Samsung Galaxy S2 as Sat Nav?

TrickyDicky101

I've umm'ed and ahh'ed about getting a Sat Nav for a while now but never got one because I didn't want to have to port around another electronic device.

I have just got a new contract and have a shiny new Galaxy S2 in hand.

Can I use this as a Sat Nav?
What do I need to do if so?
What other equipment will I need (presumably some for of holder for the car)?

Does using it as a Sat Nav impact on mobile data usage? This might be a killer for me as I only have a 500Mb data allowance per month

Thanks for all replies.

msrisotto

Download google navigation, it is amazing, shows you street view. I have 500mb data and have never gone over despite using it for long journeys. I keep mine in the cup holder as I don't want to buy a special holder really.

kajstring24

I have the S2's baby brother the Galaxy Ace, which is a lot slower and less powerful. However, the sat nav has always been excellent on it, never failed me. I used to have a HTC Wildfire which was also very good, except when the phone got a bit older it would crash a lot. I've got a little tray in my car and it sits in that quite nicely too, if not you may have to buy a holder. I never come close to going over my 1GB limit using it either.

djm1278

I use my xperia as a sat nav and 3gb of data, i do have the app my data manager which tells you how much you have used and how long you have left until it gets reset. It runs all the time and displays in the notification drop down screen.

keith1950

Hi, the biggest issue with in phone sat nav is the extra drain on the battery so make sure you have an in car charger ready.

As to data useage... how often and for how long would anyone actually use it ?

colinicky

I have the Galaxy SI & have been using CoPilot as a satnav on it ever since I got it. It does not need a data connection at all once installed which you would do at home via wireless on your home network. Copilot do currently have their apps on offer, see here :- http://copilotlive.com/uk/ . I have used the goole maps as well but prefer Copilot

owen1978

Lets makes some sense here....

If you install Google Maps, you get Google Navigation

I use it all the time and it is fine, there is an offline mode
where a route a temporarily downloaded, so if you phone loses
internet connection it can still function.

"Probably the most useful new feature is buried inside Google Maps Labs: on-demand maps caching. Tap the "menu" button, select "More" and then "Labs". Enable "download map area", long press on the map around the area you want save, tap on the bubble and select "Download map area". Google Maps will download the map area within 10 miles of the selected location and outline it. This feature only saves map tiles, so you won't be able to see satellite imagery, Street View images or get driving directions while offline."

I have never had problem losing connection though.

But there also paid navigation software...
Sygic
Co-Pilot
Navigon

But i haven't used them as Google Navigation has been good for me..
like someone mentioned get an in car charger and dock.

Little trick to get better Satellite locks is to go to the settings,
Location and tick "Use wireless networks" to assist the GPS.

spondon30

Navfree is a decent free satnav for android phones and only £1.99 extra for speed cameras. It does not use your data. I also use Sygic (around £10) and Copilot (£16.66) both very good. The Clingo vent mount is good at around £9 at amazon.

Guys_Dad

Before I changed my car last month and switched to its Sat Nav, I used either my other half's S2 or my Apollo. Both worked, but my experience was that the Apollo was more reliable with its connection, but when they were working, the screen on the S2 was better. Sometimes they could take 10 minutes or more to connect - depends on weather and location.

There is an app that supposedly boosts satellite reception available too. Didn't make much difference.

However, there is a really good free app that is excellent about warning about "safety" cameras. You load it in the background before the satnav app. It's called Cam Sam from blitzer.de. I found it very accurate.

TrickyDicky101

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions. Keith, realistically I would use a SatNav at absolute most once per month (more likely 2 or 3 times a year!) so don't want to be shelling out much. With this in mind, I will try Google Navigation/Maps and have also downloaded NavFree to give it a whirl. I've also just purchased an in car charger for the S2.

Thanks again everyone!

Merry Christmas!

Meepster

TrickyDicky101 wrote: »

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions. Keith, realistically I would use a SatNav at absolute most once per month (more likely 2 or 3 times a year!) so don't want to be shelling out much. With this in mind, I will try Google Navigation/Maps and have also downloaded NavFree to give it a whirl. I've also just purchased an in car charger for the S2.

Thanks again everyone!

Merry Christmas!

In that case I wouldn't worry too much about the amount of data you'll be using.

I typically use my Sensation XE as a sat nav, using Google Maps, for around 6 or 7 hours per week and I've never gone over my data limit (ok, I have twice as much data allowance, but you'd be using it a lot less, if you get what I mean? lol)