars nowadays. ;)

The lighter is optional, but the power socket that it plugs into isn't... my car has one, but it's in the most stupid position (under the glove box on the passenger side).

He probably has one, but it's damaged (or not working).

As for the Satnav, can't help you out on that... my car has it inbuilt (and I still never use it)

[GoktimusPrime]

which is the best navigation system to use?
A Street Directory.

GPS navigation can be so annoying for several reasons:
+ They don't always know the best way to go.
+ They often tell you to break road rules (e.g. turn right at No Right Turn intersections etc.)
+ They often tell you to make "impossible" decisions, e.g. drive into roads that don't exist, drive off bridges etc.
+ They sometimes 'change their mind' during a trip and can get you driving round and round in circles cos they can't make up their damn mind as to which is the best way to go

GPS navigators have often gotten me lost! Also, if you enter an area where there's no reception, then it can stuff your navigator up too. My colleague's daughter only ever uses a navigator and refuses to learn how to read a map, but one time she drove into a long tunnel and her navigator lost reception, and she had no idea which exit to take - in the end she got lost.

I hardly ever use GPS navigators -- much prefer just using a street directory.

[Sky Shadow]

GPS navigation can be so annoying for several reasons:
+ They don't always know the best way to go.
+ They often tell you to break road rules (e.g. turn right at No Right Turn intersections etc.)
+ They often tell you to make "impossible" decisions, e.g. drive into roads that don't exist, drive off bridges etc.
+ They sometimes 'change their mind' during a trip and can get you driving round and round in circles cos they can't make up their damn mind as to which is the best way to go

This is why I don't have a GPS navigator - I already have a wife to do all that for me.

[Mr Ed]

I own a TomTom.

It came with a charger and an USB charger.

I dont think any GPS units come battery operated.

You can always close the glovebox with the charger cord in between?

[kup]

A Street Directory.

GPS navigation can be so annoying for several reasons:
+ They don't always know the best way to go.
+ They often tell you to break road rules (e.g. turn right at No Right Turn intersections etc.)
+ They often tell you to make "impossible" decisions, e.g. drive into roads that don't exist, drive off bridges etc.
+ They sometimes 'change their mind' during a trip and can get you driving round and round in circles cos they can't make up their damn mind as to which is the best way to go

GPS navigators have often gotten me lost! Also, if you enter an area where there's no reception, then it can stuff your navigator up too. My colleague's daughter only ever uses a navigator and refuses to learn how to read a map, but one time she drove into a long tunnel and her navigator lost reception, and she had no idea which exit to take - in the end she got lost.

I hardly ever use GPS navigators -- much prefer just using a street directory.

I have used a few GPS devices from the humble mobile phone app to the dedicated high end model - They all suck equally.

Never rely 100% on a GPS as it has been already mentioned, they get confused very easily. One time one took me to a No Through road and expected me to drive through a house, another time a GPS got confused and it wanted me to circle all of Sydney to get to a place that was only 15 km away.

I also had a nightmare in Melbourne when I used one on a rented car. Due to the several Airports in Melbourne, it kept getting confused on which one I was going so you could see it endlessly correcting itself by changing the route to different airports every couple of kilometers.

The GPS as it is now is not refined enough to be used blindly. It's helpful if you have a good general idea of where you are going so you can use it to find the odd side street once you are in the suburb but otherwise you gamble every time you use it.

For some reason all GPS that I have tried seem to go nuts in the city.

[optimus1]

A Street Directory.

GPS navigation can be so annoying for several reasons:
+ They don't always know the best way to go.
+ They often tell you to break road rules (e.g. turn right at No Right Turn intersections etc.)
+ They often tell you to make "impossible" decisions, e.g. drive into roads that don't exist, drive off bridges etc.
+ They sometimes 'change their mind' during a trip and can get you driving round and round in circles cos they can't make up their damn mind as to which is the best way to go

GPS navigators have often gotten me lost! Also, if you enter an area where there's no reception, then it can stuff your navigator up too. My colleague's daughter only ever uses a navigator and refuses to learn how to read a map, but one time she drove into a long tunnel and her navigator lost reception, and she had no idea which exit to take - in the end she got lost.

I hardly ever use GPS navigators -- much prefer just using a street directory.


I have to 100% agree with Gok here.

Personally I think the use of GPS systems can be distracting and can make drivers a bit lazy. Drivers should learn to use their sense of direction rather than being told where to go from a satellite a few of kilometres above in orbit!

[Bartrim]

I have one but don't use it. I use my awesome sense of direction to guide me.

The last time I used one was when my wife and I went to Melbourne several years ago and while we were on a major road the GPS had us out in some paddock.

As for the 12v socket. That is what they are known as now. To discourage smoking a lot of car companys no longer put cigarette lighters in cars but when you purchase a new car you can buy a cigarette lighter as an accesory. I was actually surprised during my time in the industry how few I sold.

[Autocon]

well o bought a tomtom:o
can u recharge using the usb cable into the computer or only by using the car recharge socket

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Have you read the instructions?

Geez Autocon, Perth isn't that big. A road map has provided me with all the knowledge I have ever needed. Although one was so old, I started drawing in the streets in the newer suburbs... Don't worry though I got a *more* recent one. :p

When I was in Japan we had a GPS, but I can understand wanting one for there. Even though, it got us lost and in strange places, which was odd, as we were in a ski area and there ws only one really windy road, that occasionally had a smaller road run off it. How could it get that wrong?:rolleyes:

[Autocon]

haha mostly just pictures of how to set up in car:p no writing. it didnt say in the instructions

[GoktimusPrime]

Geez Autocon, Perth isn't that big.
I'll say! And it's relatively easy to navigate around cos a lot of your roads in a lot of places are in a grid formation. Just look at Victoria Park, most of the streets are parallel to each other. Also makes it easy to get around if you miss a turn -- especially when you're driving to Nexus Fair for the first time. :) I find some of your northern residential suburbs like Kinross relatively trickier to navigate through - but still no where near as confusing as Sydney roads!

Anyone who's driven in Sydney quickly comes to the realisation that our roads were drawn in crayon designed by a retarded lobotomised blindfolded drunken monkey strapped to a turntable on top of a unicycle while being chased by a starving cheetah while trying to urinate into a shot glass. An absolutely freakin' nightmare to drive in!

[jaydisc]

You made a good choice with TomTom. Definitely the most intuitive.

Many of the above criticisms are dated in my experience. I've been using GPSs for over 8 years, and these are complaints appropriate for my first few units. TomTom also includes a feature called MapShare which enables updated to be downloaded to the device for road and rule changes.

I've had my use of a GPS questioned by some, and it's not just about being lost or knowing how to get somewhere. GPSs provide a digital view of your area and surroundings. To glance at your dashboard to see nearby parking, petrol stations, or to clearly see the name of a cross street is much more safe and effective than aggressively visually searching the four corners, possibly obstructed by trees or something else in search of a street sign containing the street name. This, to me, is as natural an inclusion on a future dashboard as a speedometer is.

Standalone GPSs is also a dying market segment, being eroded by two sides. Converged mobile devices (a la iPhone), and in-car GPSs. The combination of the two will obviate the need for a standalone unit.

[SharkyMcShark]

Real men like me navigate in the age old tradition of pointing roughly in the direction of what you want and making it up as you go along.

[Tabias Prime]

Map Book...it doesn't need recharging and wont get stolen if left in the car...:p:p:p:p

[Autocon]

currently have a map book, gps, and mobile phone. :p:rolleyes:

found that tomtom shows alleys and carparks as small roads like bayswater waves carpark, small road to frive through

[i_amtrunks]

I dont use a GPS, but my missus lives (and gets lost) by hers.

I just dont trust them, if I need a route to get to a place I dont have a map for, I'll google map it, as they seem to be far more reliable. A street directory or map is the way to go, no hassles with them "missing a road" or telling you to take a 200km detour, let alone in cities where the larger buildings interfere with communication with the guidance satellites.

My sister recently got married at the Mt Tomah Botanical Gardens (up in the Blue Mountains) and instead of the GPS units (TOMTOM, Garmin, plus some dodgy brands) telling people to travel 35 minutes straight up Bells Line of Road (one single road) it sent them 75-80km out of their way up the Great Western Highway via Katoomba!

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

.

My sister recently got married at the Mt Tomah Botanical Gardens (up in the Blue Mountains) and instead of the GPS units (TOMTOM, Garmin, plus some dodgy brands) telling people to travel 35 minutes straight up Bells Line of Road (one single road) it sent them 75-80km out of their way up the Great Western Highway via Katoomba!

Maybe the GPSs are made by petrol companies...

CONSPIRACY.....!

[Autocon]

well i tested out the route system and it told me the way to go that i would have gone anyway, so far so good

[1AZRAEL1]

My sister recently got married at the Mt Tomah Botanical Gardens (up in the Blue Mountains) and instead of the GPS units (TOMTOM, Garmin, plus some dodgy brands) telling people to travel 35 minutes straight up Bells Line of Road (one single road) it sent them 75-80km out of their way up the Great Western Highway via Katoomba!

It can also depend on what settings you have on it. For example, you can set it to avoid tolls or not, or set it for the quickest time or shortest route. That can make a big difference as well.