OT (sort of): GPS Navigation System for Cars

[RHPConsult]

QUOTE(Xairbusdriver @ Mar 3 2007, 07:23 AM) [snapback]120789[/snapback]

Well, I gues the updating feature is not too important to some of our more "aged" members...

OTOH, us younguns have long range plans for the future!

Fortunately, I don't have/need one of these marvels, Judy never lets me have a car with more than half a tank of gas! If I need more than that, she goes with me! And she's a great navigator! Plus, she has all the money for the extra gas! I'm still just the "driver"!

 Well now, Let me say this about that/those

1. I can't say I know exactly, but I would guess that when a whole set of new maps are issued, you'll get a) a replacement SE card, or b) a download to the existing card. Either would be quite different from the 9, that's riiiight, 9, DVDs I received that required DLing to my Palm's SE cards.
2. Yahoo! Judy. Sounds like a Plan to me/us!

• • •

A couple more data points, Joe.

FWIW: While walking through a Target store today, I spied a display that had the latest models of the 3 "majors", plus a couple of brands of GPS I'd never seen before.

I had previously never seen such an easy to observe side-by-side display as was this one. Admitting to my bias, seeing the 3 "leaders:, Garmin, Magellan, and Tom Tom again reminded me why, when looking for a gift GPS for my brother-in-law, I stuck w/TomTom.

IMO,

1. Magellan is way too bulky . . . you'll be glad, for example, when you can easily pick-up your device and move it from car to car, indeed, even to someone else's car.
2. Garmin's maps are too b-u-s-y, too cluttered. There is some information you really don't need, since you can simply look out the car window and see if that's a greenbelt on your left!
3. TomTop's colors are designed to make them readily discernible when negotiating traffic on the freeway. I don't want a gazetteer – or the National Geographic Magazine –I want an effective sketch map, and I thihk TomTom does that really well

Hope this aids your decision-making.

[Xairbusdriver]

QUOTE

or b) a download to the existing card.

Like, ya know, hold it up in front of the screen?

The salient problem still remains: How? If the Mac is not capable of 'talking' to the unit ( any unit ), how does one get the downloaded info into the unit?!?! I have yet to see that question answered. Period. All I see is 'promises' of Mac support, No Mac support and "Who needs support?" That the units work and nicely is beside the point if, in the next 90 days, new roads open, new industries open, new stores open, old roads close, old industries close, old...well, you get the picture. Most phone books are useless after 180 days, but at least I don't have to pay $300 for them. There simply must be something in the literature/web site/help screens that describes how to update these things or why they have all the navigation/location knowledge that mankind will ever need already installed.

Or, perhaps these are meant to be disposable?

BTW, I love a gazetteer! Especially when planning ones trip or knowing where stuff is off the beaten track! And no body makes better ones than the Brits!

[Gregg]

QUOTE(RNKIII @ Mar 3 2007, 11:45 AM) [snapback]120803[/snapback]

You mean like "Zuni"
Bob K.

Isn't it "Zune"? At least it rhymes with what it does.

This interruption is not designed to unravel the thread. Please ignore it and carry on with the original discussion...

[RHPConsult]

Capt'n ABD:
You don't appear to need a GPS . . . since you clearly are able to jump to conclusions plenty fast, w/o assistance!  

I don't think I ever said TomTom can't "talk" to the Mac. What I did note was that downloading a chosen subset of maps from their location on one (or more) of 9 DVDs to a memory card and/or a Palm was NOT intuitive. That's a non-issue now, given the product enhancement of having all US (50-state) and Canadian maps coming on an SE card. Period.

IMExperience, maps do not change (i.e are upgraded) as frequently as, say, Firefox, or Graphic Converter (e.g, as often as new shopping centers open anywhere in the "lower 48"), but much less frequently (about as often as I-80 gets a brand new interchange E of the Mississippi) . . . so to speak!  

The more frequent miscue I receive is that the street that should be there, jest ain't, OR I'm driving on a street that only displays as a dashed line, not an identified thoroughfare. Even Google, in a related example, has me living 2 doors away from my actual address (for the last 40 years); so everything's a work in progress, I guess

[csonni]

I am in the process of searching for one myself.  I have read that TomTom's screes aren't very bright in daylight.  That may be a clincher for me.  What's the sense of having something there you can't even see?  I found a good review here on the software end of things:

http://www.brighthand.com/default.asp?newsID=12667

Here's the screen review I was referring to:

http://tinyurl.com/86qs8

[Xairbusdriver]

I have no idea what an "SE" is, nor does Google or Wikipedia.

I'm glad you are happy with yours! I've heard many positive reports of TomToms. In my earlier years it would have been great to have one of these since Judy and I traveled more and mostly off the beaten track. Of course, that was before any usable satellites were in orbit! Still, it's not that unusual to have a detour on highways through the 'mountains' of east Tennessee ( and around weldigger's area! ) so it would handy to have this help available. We'll also be making trips to FL for the foreseeable future and, not being familiar with the state, these things could help. Of course, I can always call up some local TSers and ask for directions ( if not how to update my 'guidance device' ). I'll review your responses above, I seem to have missed to info about using the Mac to update a TomTom.

[RHPConsult]

ABD

QUOTE

I have no idea what an "SE" is, nor does Google or Wikipedia.

Oh, oh! typo!. Charge that off to having gotten up at 4a to drive the gang to SFO for their journey to Disneyworld    (Yes it was cold and rainy when they got there!)

How does SecureDigital sound? Sorry.

Csonni I return to my earlier theme(s) . . .

1. Some displays are far too busy . . . competent human factors engineers could have advised the software authors about that. I suspect TomTom had such advice.
2. These devices are useful to save time and avoid problems, but they should not (IMHO) display encyclopaedic data
3. Maybe the new TomToms are brighter, Those "review" pics don't look like what I see every day or so in Kalifior-nia's sunshine!
4. TomTom's colors are NOT natural . . . they are designed for legibility for the QUICK GLANCES you'll give them, when the voice prompts need some embellishment. After all, at 70 mph you're going 176 fps, – not a good time to be reading "fine print" If ANY display gave a traditional paper-map portrayal. IMO it would be essentially useless.

In sum. these are my considered views. (No pun). Everyone's mileage will vary.

[kimmer]

QUOTE(Xairbusdriver @ Mar 4 2007, 06:23 AM) [snapback]120871[/snapback]

In my earlier years it would have been great to have one of these since Judy and I traveled more and mostly off the beaten track. Of course, that was before any usable satellites were in orbit! Still, it's not that unusual to have a detour on highways through the 'mountains' of east Tennessee ( and around weldigger's area! ) so it would handy to have this help available.

Just a point of curiosity. One of the issues that surfaced when the Kim family was lost here in Oregon was the lack of GPS info for many of the "off the beaten track" roads around here -- and there are TONS of them. So how reliable are these GPS systems for your cars?  

[RHPConsult]

Kimberly:

I very much doubt if any "commercial" device <10,000 dollars has software that displays logging roads in the (really) back woods of OR, MN, CO, AL, CA or MI. Or a lot of other places.

TomTom does do a great job in the tiny township roads in Amish Country, in Ohio, however. Because Ohio has such an abundance of paved, "1.88-lane" county roads out in the absolute boondocks (Dick Miller and Dolphin can confirm), such roads appear. I can't speak for rural Oregon, except I don't believe that private logging roads (that were supposed to be behind locked gates) will be revealed.

But, if you're cruising along I-5 and want to know how many restaurants are in the next 30 miles (No! no Julia Child recommendations) it'll do it, w/o requiring you to know any addresses. So to w/gas stations (Sorry, George, petrol).

OTOH, if you want to find a plumbing supply store in Eugene that you've never visited, but you have an address, it will put you in the right block, if not precisely in the driveway. National Park camping areas, city halls, hospitals . . . yup.

But, logging roads, I don't think so. The handheld that my grandson has will do trails in Yosemite's back country, but at 13 he can read a topo map probably better than 98.675 per cent of TeeEssers!

I can't tell you how many times guests in our car exclaim, "How does it DO that?" when TomTom does its thing!

[Gregg]

QUOTE(csonni @ Mar 4 2007, 05:29 AM) [snapback]120867[/snapback]

I have read that TomTom's screes aren't very bright in daylight.

Of course, if you tend to get lost only at night....

Bright at night -
Dumb in the daytime?

[kimmer]

QUOTE(RHPConsult @ Mar 4 2007, 12:15 PM) [snapback]120886[/snapback]

But, logging roads, I don't think so.

Thanks, Richard. I was really curious because if you pick up most any paper map in this area -- from the ones the realtors give away, to the AAA maps, to the Thomas' maps -- they all show the logging roads. They also state "Closed in winter". I would think that the fancy-schmancy GPS maps should know this stuff as well. That's just me.    

I'm really old school. I get paper maps and I check with AAA and locals before I head out to unknown territory.  

[Gregg]

He, he.

Speaking of updated maps...
Picked up a 2006 Wisconsin map at the auto show Saturday. Just thought I'd check for such things. The blow-up of downtown still shows St. Paul Avenue (Street?) as one way eastbound up to Water Street. Maybe that's why I've encountered at least two drivers coming at me in my lane over the last two months!

To be fair, that change is part of the Marquette Interchange rebuilding project. It probably was still one way there when the '06 map was being printed.

Just curious: do GPS maps show one way streets?

[jwboyd]

THANKS TO ALL who have contributed to this discussion.

I still think I would find such a system very useful in our travels, and that the TomTom One would be my choice. Unfortunately, my wife and I cannot agree on the need for such, so we won't be getting one anytime soon.

With regard to the screen brightness issue: I had already decided that if I got a TomTom, I would make some kind of a hood to shade the screen. Now I find that there is a visor on the market for this specific purpose. It's called "GlareBuster," and is available on eBay for under $20 USD.

Again, thanks for all the input.

Joe

[Xairbusdriver]

I'll make you four for $10 ( plus shipping, of course )! Please send me your favorite colored construction paper.

[RHPConsult]

Gregg:

QUOTE

. . .that change is part of the Marquette Interchange rebuilding project. It probably was still one way there when the '06 map was being printed.

Just curious: do GPS maps show one way streets?

I've wondered just how maps get translated into the SW. I've assumed that the TomTom's "mapper" (not a corporate name I'm familiar with) uses some kind of governmental sources, rather than subscribe to the National Geographic, or rely on Monks in some Ancient Library.

The larger point, IMO, is that using a GPS device doesn't free one from driving, it embellishes your presumed driving skill to reduce chances of getting lost. I doubt if anyone, even with the $5k system in the new Porsche I had a chance to ride in yesterday, ever thinks they can stop reading signs out there on the landscape.

One-way streets? Of course.

Joe
Keep checking prices in the various on-line ads. Prices have been coming down over the last 6 months in 100 dollar increments!