Satellite Navigation -recommendations please

samsara

Can anyone recommend a good value sat nav system. I'm spending more and more time getting lost on ring roads lately and I think I'd cover the cost of the sat nav in a few weeks just by saving on the excess petrol I currenlty use. Only problem the cigarette lighter doesn't work in my car so I need a system that doesn't need to plug in.

Thanks

bravebrat

Hi there. I have just bought Tomtom300 and am really pleased with it. I paid £259 and bought it online from Satnav2u - great prompt delivery and service.

t@xman

If you need a new mobile phone shortly, then you could do a lot worse than the Motorolla A780 for free from the link. Has built in GPS and copilot satnav, and is a great phone to boot!

ms01ma_2

bravebrat wrote:

Hi there. I have just bought Tomtom300 and am really pleased with it. I paid £259 and bought it online from Satnav2u - great prompt delivery and service.

i agree the tomtom is great value and really easy to use i was lucky i got one off ebay on a quiet day for £228 with receipt and its fantastic

samsara

Do you need a cigarette lighter socket for the Tomtom? Mine doesn't work and apparently it can't be fixed. The description of the kit seems to imply it needs to be plugged in.

chrisw

Garmin I3 for £119 from Staples. Bargain.

njsb14

Lots to chose between, PDA, mobile phone or Standalone based Sat Nav.
Then the various software companies, CoPilot, Tom Tom, etc.

Product wise, Tom Tom is very user friendly, has the biggest market share, but uses poorer Teleatlas maps, CoPilot is more technical and has the better Navteq maps.

I have been using CoPilot Sat Nav installed on my Mobile Phone (Orange C500 Smart Phone) for one and half year and think it is great, especially the warnings of safety (speed) cameras.

You can find alot of Sat Nav information on the https://www.pocketgpsworld.co.uk site, they review various units from an independent viewpoint.

njsb14

samsara wrote:

Do you need a cigarette lighter socket for the Tomtom? Mine doesn't work and apparently it can't be fixed. The description of the kit seems to imply it needs to be plugged in.

Most Sat Nav systems come with cigarette type power leads to charge up the batteries in the Satellite receiver/or the all in one unit such as the Tom Tom Go.

Once charged the receiver/units can run off battery, so don't need to be permanently plugged in car.

You could get a from cigarette lighter socket to mains adaptor from https://www.maplin.co.uk product code N35AZ £9.99 this would allow you to charge the units at home, then use in the car, you would run the risk of the unit going flat in the car at a vital junction moment!!!

njsb14

bravebrat wrote:

Hi there. I have just bought Tomtom300 and am really pleased with it. I paid £259 and bought it online from Satnav2u - great prompt delivery and service.

You might also want to consider the new TomTom One system, independent review, including battery life can be found at https://www.pocketgpsworld.com/tomtom-one.php

Dalkirst

I bought the Navman icn510 from Tesco's when they had 20% off and find that's good and it also comes with an AC adaptor so you can charge it at home aswell as using the fag lighter to keep it charged during the trip.Sorry i can't tell you how long it lasts without using the lighter as i haven't let it run down to try it.You can also upload the cameras to it aswell as other places and things of interest from that link above

mantisgeek

njsb14 wrote:

You might also want to consider the new TomTom One system, independent review, including battery life can be found at https://www.pocketgpsworld.com/tomtom-one.php

Got a TomTom One just after Christmas for my wife and she cannot drive without it now! It's very easy to use and both the audio and visual instructions are very clear. Full hearted recommendation. Read these reviews also:

http://www.lordpercy.com/tomtom_one.htm

Also, the TV programme Fifth Gear tested a few satnavs and you can read their conclusion here:
http://fifthgear.five.tv/jsp/5gmain.jsp?lnk=401&featureid=185&show=s8e10&section=Consumer