Wayfinder - A Rip off

paulmk · Posted: Wed May 26, 2004 5:24 pm Post subject: Wayfinder - A Rip off

I like the idea of the Wayfinder solution and was considering purchasing Wayfinder until i looked into the costing of the product.

Is it me or does this seem a rip off!!!!

In effect if you go the Wayfinder route, you have to:

a) pay an equivalent price to the PDA software and have nothing to show for it at the end of the day

b) pay each time you use the system as you will require a GPRS connection

c) pay an annual fee on top of a and b

How can this be deemed competitive to the PDA solution where you just buy the software and away you go with no further costs such as b or c.

Would be interested to hear any views on this?

lbendlin · Posted: Thu May 27, 2004 2:32 pm Post subject:

- you don't have to have a powerful device with lots of storage memory
- maps are (supposedly) more up to date than the ones for the standalone solutions, and you can expect value added information (POIs, traffic info) to be more accurate.

I would expect that some caching should be implemented (like in a web browser) so when you drive in circles you don't download the same map pieces over and over.
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Billy · Occasional Visitor Joined: Nov 02, 2003 Posts: 39

Dave · Posted: Sat Sep 11, 2004 3:00 pm Post subject:

I have always thought the philosophy of Wayfinder's service is a good one for the company but a bad one for the consumer, and I still don't think Wayfinder will be around in a few years time. It's good to see that in theory you should have the latest maps and POI's but people don't want to pay large subscription charges on top of the equipment and software they have to purchase.

In theory Wayfinder should be as accurate as TomTom and Navman as they use TeleAtlas data, this is now released twice a year. It was four times a year to TeleAtlas customers, but TeleAtlas have recently dropped back to a two annual release date.

Billy · Occasional Visitor Joined: Nov 02, 2003 Posts: 39

Do you mean that Teleatlas does only update there maps twice a year? This means that Wayfinder can also only update maximum twice a year there maps?

Anyway...Wayfinder is too expensive for what it is. The program isn't stable and very limited. But Wayfinder has said that we can expect something (big?) within 2 weeks! Hopefully we will get then our promised TMC and a decent mapview...but I know Wayfinder for more then one year and I don't expect much from them.

They have to DO something now that TomTom mobile and route66 is coming.
It's only a big shame that Wayfinder is still the only solution for the Symbian UIQ market. I find that TomTom and Route66 must change this very quickly.

Billy

Dave · Posted: Sun Sep 12, 2004 8:14 pm Post subject:

ramzez · Regular Visitor Joined: Mar 10, 2005 Posts: 98

what could have been a good idea is probably to have subscription but not have to pay one-off charge. then people who have gps receivers can just download and activate it.

Northern_Wayfinder · Occasional Visitor Joined: Apr 25, 2005 Posts: 4

I realise that the original post is almost a year old, and that things have changed in that time but Wayfinder seems very reasonable to me.

For 99 euros per year, you get up to date navigation software on up to date maps for a year, throughout the whole of Europe (or US). For 150 euros you can have it for ever as long as you'll stick with the current version on your current phone. This doesn't seem out of line with other prices.

Yes - their are GPRS costs to consider but, in my experience, if you don't overuse the moving maps and stick with the guide mode (which is the only one you can really use safely while driving) these costs are trivial, at pennies per journey. If you are well enough organised you can also download city maps to your phone to further reduce these costs.

Yes - After twelve months you need to pay your 99 euros again but then any navigation system is only as good as the maps. I'm viewing the 99 euros per year as a subscription cost for current map data. TOMTOM users currently have the option to upgrade their maps to the latest version (at a reduced price) of 79 euros for their home country plus 50 euros for the rest of Europe. By comparison, Wayfinder doesn't seem too bad.

Given the above, I don't think it's a rip off.

Billy · Occasional Visitor Joined: Nov 02, 2003 Posts: 39

Northern_Wayfinder · Occasional Visitor Joined: Apr 25, 2005 Posts: 4

I'm not saying that Wayfinder is the best Sat Nav product around, and I take Billy's point, completely, that TMC should be available - it should be relatively easy, as it only needs to be integrated once, at the server end!

All I'm trying to say is that Wayfinder doesn't look like a rip off. I see that Route 66 is now available for UIQ in UK at 199GBP (inc GPS receiver). If we asssume the GPS receiver costs around 100 GBP then that makes the software 99GBP. Bearing in mind this only covers UK and the maps will be out of date in 12 months it makes Wayfinder look reasonable at 99euros.

Hopefully, now that there is some competition in the Symbian UIQ market Wayfinder will have improve their product and service to retain their customers. Especially as Route 66 will include FREE traffic information.

Billy · Occasional Visitor Joined: Nov 02, 2003 Posts: 39

Wayfinder will still be very expensive. Their promotion about having always the latest maps isn't so very clear.

First of all TeleAtlas will only update their maps twice a year. So your paying really much for getting less from Wayfinder. I'm using Wayfinder for more then 2 years but I'm sure it will not become 3 years of usage.

First of all some updates from them are very buggy and with the previous version it tooks months before I could use the program again. They just don't fix their bugs. With the previous version it was so bad that the program became unusable.

No...to be honest I have enough from them. Go buy and buy another package...update your maps after 2 years or so. It will be a lot cheaper for you and you will have more features then Wayfinder ever have.

Can you even imagine that Wayfinder is a mobile GPS program but you really cannot use it for your bike routes? Try to create a route with the pedestrian mode for more then 10km. How silly is this? Rolling Eyes

Billy

erniew · Lifetime Member Joined: Jun 05, 2005 Posts: 127

i have been trying wayfinder demo version for the last few days

have to say i was impressed

having just purchased tt mobile 5
just you try and get a map for europe from tt

wayfinder seems to be more on the ball there voice prompts are excellent if a bit repetive (you get told to turn 4 or 5 times in a count down
but when it says exit you are on the exit
i find with ttmobile that the maps are running a tad behind where you are driving

i am going to france next month and hold no hope of getting a map from tom tom

i am going to purchase wayfinder and use it in my old 6600 with ttmobiles gps reciever when i am abroad

seems to me that 99 euros is reasonable for the whole of western europe and the download charges fo routing etc
that should be incurred hopefully is minimal

erniew

ramzez · Regular Visitor Joined: Mar 10, 2005 Posts: 98

they only big disadvantage from my point of view is that the routing is done not on a mobile but on the server, therefore if you lost the gprs connection you lost. :-(

Northern_Wayfinder · Occasional Visitor Joined: Apr 25, 2005 Posts: 4

It's a valid point but not absolutely true. You'd have to lose your GPRS connection and go "off track". Wayfinder would only realise that the gprs connection had been lost when it tried to recalculate the route. While ever you stayed on track Wayfinder would continue giving you voice instructions.

Thinking further, I suppose a lost GPRS could prevent the moving map from being updated, but Wayfinder could still be used in Guide mode.

In my experience (P910i with Orange contract, travelling in UK, France and Spain) a lost GPRS connection has never been the cause of a Wayfinder error.

ramzez · Regular Visitor Joined: Mar 10, 2005 Posts: 98

btw does it supports full post code?

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