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gpspassion
93402 Posts |
 Posted - 27 août 2009 : 19:38:18
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| Thanks for checking, how long had it been since you'd used Navigon ? Up to 2 hours (theoretically 4) you shouldn't see much difference as the ephemeris data downloaded previously should still be good. |
Discounts and Assistance/Réductions et Assistance (Club GpsPasSion) / Où commencer? |
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klopus
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - 27 août 2009 : 23:02:06
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Nah, I used last time yesterday more than 10 hours ago.
BTW, here's a link well buried on Navigon's dismal US site (what not even a User Manual!?) to an official press release that hypes upcoming in 1.2 new features in an almost indecipherable officalize lingo: http://www.navigon.com/site/int/en/press/archive/2009/549 .
It seems to refer to the EU version so let's hope the new stuff gets to our colonial backwaters also. There are rumors all over the net that the new version 1.2 was already submitted to Apple. If Navigon didn't sneak in some nude pics or VOIP there's hope that Apple won't reject it outright or can it researching for half a year. But then with all this crazy AppStore process who knows.
Here's a skinny on new 1.2 features:
* TTS - Hooray! Technology by SVOX AG in Zurich. I'm really looking forward hearing "Martin Luther King Memorial Skyway" pronounced with Swiss German accent :)
* iPod Control - Nav on iPhone is already shaky enough without iPod playing it in the background so I'll pass.
* Location Sharing - Seems like an especially convoluted way to send emails from within an app.
* Auto Day/Night Switch - Hooray! They finally discovered that iPhone has a clock after all. Now Navigon needs to patent it so that TomTom won't still the idea :)
Instead of "Location Sharing" they really could have worked on their iPhone web page so it has at least anything resembling useful not speaking of User's Manual and real FAQ. Also hope that in plans for 1.3 are such basic things as proper rout preview (so you can see how profile affects proposed rout) as well as easy accessible from the map screen the list of next maneuvers. Things like real-time traffic is clearly a 2.0 material.
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NYC
Defunct TomTom Nav 6 NA/EU on Palm Treo 680
Garmin nuvi 270 NA/EU & 755T NA, Navigon iPhone NA |
Edited by - klopus on 27 août 2009 23:50:16 |
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Enrique Muyshondt
USA
409 Posts |
Posted - 28 août 2009 : 22:24:16
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I decided to get Navigon and now have purchased both US and European versions.
So far I'm happy with it and concur with the observations from klopus.
A couple of things I noticed:
- My version does remember where it was when I exited the app with the Home key. When I restart it takes a few seconds, but even while the GPS shows red, I can see where I was before and can interact with the map.
- I paired my phone to the BT system of my car and Navigon actually uses that connection to give audio directions. On the one hand it is nice, but on the other I haven't found a good way to get sound back onto the phone in case I want to listen to something else on the radio. I haven't played with this long, so I may have overlooked something.
- Initially I just connected to the car stereo over Bluetooth and was getting navigation prompts. Then a call came in and after I hung up Navigon restarted. At that time the iPod function was also turned on automatically! It was cool to hear my music. It automatically turned down when a new navigation prompt comes along. I can see where the iPod controls are necessary within Navigon because I had no way to do anything to my songs without exiting Navigon.
- Once the iPod plays over the stereo it insists on restarting where it left off when I get in the car. I have checked that it isn't playing anything while I am out, but when I get in it picks up where it left off. I don't think Navigon has anything to do with this. It is just something between the phone and the car going over Bluetooth.
BTW, I have an iPhone 3GS and I was driving a new Acura TL. |
Edited by - Enrique Muyshondt on 28 août 2009 22:26:07 |
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klopus
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - 29 août 2009 : 00:19:22
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Nice info Enrique.
quote:
Originally posted by Enrique Muyshondt
- My version does remember where it was when I exited the app with the Home key. When I restart it takes a few seconds, but even while the GPS shows red, I can see where I was before and can interact with the map.
I probably need to retract my initial observations about this. On my iPhone Navigon behaves kind of weird in this respect. On few first uses it got stuck on red GPS top line and wouldn't show the map that was there during last session. But now it indeed remembers the map that was there when the app was closed. Go figure.
What's confusing is that touching upon Navigon startup Show Map button from the main screen takes its sweet 30 or even more seconds until anything happens. BTW, after iPhone reset (Home + Power buttons) Navigon doesn't remember any map. |
NYC
Defunct TomTom Nav 6 NA/EU on Palm Treo 680
Garmin nuvi 270 NA/EU & 755T NA, Navigon iPhone NA |
Edited by - klopus on 29 août 2009 04:03:51 |
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Enrique Muyshondt
USA
409 Posts |
Posted - 29 août 2009 : 09:06:49
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I think the point about playing audio over Bluetooth is not really Navigon, but rathr the phone itself. I have to go into the iPod application to switch back to playing sounds over the phone's speaker.
Yesterday I was in a parking garage. When I started Navigon it said something about not having enough satellite reception and I couldn't get to the map. After a short time outside it had the red satellite bar, but no lock, and then I was able to get to the map. |
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gpspassion
93402 Posts |
Posted - 29 août 2009 : 12:41:33
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| It's interesting that the voice prompts are being passed over Bluetooth automatically, wonder if it's over the Bluetooth A2DP profile or just handsfree. If it's the latter it would be of interest to bikers or even to drivers who want to get the prompts in a Bluetooth earphone, will have to try that. |
Discounts and Assistance/Réductions et Assistance (Club GpsPasSion) / Où commencer? |
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Enrique Muyshondt
USA
409 Posts |
Posted - 30 août 2009 : 15:25:14
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I think the iPhone is using A2DP since it also plays music that way. Even if I don't use navigation, as soon as I start the car it starts playing a song where it previously left off (assuming the car is still set to play the Bluetooth auxiliary input).
I didn't double check, but it sounded like the song was playing in stereo. |
Edited by - Enrique Muyshondt on 30 août 2009 15:26:32 |
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klopus
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - 30 août 2009 : 20:20:21
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With more usage my enthusiasm for Navigon is fading. Now my biggest problem isn't major GPS real-time functionality (which is fine) but something that usually is taken for granted - address entry and, maybe, map quality.
I find more and more non POI addresses that just impossible to enter no matter how you do it - manually or from iPhone contacts. Navigon either crashes or couldn't find a totally legit address. All this is accompanied by long one minute or more delays with subsequent crash. And I'm not talking about new developments in some boonies. That's Brooklyn, Manhattan and Providence (capital of Rhode Island) for all sakes!
For example just try "277 Park Avenue, New York, NY". That's a huge 25 year old office skyscraper stretching 47 to 48 street block between Grand Central and Waldorf Astoria. Navigon usually crashes when I'm typing first "2" of "277". All that after painfully slow process of getting through state change from NJ to NY and entering "New York" and then "Park Avenue". If I enter zip code "10172" it goes wild and starts to suggest totally irrelevant NYC places. Trying to Navigate to the same address from Contacts results either in crash or a list of irrelevant addresses. Funny enough the "270" building just across on the other side of Park is easily found. This story with old totally legit and popular addresses repeats itself in many places including Brooklyn, Providence, etc. I would say I can't navigate to at least 40% of addresses. Needless to say that Google, Garmin and MapQuest have no problems with any of these.
To me it looks like Navigon's supposedly recent Navteq map is screwed up. Maybe compared to Garmin's Navteq map they compressed it too much, thrown stuff out of it or just introduced bugs. Then there's a definite bug in address search software that causes huge delays and crashes when address can't be find. If you look at iTunes Navigon reviews you'll notice that when people use the app longer they start to complain about similar address issues.
So, those with NA maps can you please try "277 Park Avenue, New York, NY" to confirm that this is not some weird conflict on my iPhone 3G 8GB?
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NYC
Defunct TomTom Nav 6 NA/EU on Palm Treo 680
Garmin nuvi 270 NA/EU & 755T NA, Navigon iPhone NA |
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Enrique Muyshondt
USA
409 Posts |
Posted - 31 août 2009 : 02:52:43
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I tried the Park Avenue address and the app crashed after I typed the r. I got thrown bak to the home screen. I then went and selected NY City Metro instead of just Ny and everything worked. I then tried New York again and this time everything seemed to work. I was given a choice of 4 different 277 Park Ave in different zip codes.
There definitely seems to be a bug somewhere.
I didn't see a way to just enter 10172 but I'll try that when I figure it out. It wasn't one of the zip codes offered for the Park Ave address.
Continued : I figured out how to enter the zip code, but 10172 doesn't work. I start entering 1017 and at that point the only choices are 10175 and 10176. 10175 only has 5th Avenue and a Verizon POI as street choices. |
Edited by - Enrique Muyshondt on 31 août 2009 14:48:14 |
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klopus
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - 31 août 2009 : 06:04:04
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| Thank Enrique. It didn't occur to me to use NY City Metro instead of simply New York. |
NYC
Defunct TomTom Nav 6 NA/EU on Palm Treo 680
Garmin nuvi 270 NA/EU & 755T NA, Navigon iPhone NA |
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Enrique Muyshondt
USA
409 Posts |
Posted - 01 sept. 2009 : 03:12:04
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I also wanted to mention that on my 3GS address searching works well and quickly. As I was trying the searches above I would get updated choices as soon as I typed the next letter. The Navigon application is responsive and easy to use. If only there was a way to keep it running when a call comes in, it would be all I need for navigating.
So far I own Mapopolis, TomTom and Garmin Mobile XT on Windows Mobile and now Navigon on iPhone. Mapopolis is dead an not really competition to any of the other ones. The other three all have some pluses and minuses. None stands out as far superior to the others, and any one of them could be favorite for different users.
For me, I like the TomTom interface slightly more than Garmin, but Garmin has more free features, like traffic and location based services. For the iPhone I went with Navigon because it was significantly cheaper and I liked their demo. The graphics are nicer than the other two, but their street names are harder to read. It is also subject to the iPhone limitation of shutting down when a call comes in. I only started using it this week so I'll have to see how I like it after I've had more time with it. |
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wco81
USA
222 Posts |
Posted - 01 sept. 2009 : 03:41:25
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The thing to look forward to is an app. which advances usability beyond what the PNDs offer. Instead of going forward and back a lot like my Garmin Nuvi, you would hope for a more branching interface with easier UI for searching POIs and adding favorites.
But right now, it sounds like all these apps. aren't quite up to replicating the UIs of the PNDs, never mind surpassing them. |
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Enrique Muyshondt
USA
409 Posts |
Posted - 01 sept. 2009 : 05:09:59
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Navigon does pretty much everything my TomTom 340S PND does, except for the Text to Speech reading of street names (promised for a future upgrade of Navigon). The only issue is that it f a call comes in the application exits and has to start over when I hang up. That takes valuable time when you are driving. The one thing it is not as good with is holding on to the satelite signals due to the less than optimal GPS implementation.
The iPhone does offer a lot of potential since it has a data connection and there could be a lot of location based services offered. That potential has yet to be realized but it is more than what a PND can offer. |
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klopus
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - 01 sept. 2009 : 05:32:51
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| @Enrique Unfortunately both of your gripes (lack of multitasking and suboptimal GPS) are limitations of iPhone stock (non jailbroken) OS and hardware and not the fault of Nav apps. Concerning GPS performance I'm afraid that even with the good GPS chip it's very hard to get proper sensitivity with small internal antenna crammed along with 3 other radios into such a slim body like iPhone. |
NYC
Defunct TomTom Nav 6 NA/EU on Palm Treo 680
Garmin nuvi 270 NA/EU & 755T NA, Navigon iPhone NA |
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gpspassion
93402 Posts |
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[TOPIC] Navigon for iPhone / iPad - Testing - v1.8
