Garmin Sat Nav

ShandyAndy_2

I am in the market for a new sat nav, I have had a TomTom in the past and although it was ok at the start the lack of free updates meant it was useless after a few years.

I have used Garmins in the past and always preferred them, question is do I buy one with live data that connects to my phone or not?.

The most concerning thing for me is if it eats all my data as I currently only get 100mb but looking to upgrade my phone soon.

Anyone experienced said sat navs?.

Thanks in advance.

mattyprice4004

100MB will be chewed up quickly - I'd sort that first. There's plenty of good deals where you'll get 5GB or more for only a small amount more

RichardD1970

To be honest, although I used to be a great advocate of stand alone satnavs I have used my phone with google maps for the last couple of years.

Data use isn't much (and if an issue you can download the route via wi-fi before you leave). https://ting.com/blog/how-much-data-does-google-maps-use/. Waze apparently uses even less.

I always have my phone so don't have to remember any extra kit. The maps are always up to date, it responds to voice prompts, live traffic is usually quite accurate. I don't have to carry any extra kit when I leave the car or risk leaving it in the car to be nicked.

I have a cradle that fits in the CD slot so always hands free and not obscuring any of the windscreen.

Edit.

Didn't see the 100mb :eek:

Do you need a new phone or could you just get sim only? You can get 10GB for around £12 or unlimited for £20-£25.

ShandyAndy_2

I need a new phone to be honest, it’s an iPhone se with 16mb, yes I’ve used my phone on google maps for years, and like you say I use WiFi at home, the most frustrating thing though is taking a wrong turn or turning into a super market car park for example and the route automatically switches off, do I just get a new phone and not even bother with the Garmin.... decisions decisions

[Deleted User]

ShandyAndy wrote: »

I need a new phone to be honest, it’s an iPhone se with 16mb, yes I’ve used my phone on google maps for years, and like you say I use WiFi at home, the most frustrating thing though is taking a wrong turn or turning into a super market car park for example and the route automatically switches off, do I just get a new phone and not even bother with the Garmin.... decisions decisions

Get another SE, plenty available used with 64 or 128 GB memory. Ive been using Apple maps which is very good and much improved over the years, it actually uses traffic data from TomTom.
Data wise, you can get 2gb a month for around the £6 mark which I find is plenty for me.

lopsyfa

Deleted_User wrote: »

Get another SE, plenty available used with 64 or 128 GB memory. Ive been using Apple maps which is very good and much improved over the years, it actually uses traffic data from TomTom.
Data wise, you can get 2gb a month for around the £6 mark which I find is plenty for me.

One thing to consider is the screen size of the iPhone SE is quite small but some people can live with that - the OP already has one so he can say if the screen size is ok. I will get at least an iphone 6/6s (can be obtained cheaply from ebay) or even cheap android phones if you are not attached to iOS.

knightstyle

Personally I prefer a stand alone sat nav as it stays in place in the car and is easy to use, plenty of good secondhand ones for sale with lifetime map updates for UK and EU. Phone is OK but what happens when you loose signal? Many areas we visit in UK and France have no signal.

DoaM

I have satnav built in to the infotainment system of my car ... yet I still use Google maps instead. (Albeit the phone is integrated via Android Auto so I'm using the same infotainment screen, just a different "app").

bob_a_builder

Phone is OK but what happens when you loose signal?

Most phone app have an off-line mode

You pre download the maps of the area you are going to be travelling in and use the app in off line mode depending on the exact app

Google Maps allows you to 'marquee' and area of a bigger map and just download that section

HERE, you just download the whole country map

lifetime map updates

Thats the 'lifetime' of that Sat Nav model as far as the manufacturer is concerned, which may not match your expectation of its lifetime

couriervanman

bob_a_builder wrote: »

Most phone app have an off-line mode

You pre download the maps of the area you are going to be travelling in and use the app in off line mode depending on the exact app

Google Maps allows you to 'marquee' and area of a bigger map and just download that section

HERE, you just download the whole country map


Thats the 'lifetime' of that Sat Nav model as far as the manufacturer is concerned, which may not match your expectation of its lifetime

Offline maps are no good........you want a sat nav with live traffic,once you've used live traffic on tomtom (very good) Garmin (good) you wont go back

bob_a_builder

They are if you pass thru an area with no signal !

"Use offline maps
After you download a map, use the Google Maps app just like you normally would. If your Internet connection is slow or absent, Google Maps will use your offline maps to give you directions."