Thread: In Car Nav?

Andrew

You need to be a bit careful in this area. As I understand it ( and I'm sure the real experts will chime in ) there are basically two types of GPS units around these days.

1. Your "street pilot" type which are the Tom Toms etc. These are the ones Harvey Norman and Dick Smith etc are flogging. They are great in the city and give you audio directions etc. However they are fairly useless in the bush. Some don't even supply a basic GPS position you can transfer to a paper map.

2. A mapping type GPS with the maps loaded and containing the bush tracks. This is your Garmin and Magellan type units. Apparently Magellan has the lead at the moment with their onboard mapping software which has most of the bush tracks on it.

Or you can go with a basic GPS such as the Garmin ETrex that does not contain mapping but does have snail trails and waypoints etc. You can also attach these units to a PC or PDA running mapping software. These can also be used for bushwalking etc.

Before you buy, its advisable you talk to a shop that supplies GPS to the 4WD fraternity such as Telstat down in Seaford or TimePlus in Sydney Road.

I am still running an old Garmin GPS 12XL that is black and white has no mapping but does have an external power input and an external antenna input. The latter is great if you are doing a lot of driving in dense bush. I would love to go to a full colour mapping unit when SWMBO can be convinved.

After the $wd show I played with a Uniden 8350, and a garmin 310, I think that sounds right....anyway looks like neither will do the GPS fuctions I would need, so I will get both a Etrex GPS and one of the nav units listed....more likley the uniden, a bit cheaper and I felt more at ease with it, and its got a mp3 player !

Can others offer any comment on either uniden or Garmin units above please?

Andrew,
After getting severly lost in Melbourne on several occassions (2 involved trying to find Land Rover parts places ) I was really seriously thinking about the satNav options again.

The eTrex does everything I need for the bush, but I'm now thinking a good portable satNav unit to take on holidays would be great. That way I can use it in a hire car without having to leave it in there or leave it visable. I'm starting to look at pocket type alternatives for iPaq or similar and also the Garmin etc equivalent dedicated units. Let you know what I turn up.

Here's something to ponder

Do they make SatNav units that can be turned upside down so that women can use them like they do any other road map??

Originally Posted by dm_td5

Andrew,
After getting severly lost in Melbourne on several occassions (2 involved trying to find Land Rover parts places ) I was really seriously thinking about the satNav options again.

The eTrex does everything I need for the bush, but I'm now thinking a good portable satNav unit to take on holidays would be great. That way I can use it in a hire car without having to leave it in there or leave it visable. I'm starting to look at pocket type alternatives for iPaq or similar and also the Garmin etc equivalent dedicated units. Let you know what I turn up.

Here's something to ponder

Do they make SatNav units that can be turned upside down so that women can use them like they do any other road map??

LOL

I need a satnav to save my marrage....much cheaper to buy a satnav rather than loose 1/2 I own, Marie is dead set hopless ....as you say the poor old Melways got dizzy from being turned every which way after each turn ...oh she is blonde too, so that makes it worse

Originally Posted by amshaw

LOL

I need a satnav to save my marrage....much cheaper to buy a satnav rather than loose 1/2 I own, Marie is dead set hopless ....as you say the poor old Melways got dizzy from being turned every which way after each turn ...oh she is blonde too, so that makes it worse

Bloody hire cars only ever seem to have Gregorys in them. They might look like a Melways but that's here it ends

Oh and as I found driving around Brisbane last year, your wife will still corrected you for not following the SatNav properly even when it clearly would have taken you the wrong way down a oneway street

Well we have a Uniden 8350 on the way, after a little play I will let you know what I think.

Originally Posted by amshaw

Well we have a Uniden 8350 on the way, after a little play I will let you know what I think.

Please do looking at one myself could you let me know how it goes if you do when your off road where there are no maps. What sort of read out do you get on screen.

Originally Posted by waynep

I am still running an old Garmin GPS 12XL that is black and white has no mapping but does have an external power input and an external antenna input.

Phew, someone else with one of these .

I tend to feel a bit inadequate these days when everyone else has their GPS all hooked up to a laptop with full topo maps in colour & I'm struggling away with my old 12XL, working out on a paper topo where the hell I am .