Done to death SATNAG question.

[TJBi]

iGO is still the best.

Which iGo is that?
I recently acquired an Android head unit that has iGo PAL installed but can see no way of importing WildCamping (or other organisations') POIs. It also sometimes fails to provide voice navigation, and I have not yet been able to identify any reason for this. Some routeing in my local area is far from optimal and it sometimes claims that there is no road that I can use to go places, when there is no physical or regulatory issue at all and I have been travelling to and from those locations for decades! If the POI import issue can be overcome, I would be tempted to persist with the iGo for a bit longer in an attempt to overcome other issues.

 

[Geek]

I've never seen iGO pal. Presumably it's a cut down version. iGo has been around for a long time. There are many versions.

The easiest to install is iGo Nextgen, but even with that only certain variants will plan routes taking into consideration the vehicle size and weight.

It's really too complex to go into all the details here, I'm afraid.

 

[Minisorella]

I'm not sure if any phone or tablet has true gps like a satnav... although this may have changed. When I looked into it a couple of years back, I recall they just used a simulated gps system that relied on wifi and internet. I've tried using a phone or tablet from time to time but the signal can be patchy and leave you in the lurch. The only time my garmin loses signal is when I use the Dartford Tunnel I'm a great believer in having separate, dedicated tools for different jobs because if one goes, you've still got all the others! Important to keep a satnav updated with the latest map changes, etc, or the unit can't do its job properly.

PS. I've used TomTom and Garmin and prefer the Garmin in general.

 

[TJBi]

I'm not sure if any phone or tablet has true gps like a satnav... although this may have changed. When I looked into it a couple of years back, I recall they just used a simulated gps system that relied on wifi and internet. I've tried using a phone or tablet from time to time but the signal can be patchy and leave you in the lurch. The only time my garmin loses signal is when I use the Dartford Tunnel I'm a great believer in having separate, dedicated tools for different jobs because if one goes, you've still got all the others! Important to keep a satnav updated with the latest map changes, etc, or the unit can't do its job properly.

PS. I've used TomTom and Garmin and prefer the Garmin in general.

The problem is that Garmin have made it extremely difficult to update my nüvi, with Garmin Express having decided some time ago that it would no longer recognise my SD card, so I have to pick out sectors of varying size and shape on a map and import them by a convoluted method. The Garmin has also taken to freezing during journeys (particularly longer ones) and it is then slow to reboot. My phone and tablet both have GPS, as does the Android head unit that I have installed in my motorhome. The problem is to find a navigation app that provides the features that I require. The iGo PAL has some nice features but appears to be incapable of importing POI databases (and makes some weird routeing decisions). Copilot is apparently capable of importing the POIs but voice navigation is pretty much lost in my music, and vehicle speed (difficult to make out on the dashboard - particularly km/h) is displayed far less clearly in Copilot than the iGo app. I may just keep the Garmin to display vehicle speed and use Copilot or another app for navigation.

 

[marchie]

I'm not sure if any phone or tablet has true gps like a satnav... although this may have changed. When I looked into it a couple of years back, I recall they just used a simulated gps system that relied on wifi and internet. I've tried using a phone or tablet from time to time but the signal can be patchy and leave you in the lurch. The only time my garmin loses signal is when I use the Dartford Tunnel I'm a great believer in having separate, dedicated tools for different jobs because if one goes, you've still got all the others! Important to keep a satnav updated with the latest map changes, etc, or the unit can't do its job properly.

PS. I've used TomTom and Garmin and prefer the Garmin in general.

Agreed re specific tool for the job. The Remoska SatNav was always too ambitious a project, even with a pure sine wave inverter fitted; but it does make lovely jacket spuds while you're waiting for the satellite signal to return ...

Steve

 

[Geek]

I'm not sure if any phone or tablet has true gps like a satnav... although this may have changed. When I looked into it a couple of years back, I recall they just used a simulated gps system that relied on wifi and internet. I've tried using a phone or tablet from time to time but the signal can be patchy and leave you in the lurch. The only time my garmin loses signal is when I use the Dartford Tunnel I'm a great believer in having separate, dedicated tools for different jobs because if one goes, you've still got all the others! Important to keep a satnav updated with the latest map changes, etc, or the unit can't do its job properly.

PS. I've used TomTom and Garmin and prefer the Garmin in general.

Unless you buy your phone in a pound shop, it will have a full GPS receiver of higher spec than a satnav. The drawback if a phone is the battery drain of running with the screen on and the law about using a phone when driving

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I'm not sure if any phone or tablet has true gps like a satnav... although this may have changed. When I looked into it a couple of years back, I recall they just used a simulated gps system that relied on wifi and internet. I've tried using a phone or tablet from time to time but the signal can be patchy and leave you in the lurch. The only time my garmin loses signal is when I use the Dartford Tunnel I'm a great believer in having separate, dedicated tools for different jobs because if one goes, you've still got all the others! Important to keep a satnav updated with the latest map changes, etc, or the unit can't do its job properly.

PS. I've used TomTom and Garmin and prefer the Garmin in general.

You would struggle to find a smartphone that didn't have a proper GPS chip in it that didn't look at several different GPS systems American Russian and European, the Wifi/Internet ones went out a long time ago, but the new ones do still use the internet in big cities where there is little sky due to tall buildings, and if you have a smartphone anyway seems daft to pay hundreds for something you already have in your pocket.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Unless you buy your phone in a pound shop, it will have a full GPS receiver of higher spec than a satnav. The drawback if a phone is the battery drain of running with the screen on and the law about using a phone when driving

There is no law saying you cannot use a phone when driving, the law is you cannot touch it while driving, so you just set it up the drive off.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

From https://www.westyorkshire.police.uk...If you're the driver,you're driving or riding.



When you can use a phone in your vehicle

If you’re the driver, you can only use your phone in a vehicle if you need to call 999 or 112 in an emergency and it’s unsafe or impractical to stop or are safely parked. You can use hands-free phones, satellite navigation systems and two way radios when you’re driving or riding. But if the police think you’re distracted and not in control of your vehicle you could still get stopped and penalised.

If you are safely parked and dial a number to begin a call before you set off on a journey, you can continue with the call when you are hands-free. However, you must end the call using hands-free, not by pressing the phone itself.

You can also use your phone if it is stored in a dashboard-holder. A dashboard holder allows the phone to be connected to the vehicle which means that people are not touching their phone whilst driving.

Hands-free means that the phone call is made and ended through buttons in the vehicle and not by touching the phone in any way.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Not forgetting of course that they use sat nav on driving lessons and the test now so the little loves don't get lost.

 

[marchie]

Not forgetting of course that they use sat nav on driving lessons and the test now so the little loves don't get lost.

Whatever happened to 'change down to 2nd gear at roundabouts' and 'deomonstrate the hand signal for 'Slowing Down' [in case the indicators fail at the same time as the engine dies, as happened to me on a Bank Holiday weekend on the way back from a dirty weekend's camping with my then fiancée [see my Post re the Viva Van in 'What did you do to your Van today]. The bloody Van died on the hump of the Bridge in Bridgnorth [or was it Bewdley?] on the Sunday night, and I had to throw a sickie the following morning [well, the Van was sick] so that Dad and i could go and recover it ...

Steve

 

[jagmanx]

With the advances in phone tech
A proper gps
B sophisticated apps many of which allow simple import of locations from camping a pps

I now believe dedicated satnavs are oldhat but still perfectly good.
One minor advantage of a phone is that you can use it in portrait mode as well as landscape.
Same applies to a 7in tablet which also gives a large display.
Use of a sim card or tethering also good.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I have a 10 inch tablet, it's like driving a tesla, I particularly like the way a tablet or phone goes dark at night, my sat nags never did that I don't think.

 

[marchie]

I have a 10 inch tablet, it's like driving a tesla, I particularly like the way a tablet or phone goes dark at night, my sat nags never did that I don't think.

Our Garmin 780 Camper has Night Screen [dark] settings, Kev. I think it is a default setting, because I don't remember opting for the change [but it was almost 2 years ago, and I did make lots of changes in at least 2 hits, so I may have chosen the Night setting on autopilot!

Steve

 

[Pudsey Bear]

It's yonks since I used the TomTom so I wasn't sure.

I wonder how long a Yonk actually is, is it an official measure of time?

 

[marchie]

It's yonks since I used the TomTom so I wasn't sure.

I wonder how long a Yonk actually is, is it an official measure of time?

It's an official unit of time used exclusively by the male of the species, Kev, and is completely flexible; any time from last Tuesday back to the date of Grandad's funeral or Sid & Edna's wedding, and is useful for heading off pending family disputes about key dates. There is a female equivalent unit, usually referred to as 'Ages ago', and used in response to the male question, 'Haven't seen those shoes/that dress before. When did you get them?', except in this case it could be as recently as last week, but the husband didn't notice ....

Steve

 

[Minisorella]

I'm learning from you guys that phone gps has moved on in recent years but I still think most can only use a triangulation system of mobile masts rather than true satellite gps. In general I personally think phones are great for occasional directional use but I still much prefer a satnav for the van.

 

[Minisorella]

It's yonks since I used the TomTom so I wasn't sure.

I wonder how long a Yonk actually is, is it an official measure of time?

That reminds me of when I lived in America. Where we would say, for instance, "haven't seen you for donkey's years", they would say "haven't seen you in a cow's age". We wondered if it was a case of Chinese whispers on the Mayflower and they ended up with the wrong animal

 

[Minisorella]

I have a 10 inch tablet, it's like driving a tesla, I particularly like the way a tablet or phone goes dark at night, my sat nags never did that I don't think.

I think it's an option in the settings on lots of satnavs. All mine have had this over the years - TomToms and Garmins.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

It's a personal choice.

Sat navs will show you the sats as they are found, a phone already has them as it's on all the time so quicker.

I tap my screen, tap Google maps and then tap the mic icon and simply ask for a cafe near me and it pops up all the ones near me, I tap one and were off to it, I'm out of touch with the standalone but can they do that?

if you have a smartphone, download Google maps and try it.

And yes it does use triangulation they all do but it's not triangulating it requires four sats to give approx 5m position accuracy, and 1m is on the way apparently, it only uses phone masts if it loses the sky, they can view at least four satellites from virtually any point on the planet.

Also with Google maps, it tells you where the traffic jams are, you can even have 3d maps with real buildings on it, and you can set it up on your PC and send the instructions to the phone, I have my data on all the time as it uses so little, but you can download a very large area onto the phone too in case you are going into a bad area like the highlands.

There are plenty of other sat nav apps too in case you don't like any one of them.

There is a huge amount of info on the net abut GPS on phones.

Test your Android device’s satellite navigation performance

Use the GPSTest app (or similar) to find out whether your smartphone is benefiting from the increased positioning accuracy that Galileo provides.

www.euspa.europa.eu