RE: Satnav comes to Road Angel
Wednesday 10th August 2005
Road Angel NavigatorThere's an upgrade to the GPS-based Road Angel speed camera warning system available, the Road Angel Navigator. Intranetics, the first company to market it, calls it the UK’s first dedicated speed camera locator and GPS navigation unit -- although you can already download speed camera overlays for standalone satnav devices such as the TomTom.
Satnav comes to Road Angel
New device combines GPS functions 'for the first time'
Road Angel Navigator
As well as the camera warning system, the portable Navigator adds a postcode search facility, street level UK mapping, and voice prompts. Intranetics didn't say where the UK-only satnav data originates, but optional European maps are available, pre-loaded on a 1Gb SD card.
"Many devices have been successful at delivering speed camera information and many have been successful at providing satellite navigation, but until the arrival of the Road Angel Navigator there has not been a unit that combines both without compromising the ability of either function", said Intranetics' Mark Hotchkiss.
It costs £599.00, including VAT and next day delivery, plus £3.99 per month subscription fee. However, a quick scan of the site shows that the unit's not yet available, though the company is taking pre-orders.
Discussion
I think you can actually use the GPS from the roadangel in that manner. Best to inquire on www.pocketgps.co.uk
Imagine you go out to visit clients every day, but you don't always go to the same client, and you have a customer base of about 2500 clients...
Do you want the stress of trying to find the place, or do you want someone to guide you there without having to worry??
I think your comment is a little over the top..
slinky
Do you want the stress of trying to find the place, or do you want someone to guide you there without having to worry??
I think your comment is a little over the top..
slinky
cerby4.5 said:Want to drive from your door to the door of a hotel in Italy? Would you prefer to use a map or just programme it in?
Why does anyone need SatNav, Can't they read a map??????
IMHO its a gadget for stupid people who should not really be in control of a vehicle anyway!
It came as a std feature in my 2004 Jeep, first thing I did was take it out and put a decent Alpine head unit in its place!!
I think you should convert your Cerb from fuel injection to carbs and eliminate every last element of electronics from it.
Luddite!
cerby4.5 said:
Why does anyone need SatNav, Can't they read a
IMHO its a gadget for stupid people who should not really be in control of a vehicle anyway!
It came as a std feature in my 2004 Jeep, first thing I did was take it out and put a decent Alpine head unit in its place!!
IMO it is a gadget for people who like to concentrate on the road when driving rather than reading a map. It is there to make life easier and does not have to be turned on all the time.
Fine, obviously touched a few nerves here?!
Obviously it works for some people, but for me there are much better things to invest in!
Am certainly not a luddite, but personally it is easier for me to do a route plan that faff around with Sat Nav.
Those of you who buy it, I hope it works!
>> Edited by cerby4.5 on Wednesday 10th August 12:51
Obviously it works for some people, but for me there are much better things to invest in!
Am certainly not a luddite, but personally it is easier for me to do a route plan that faff around with Sat Nav.
Those of you who buy it, I hope it works!
>> Edited by cerby4.5 on Wednesday 10th August 12:51
cerby4.5 said:
Fine, obviously touched a few nerves here?!
Obviously it works for some people, but for me there are much better things to invest in!
Am certainly not a luddite, but personally it is easier for me to do a route plan that faff around with Sat Nav.
Those of you who buy it, I hope it works!
>> Edited by cerby4.5 on Wednesday 10th August 12:51
Small nerve touched, but I find the sat nav very helpful when I am on new ground although I think it is unlikely to give the best route that someone who knows an area well would use. What really winds me up is seeing idiots driving towards me and clearly trying to read a map at the same time. If I am not in the car with nav, I also do a route plan so I can concentrate on the road.
I am a sat nav convert. I had no trouble finding towns etc and I agree with the plan ahead method but it was always the last few miles in a city that used to get me! I found having to keep stopping to read and a-z too frustrating.
The road angel looks like a good bit of kit. I have Tom Tom on my PDA with the downloaded speed camera database. I have found the navigator 5 not as good as the 3 and the camera database is just OK. It has most of the cameras but quite often multiple entries so it goes off several times for 1 camera. Also, whilst new ones are added, old ones are not removed so you get a warning for a long sice gone camera.
The road angel looks like a good bit of kit. I have Tom Tom on my PDA with the downloaded speed camera database. I have found the navigator 5 not as good as the 3 and the camera database is just OK. It has most of the cameras but quite often multiple entries so it goes off several times for 1 camera. Also, whilst new ones are added, old ones are not removed so you get a warning for a long sice gone camera.
The key with SatNav is to use it intelligently. If you blindly follow the route, it will get you there, but you are a numpty. You can use it to see short cuts, potentially more interesting driving roads and for hazard spotting (see the sharp ben coming up).
I had the BMW system with just arrows and no map a few years ago. It was awful. You felt that you were driving blind. You might set off somewhere and have a suspicion that this was not an ideal route, but have no way of seeing where it wanted to take you. It once took me off at a motorway junction and back on down the slip road on the other side!
I had the BMW system with just arrows and no map a few years ago. It was awful. You felt that you were driving blind. You might set off somewhere and have a suspicion that this was not an ideal route, but have no way of seeing where it wanted to take you. It once took me off at a motorway junction and back on down the slip road on the other side!
andyps said:
What I have often thought would be useful would be the ability to take a feed from my road angel to link to a route planner programme on a PDA. I have the GPS with the road angel, and the PDA for a screen - why not a link between the two?
I use a Road Angel II and TomTom 5 on a PDA. Only warning I'd give is the Road Angel NMEA 2 output is a bit broken and certain packages (Microsoft Autoroute for example) will not work with it.
andyps said:
What I have often thought would be useful would be the ability to take a feed from my road angel to link to a route planner programme on a PDA. I have the GPS with the road angel, and the PDA for a screen - why not a link between the two?
Origin B2 can do that as well I think.
I bought a Navman unit last year for around £280.
Wouldn't be without it.
Yes, I can read a map, but it is much easier to find your way out of an inner city location that you are unfamiliar with using Satnav than it is stopping every few minutes to check a map (because checking your map whilst driving would be very dangerous
)
Add in the speed camera warnings, and the fact that you can get an ETA for your destination (which is always pretty accurate - with the exception of major hold-ups) and it makes travelling around a damn sight easier!
Wouldn't be without it.
Yes, I can read a map, but it is much easier to find your way out of an inner city location that you are unfamiliar with using Satnav than it is stopping every few minutes to check a map (because checking your map whilst driving would be very dangerous
) Add in the speed camera warnings, and the fact that you can get an ETA for your destination (which is always pretty accurate - with the exception of major hold-ups) and it makes travelling around a damn sight easier!
I have been driving around the Southern half of the U.K on business for the last 15 years or so. Juggling maps & those little red city books was becoming a nightmare, especially in a manual car. Potentially very dangerous as well.
Having read various reviews on Smartnav, I liked the fact that you would be re-routed, speak to operators etc. etc., I got a demonstration & purchased a unit last year shortly follwed by the touch screen when it came out.
Can honestly say that it has totally transformed my business driving. The first time it routed me around an M25 jam, it paid for itself! Wouldn't be without it now.
Have to say its the best Sat Nav I've used. Not portable or useable outside the U.K, so not for everyone.
Having read various reviews on Smartnav, I liked the fact that you would be re-routed, speak to operators etc. etc., I got a demonstration & purchased a unit last year shortly follwed by the touch screen when it came out.
Can honestly say that it has totally transformed my business driving. The first time it routed me around an M25 jam, it paid for itself! Wouldn't be without it now.
Have to say its the best Sat Nav I've used. Not portable or useable outside the U.K, so not for everyone.
cerby4.5 said:
Why does anyone need SatNav, Can't they read a
IMHO its a gadget for stupid people who should not really be in control of a vehicle anyway!
It came as a std feature in my 2004 Jeep, first thing I did was take it out and put a decent Alpine head unit in its place!!
Well I guess I shouldn't be driving then! I can read, yes I am not that stupid! But I am not the best at finding my way, so I find my Sat Nav a big help. When it works. But I guess as I'll give up my car as I am too stupid and should not be in control of a car. FFS get over yourself!
I've got Ford's Sat Nav in my test Focus and love it.
Specifically, I like just getting in and driving off, heading down any roads that look interesting without worrying where I'm going. After an hour or two I just hit the 'home' button and bingo, a route straight home again no matter where I end up.
Specifically, I like just getting in and driving off, heading down any roads that look interesting without worrying where I'm going. After an hour or two I just hit the 'home' button and bingo, a route straight home again no matter where I end up.
cerby4.5 said:
Why does anyone need SatNav, Can't they read a
IMHO its a gadget for stupid people who should not really be in control of a vehicle anyway!
It came as a std feature in my 2004 Jeep, first thing I did was take it out and put a decent Alpine head unit in its place!!
Spot on I'd say. In fact I'd go further. Don't bother with the maps either - they're often out of date. How annoying is that? Why not save time and simply ask people for directions every few miles.
You could make many new friends and also avoid being early for that important meeting.
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