Sat nav experiences
By Sharon Jackson in Reader
Posted in Internet Tablet, gadgets, sat nav on January 5, 2008 at 8:52 pm
I had to go out of town today to look at a bengal kitten we’re thinking of getting. As I didn’t know where I was going I thought I’d borrow my husband’s sat nav that he got a week or so ago.
It was a novelty at first, the kids kept telling it off for interrupting when they were speaking. But, to be honest, I found it distracting for the first part of the journey as I knew the right direction to go in. I was annoyed too as it wanted to send me on the motorway and I’d forgotten to change the settings. Having said that, it recalculated very quickly and successfully. I found it really useful when I got to the town and had to find the address. It found it first time (should I really be so surprised?).
So, the big question, should pay for the map software I’ve been trialling on my Nokia N800 (the trial ran out a couple of days ago)? I’m in two minds really as I don’t often travel far and I suppose when I do I could borrow hubby’s. But then, it is fun having someone telling you where to go - and then ignoring them!
We’ll have to see because it seems my spare cash at the moment is going towards a beautiful snow-spotted, blue-eyed Bengal boy. Everyone say ‘ahhhhh’.
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Loading ...Comment by Jason Slater - January 6, 2008 on 10:54 am
ahhhhh!
I haven’t had such good experiences with Sat Nav which I’ve written about several times but one of the latest is here http://www.jasonslater.co.uk/index.php/2007/11/21/notes-on-the-adobe-creative-license-tour/.
When I bought my car I was offered a free TomTom or I could pay a lot of money and have a factory fitted SatNav system. Guess which I chose? Yep, not the free one - and I’ve regretted it ever since!
Jas.
Comment by Sharon Jackson - January 6, 2008 on 1:15 pm
I think that’s the problem with sat navs - they stop you thinking. For we all trust machines don’t we? My kids reckon that it’s not a computer voice but someone transmitting from a big building in the middle of nowhere thinking ‘Where shall we send this idiot? How evil do I feel today?’
Got your prize yet?
Comment by Mike Skuse - January 6, 2008 on 2:21 pm
As a young person I think that Sat Nav is brilliant, its very clever and could be an end to family journeys with ‘Don’t make me stop this car’ and ‘Why don’t you drive then?!’ being shouted around a thing of the past. However I think that if I were to get one as soon as I pass my test and get a car, it could be very bad for me - I wouldn’t need to look at a map and would probably not learn the roads in my area, meaning that I’d be absolutely scarpered when the battery in the thing dies or I lose it.
I’ve been on a couple of trips where my 770 has helped me guide a friend to somewhere we both don’t know, I should be able to do this with my phone from now, and that was without a gps module - using maps manually, and I dont go on enough of these types of journeys to make the most of a gps module so, I dont really see the point at the moment for me.
I think that whilst GPS systems are really useful and clever they are rather useless for people who just stay in the same area a lot, but for those who go traveling a lot perhaps for their job or just on holidays I think they could become an indispensable gadget
Comment by Mark Tennent - May 13, 2008 on 7:43 am
My son works for Navteq where he programmes the live traffic data. My daughter used to work for DSG who sell Satnavs. Neither of them use one, both finding a map more accurate.
I tried one out in the car showroom recently. Programmed in my home postcode 5 miles away. My own route would have involved one left turn and two right turns and take about 10 minutes. The Satnav - a Tom Tom - was going to send me on a 45 minute convoluted route.
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