Omega Owners Forum

Chat Area => General Discussion Area => Topic started by: kjon51 on 13 November 2006, 13:21:23

Title: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: kjon51 on 13 November 2006, 13:21:23
Hi all,
I'm looking at the bottom line price on a sat nav, best I've found so far is the Garmin street pilot i3 for £99.99 at carphone warehouse!

ANY ADVICE??????

Next up I've seen is the Navman F20 - about £150?

Also - do I have to get a seperate speed camera detector or does the one unit do it all??

Sorry about all the questions, but I'm suddenly feeling a little out of my depth here  :o
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Big Rod on 13 November 2006, 13:49:40
I put Autoroute '06 on a laptop for £35 and bought a secondhand GPS locator and downloaded the drivers off the manufacturer's website.

Sum total £40. Wasn't the greatest, but seemed to just as good as any of the purpose built SatNav systems the other teams had on the S2N rally.

If you don't have a laptop, one of the other teams had a tower system PC in the boot with a touchscreen monitor built in to the dash' and a similar GPS system.

Perhaps not what you had in mind, but I wouldn't buy a TomTom or the like because I found the laptop much better 'cos it's so much more versatile for playing music etcetera.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: TheBoy on 13 November 2006, 13:57:52
see if you can get cheap ipaq type pocketpc off ebay with gps and tomtom s/w....
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: theolodian on 13 November 2006, 13:58:32
That's an interesting idea.  I know where I can get a laptop with a dead screen and no batteries.  Could be installed in the trunk in a similar fashion.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: beef on 13 November 2006, 14:05:59
Save yourself some £££ and by a good map, idiot nav's look damm ugly stuck to your screen. Just my opinion. Map reading is a dying art, i'm not a geography teacher, i'm a truck driver you know the scurge of the highway!! 8-)
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Big Rod on 13 November 2006, 14:27:59
Quote
That's an interesting idea.  I know where I can get a laptop with a dead screen and no batteries.  Could be installed in the trunk in a similar fashion.

I had a very tricky shelf fashioned out of an MFI keyboard drawer, (from my desk at home), which was installed where the glovebox is/was.

I say tricky 'cos it all folded up and slid into the dash out the way.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v295/rodblack/DSC00002.jpg)

I should patent it really!!
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: The Barge Captain on 13 November 2006, 14:34:16
Awsome dude  :o
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: theolodian on 13 November 2006, 14:37:31
You can't now, you've made it public  ;)

That's the same model laptop I was talking about.  Would be easier to install in the trunk than a tower.  However, hard to get a touchscreen for much less than 200 quid, so not a real savings.

I think I'll just get the 45 quid update disk off of eBay for the factory sat-nav.  :(
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Big Rod on 13 November 2006, 14:51:59
Quote
That's the same model laptop I was talking about.

Well, I couldn't have made it work better if I tried. That laptop fitted perfectly in the space. My other one would've been too wide.

I have seen s/h touchscreens on eBay for under £50 but they're 14 - 15" jobs that might be a little bulky, but if you can find a home for one, it'd be much better than the 7 - 8" option IMHO.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Salty on 13 November 2006, 16:01:38
I use a pda with built in gps receiver, quite compact and does the job :)
(http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l113/salty-64/Omega6.jpg)
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: MikeDundee on 13 November 2006, 17:43:52
I've got a navman, with bult in antena, previously had the PDA with built in navigation but too many wires and bits for my liking, thats why got the navman, no wires when fully, but does'nt do speed cameras etc.. Did'nt know they even did identfify spped cams etc.. Used to have a snooper, but that just kept gettin on my t*ts pickin up all the sensors off of the traffic lights, and beeped when on the motorway, and could'nt see nothing, got rid of it, its cheaper paying attention ;D ;D  
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: JayUK on 13 November 2006, 18:12:14
I've got an iPaq 4150, with TomTom 5 installed. Got it as I needed more than just SatNav. Pretty well impressed with the speed of route calculation etc.

I'm going to be ebaying it shortly though as I'm changing to a new TomTom all in one unit, as all I want now is SatNav

If you're interested I was going to put it on about £150, comes with the wired GPS received, and screen mount, charger etc.

PM if you're interested.

J
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: TheBoy on 13 November 2006, 18:36:46
I was HP iPaq hx2750 running TomTom 6 wire a wired GPS.  Proper cradle fitted, and all wiring hidden....  ...Mrs TheBoy has same setup on her Rover...
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: kjon51 on 13 November 2006, 18:58:25
Cheers for the input!!!
Who wants a laptop stuck in the glovebox? Let alone a tower in the boot!
I was thinking more like what's commonly available - at a decent price - off the shelf - what's good & what's bad?
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Darryl Flynn on 13 November 2006, 19:02:46
Garmin C320. Very happy with mine. Great menu system and won auto express budget sat nav system.

Shop around as the price can vary a LOT !

Try searching on ebay for Garmin c320 there are loads for sale . Here is a link to one just to give you some idea.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BOXED-GARMIN-C320-GPS-SAT-NAV-UK-AND-IRELAND-MAPS_W0QQitemZ250049055776QQihZ015QQcategoryZ75327QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Very cheap to get a download for Gatso sites as well. ;D

Hope that helps

Cheers Darryl
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: TheBoy on 13 November 2006, 19:29:34
I think TomTom is current market leader, and has advantages of 3rd party camera databases etc.  They have nice size screens, unlike some of the smaller Garmin units, and are usually heavily discounted by the online computer shops...
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Darryl Flynn on 13 November 2006, 19:33:30
Tom Tom is good, we use them at work, however model for model the Garmin C320 came out on top in the budget test. It also has a good sized screen and in fact looks very similar to the Tom Tom.
I paid £3 for a set of UK Gatso sites for it from Ebay and they DO WORK!
Darryl
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: TheBoy on 13 November 2006, 19:36:20
Quote
Tom Tom is good, we use them at work, however model for model the Garmin C320 came out on top in the budget test. It also has a good sized screen and in fact looks very similar to the Tom Tom.
I paid £3 for a set of UK Gatso sites for it from Ebay and they DO WORK!
Darryl
:y

I haven't used Garmin since the little i3. I tend to stick to TomTom, primarily as I need a PocketPC SatNav, and it works well.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: theolodian on 13 November 2006, 19:42:34
You can get bluetooth handsfree for your mobile built into the Garmin, which is cool.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Admin on 13 November 2006, 19:48:41
My experiences with sat nav so far...

Tomtom1 is very good. A little limited on certain features but very easy to use and good mapping software. Cost around £190.
It is also the only one of the tomtoms with any decent reliability record! The rest are not good it seems.

Medion GoPal 350. £150. Can't recommend it all. When it worked (tended to crash VERY regularly) it was slow, and mapping was not as good as tomtom. Customer service is diabolical!

Garmin i3. £99. Nice enough little unit, but software was less than accurate sometimes.

I am now going to buy the Mio C510E. £200 and according to the reviews very very good. Interface does not seem to be as initially user friendly as the tomtom but it does a lot more. Also has 12 months free speed camera downloads off the website.
I'll update on this in about a week.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Salty on 13 November 2006, 20:54:14
The one I use is the Mitac mio 168 PDA which has the built in GPS receiver. I have had this for nearly two years and it works a dream, even my wife can use it and She's a total technophobe. I run TomTom 3 on it and also have the european maps which can be loaded for holiday excursions. Its quite easy to mount in the car I use the Brodit powered cradle so the power cable to the cigarette lighter is the only connection required, and I use the proclip for mounting.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: TheBoy on 13 November 2006, 20:58:36
Actually, the new TomTom6 has all of Europe on one map (Western Europe version). This is the full detail map, not Major Road of Europe as with TomTom 3/5...   :y
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Salty on 13 November 2006, 21:03:45
Quote
Actually, the new TomTom6 has all of Europe on one map (Western Europe version). This is the full detail map, not Major Road of Europe as with TomTom 3/5...   :y

Have you got or tried it ? I was considering the tomtom 710 as a replacement for the pda as it has street level mapping for the whole of europe.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: TheBoy on 13 November 2006, 21:09:00
Quote
Quote
Actually, the new TomTom6 has all of Europe on one map (Western Europe version). This is the full detail map, not Major Road of Europe as with TomTom 3/5...   :y

Have you got or tried it ? I was considering the tomtom 710 as a replacement for the pda as it has street level mapping for the whole of europe.

Yes, TomTom 6 for Western Europe. PDA (PPC) version.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Big Rod on 14 November 2006, 10:26:01
Quote
Who wants a laptop stuck in the glovebox? Let alone a tower in the boot!

Well, it worked for me and at least one other team on the rally.

I was only trying to help! ::)

Quote
I was thinking more like what's commonly available - at a decent price - off the shelf - what's good & what's bad?

It was merely a suggestion, you did say 'budget' and I figured £40 was a fairly good deal if you already had a laptop.
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: kjon51 on 14 November 2006, 12:37:37
Quote
Quote
Who wants a laptop stuck in the glovebox? Let alone a tower in the boot!

Well, it worked for me and at least one other team on the rally.

I was only trying to help! ::)

Quote
I was thinking more like what's commonly available - at a decent price - off the shelf - what's good & what's bad?

It was merely a suggestion, you did say 'budget' and I figured £40 was a fairly good deal if you already had a laptop.

Cheers for trying Rod, full marks for your astute financial reasoning  :y Unfortunately my laptop is past it's best after an incident with a bowl of mashed potato - but that's another story!

ATB, John
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Jay w on 14 November 2006, 20:27:27
i have just sold my old tom tom go on ebay, had i known i would have PM'd you

Fleabay has a few bargains on it, i sold mine for £125 but it came with stacks of goodies, a basic Go model will fetch £100, it will be a couple of years old but if it has been looked after it will still be bang on.
Register on the tom tom site and get the software updates for Free, these will allow ful postcode searches (not an origional feature of the Go model) and if you feel really flush for £45 you can get the up to date UK map.

Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Tony H on 14 November 2006, 20:42:39
Quote
Hi all,
I'm looking at the bottom line price on a sat nav, best I've found so far is the Garmin street pilot i3 for £99.99 at carphone warehouse!

ANY ADVICE??????

Next up I've seen is the Navman F20 - about £150?

Also - do I have to get a seperate speed camera detector or does the one unit do it all??

Sorry about all the questions, but I'm suddenly feeling a little out of my depth here  :o
Just got the Navman F20 £150 is a good price it comes pre loaded with "safety camera" info andhas full 6 didget post code search. however if you want traffic reports you have to buy a bolt on extra at about £50 but
its a one off payment with no annual subscription.
One of the main reasons I went for the navman is its about half the thickness of a Tom Tom unit and will fit easily in a pocket
 Hope this helps ;Tony
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: kjon51 on 15 November 2006, 11:49:36
Cheers for the replies guys,
We've gone for the Navman F20 - neat unit, good price & ready to go out the box, (plug & play - as they say  ;)) Has UK maps & fixed speed cameras already installed.
I have only used it from the shops to home so far! ::) the O/H is taking it for a test drive this after, I just hope it doesn't end in tears  :o

ATB, John
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Tony H on 15 November 2006, 16:32:41
Remember gps systems are not infallable, using local knowledge I have ignored it a few times to my advantage if you do this it automatically re calculates your route handy! :y
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: kjon51 on 15 November 2006, 16:41:28
Hi Tony,
I had to test the Navman myself this afternoon! It ended in tears before she even started! We couldn't get a satellite fix & she had to be somewhere by 1 o'clock so it got left with me!

I did a software reset & 5 minutes later it was fine, took it around town & it was excellent - as said, local knowledge upsets it - but it re-calculates really quick - I'm impressed - & usualy in time for the next junction, so far very pleased.

ATB, John
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Big Rod on 16 November 2006, 11:46:00
I know my car/PC installation was a bit ropey, but I really fancy one of these!!

Clicky here! (http://www.cambouk.com/carpc)
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Jimbob on 16 November 2006, 12:01:57
Asda are advertising one for 99.99 at the mo, dont know what it is or whats is like though.

Anyone had a look / play with one?
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: kjon51 on 16 November 2006, 12:21:31
Quote
Asda are advertising one for 99.99 at the mo, dont know what it is or whats is like though.

Anyone had a look / play with one?

Hi Jimbob,
When I 1st saw the Asda £99 satnav on tv, the picture looked like a cardboard cutout of one  ::)
I emailed them asking for more info about a week ago - guess what - not even a reply  :-X so Asda gets 2 fingers from me! :o  :P
I spent my wedge elsewhere  :y

BTW  BigRod - that CAMBOuk Vectra is just a bit OTT for me, but very clever  8-)

Be good
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Bo Bo on 16 November 2006, 13:01:43
Quote
I know my car/PC installation was a bit ropey, but I really fancy one of these!!

Clicky here! (http://www.cambouk.com/carpc)
Nice  :y
Title: Re: Budget Sat Nav - HELP!
Post by: Tony H on 16 November 2006, 19:30:59
Quote
Hi Tony,
I had to test the Navman myself this afternoon! It ended in tears before she even started! We couldn't get a satellite fix & she had to be somewhere by 1 o'clock so it got left with me!

I did a software reset & 5 minutes later it was fine, took it around town & it was excellent - as said, local knowledge upsets it - but it re-calculates really quick - I'm impressed - & usualy in time for the next junction, so far very pleased.

ATB, John
Glad your pleased kjon, you or somebody else may be able to solve a puzzle for me. One feature that I can find no reference to either in the instruction book or online support from navman is if you tap and hold the screen a curser appears if you then drag across the screen a second curser appears with a red line between the cursers anyone shed any light please :-?