Spec me a sat nav

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Starting a new job in an unfamiliar area which might mean me getting a sat nav, never had one before as I hate the bleeding things. Reason for not using the Google nav on my phone is that I'm at home on wifi and it's positioned me in the middle of the lake half a mile up the road, not confidence inspiring by any means.

Budget is £150, would like bluetooth for the phone, widescreen etc. Was looking at a Tom Tom go live 820 but I've read that it needs some sort of subscription for the map updates.
Thanks
 
If you are only finding your way once and hate sat navs buy a map.

If you really need one buy a cheap Garmin, Tom Tom IMO are rubbish.
 
I use satnav a lot finding folks addresses for airport runs, to taking them to odd pubs in the sticks, the best one i've used for free as said above is the standard maps on my android phone.
I do have a tomtom 5150 I use for the 5th wheel and Europe which is better but a lot more expensive.
 
Don't use your phone. Google maps isn't the best for navigation and the Tomtom app costs almost as much as a satnav.

Get a tomtom with the biggest screen for your budget assuming you don't need extra features like Bluetooth.
 
It's going to be used quite a lot as I'm starting with UPS. I'm used to finding my way round most places but sat nav and Phillips maps look like being essential. Google maps is usually good enough but some of the days are supervised and driving around phone in hand is a no no so apps are no use at all.

It's the subscription query that I don't have a clue about. What are you subscribing to map updates or traffic updates?
 
Last edited:
starfighter said:
Don't use your phone. Google maps isn't the best for navigation and the Tomtom app costs almost as much as a satnav.

Get a tomtom with the biggest screen for your budget assuming you don't need extra features like Bluetooth.
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^^

lol.

since when is using your phone as satnav = Google Maps. Why do you try to suggest TomTom app is the only alternative?

OP, don't buy TomTom. you heard it twice in this thread.

also, the reason why it's showing you in the middle of the lake is because you don't have GPS enabled and it's determining your position by triangulating cell towers and wifi. that's accurate in 100s of meters. GPS is accurate to few metres.
 
Maps shows me spot on but nav is miles out. I am on Android but makes no difference really. What's so bad about Tom Tom? Only other I know is garmin
 
Surely if you are starting a job with somebody like UPS they should be providing you with this? You wouldnt be buying your own pens or your own laptop in an office...
 
If you get a Tomtom make sure it's not one of the newest Tomtom Go units (400, 500, 600, 5000, 6000). The software basically isn't finished yet and the whole series are a massive beta test.

For your phone, make sure the compass is calibrated and get an app that resets the GPS cache. If it's on Android GPS Status and Toolkit is woth a go. Something like ActiveGPS or GPS Satellite Widget is also handy for ensuring your phone keeps a lock.

Seriously, try getting your phone's GPS working reliably because paid phone apps are up there with the best standalone satnavs now for a fraction of the price. Windscreen or dashboard mounts for phones don't cost much either.

If you just need to find your way, Google Maps navigation or Navfree are perfectly adequate. No need to spend more.

I use satnav for traffic avoidance rather than route finding most of the time. For traffic avoidance - it pretty much has to be Tomtom HD Traffic for road coverage. It's great at detecting congestion (and has received a major upgrade in the UK during the past few months). Unfortunately Tomtom doesn't always have info on road closures from local authorities so you may still bump into the odd road closure (if you're route is covered by the Highways Agency, Transport for London, Traffic Scotland or Traffic Wales, your'e fine though).

The cheapest way to get Tomtom's HD Traffic is the Android or iPhone app, Navigate 6. It's about 1/3 of the price of the Tomtom app and routing around traffic is better than Tomtom itself too.
 
Lumia 520 :p
It has GPS, A-GPS and GLONASS support and Here Drive is one of the better systems I have used (apps or standalone Sat Nav). Can pick one up for about £100 on PAYG. If you know someone with a Lumia handset have a play.
 
Uriel said:
If you get a Tomtom make sure it's not one of the newest Tomtom Go units (400, 500, 600, 5000, 6000). The software basically isn't finished yet and the whole series are a massive beta test.
Click to expand...

Quoted for the absolute truth! My older TomTom XXL was spot on until I dropped it (like a moron) and the 6000 replacement I got was dire, an absolutely hateful POS with software that made me want to punch a kitten everytime I had to use it. So for the sake of the little kitties I swapped it for a Garmin 3950 which is lots better, although still not as good as the TomTom XXL sadly :(
 
HouR said:
Out of interest why?
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The newer Tom Toms are very poor in my experience. Achingly slow to pick up GPS signal, map updates are expensive, and the lag on some units makes them borderline unusable. Mine is fine once you are on your way, but typing in an address can literally take 10 minutes as the touchscreen interface goes bonkers and essentially does what it feels like.

[TW]Fox;25899000 said:
Surely if you are starting a job with somebody like UPS they should be providing you with this? You wouldnt be buying your own pens or your own laptop in an office...
Click to expand...

I'd say it's unlikely - we don't provide our drivers or our sales execs with sat nav, I don't think it's commonplace to do so in the industry.
 
Navfree on your phone is excellent. Don't see the need to pay for a unit or even a subscription service.

I've used it in 4 different countries now without a problem!
 
Can't recommend Co-Pilot app for phones enough. I use it on my Note 2 for personal use and in the truck at work. Always seems to keep you on decent main roads, and the ETA is very accurate. You can download maps to the phone so you can use it without a data connection, but with data, the traffic alerts are very very useful.
 
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