Which Sat Nav to buy

rat_tabs · Occasional Visitor Joined: Feb 28, 2006 Posts: 30

Hi to all.
I bought a Navman 510 in early 2005 which then, by virtue of their software update, made into a 520. Bought Map updates twice from Navman at a £100 per pop but alas, no more updates and no more maps!
So having shelled out circa £650 for this and the updates my UK and Europe unit is 'obsolete'.............so time to buy a new one but I want to ensure I can get maps and update them as long as I keep the unit, ideally over the internet/phone.
I don't need bluetooth or MP3, just a good satnav that is 'future proof', mapwise.
Please advise as to your thoughts as to what I should buy?

Darren · Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 1:16 pm Post subject:

TomTom and Garmin are the only ones to have offered continuous support legacy models.

Given that, take a look at their ranges.
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Darren Griffin

jbarca · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jul 17, 2006 Posts: 13

I dont know about tom tom, but if what you are looking for is something which is future proof mapwise, then i would say go for garmin.

Just by paying a one time fee you will be eligleble for free map updates for life. so your unit will always be up to date. i think the fee is about 90 Pounds. See what tom tom has to offer in this respect.

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andy1turner · Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2011 5:54 pm Post subject: Satnav for life - NOT Garmin

Don't get me wrong I like the Garmin Mobile XT product especially as there is a PC based packjage on whicvh I can plan routes and thenm exprt to the PDA.

But when I upgraded my phone from Win Mob 6 to Win Mob 6.5 and I couldn't get it to work I found that Garmin no longer support the product on Win Mob 6.5 and have no plans to change.

What good are my lifetime maps now?

Suppose its back to drum beating again and their abysmal arrogant support...........
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Andrew Turner
I don't think that your bad planning is any reason for me to have an emergency!

PloddinPedro · Regular Visitor Joined: Mar 25, 2007 Posts: 229

My TomTom 910 is increasingly frustrating; maps are out of date and it doesn't tell me the speed limits, plus I find the user interface awkward.

I want a Satnav that:

- continuously tells me the current speed limit;

- has the frequently used functions (e.g. speaker mute/volume) readily to hand;

- has a sensible size screen;

- easily allows the programming of routes via chosen points, so I don't have to choose between simply "fastest" or "shortest" and on/off motorway (or, ideally, which will accept the upload of .gpx routes or tracks that I've devised on desktop software like Memory Map, etc.)

It doesn't need an iPod-like touchscreen, photos, music, mp3 or any whizzy things.

Any suggestions?

sussamb · Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2011 3:36 pm Post subject:

I have a Garmin 1490, which has a 5" screen and does what you want. I'm very happy with it and it has performed flawlessly since I got it last September.

Andy_P · Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2011 4:46 pm Post subject: Re: General advice required

PloddinPedro · Regular Visitor Joined: Mar 25, 2007 Posts: 229

Thanks for replies.

Sussamb: I was looking at the Nuvi 3790 and 1490 on the Garmin site - they seem very similar in many respects. Did you do much research before choosing the 1490 and if so, what were its winning factors?

Andy_P: I didn't know about the conversion from .gpx to .itn option. Can you elaborate a bit - I'm not very clued up on the technical side! Is there a piece of software to do the reformatting or is this something TomTom provides?

sussamb · Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2011 6:35 pm Post subject:

Mainly cost ... Very Happy

Route planning was important to me as I need to hold a number of complicated routes on my GPS, after that I looked for the cheapest available.

Oh, and I wanted bluetooth capability.

PloddinPedro · Regular Visitor Joined: Mar 25, 2007 Posts: 229

sussamb · Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2011 10:33 pm Post subject:

A mix ...

Some I plan directly on the nuvi, others I plan on my PC and download as gpx files. The 1490 can only have 10 routes available as 'routes' but you can download as many as you want and then use the 'import' function on the nuvi to import the ones you want. I can therefore store 100's of routes on the nuvi.

Andy_P · Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2011 1:40 pm Post subject:

PloddinPedro · Regular Visitor Joined: Mar 25, 2007 Posts: 229

Thanks Andy_P - that looks very helpful.

Ramaprem · Posted: Fri Aug 05, 2011 3:22 pm Post subject:

"Just by paying a one time fee you will be eligleble for free map updates for life."

I sure wish that this was true for TomTom's products.
Other than that, I am very pleased with my 930T. I have not, however, owned anything else for comparison purposes.

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