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[ozsamurai]

The car is now sitting in the drive, time to go somewhere, but being new to driving in Thailand, I think a navigation system is essential to get around.  Any recommends from the members here on which, where etc...  Thanks in advance

Oz

[madjbs]

I personally never used one and as a result I can find my way around easily without directions. I was going to buy one but didn't bother due to the high cost.

However, a friend of mine just bought one and I gave it a try, to be perfectly honest I thought it was rubbish. It got confused when I needed it most, while driving through the small sois around Asok, directing me down sois with dead ends etc... When it was working, on the main roads it kept telling me to go stupid routes that would take longer than alternative ones.

All in all you are better saving you money and buying a decent map instead.

[madjbs]

Oh and this was a Garmin 200w I think.

If you really still want one I would go for the Mio C520 (I think thats what its called). Same price and map as the garmin but lots more features.

[ozsamurai]

I'd expect as much from a GPS in a city such as Bangkok, with all the rat hole, one way roads etc.  I would essentially like it for when we have to make trips out of the city, highway turnoffs, etc....  I think I saw the Mio at Panthip, will take another look. Thanks for the advise.

[fire2rescue99]

A Garmin Nuvi works fine.  Yes, it probably could work better in the city, but out on the highway it's great.  One thing to remember when programming, you can prioritize the fastest or shortest route.  This may cause confusion on one's own part.  That is, if you are going from Pattaya to Ban Chang (Rayong) and you request the shortest route, the unit will send you down unmarked country roads that cut across the foothills of the mountains.  What you probably want is, the highway route, or faster way.  The same thing applies while in Bangkok, while you may be going from Asoke to Phayathai, the unit may direct you to the expressway, rather the more direct city street route, depending which mode you are in.  Another nice feature while on the highway, the Garmin alerts you to police boxes ahead and possible radar traps.  Good luck!

[Governor]

fire2rescue99, on 2008-08-24 22:11:50, said:

A Garmin Nuvi works fine.  Yes, it probably could work better in the city, but out on the highway it's great.  One thing to remember when programming, you can prioritize the fastest or shortest route.  This may cause confusion on one's own part.  That is, if you are going from Pattaya to Ban Chang (Rayong) and you request the shortest route, the unit will send you down unmarked country roads that cut across the foothills of the mountains.  What you probably want is, the highway route, or faster way.  The same thing applies while in Bangkok, while you may be going from Asoke to Phayathai, the unit may direct you to the expressway, rather the more direct city street route, depending which mode you are in.  Another nice feature while on the highway, the Garmin alerts you to police boxes ahead and possible radar traps.  Good luck!

How much are they and where is the best place to get one?

[Merlin]

if you find it's directing you down too many little sois, adjust the preferences to favor highways more. It takes a little while to get the setting that suits you the best.

[Gary A]

I have three Garmin units. The small eTrex Legend CX is waterproof and great for biking or hiking. I have a Street Pilot 2610 for the truck and a Nuvi 750 for the car. The old Street Pilot 2610 has more features than the new Nuvi 750 but the Nuvi has a much more sensitive satellite detection device so is better for Bangkok because of the overpasses and high buildings. If your GPS is getting confused in Bangkok, you better check to make sure it has the genuine ESRI map. Since I have been using the Garmins I have NEVER been lost or confused in Bangkok nor anywhere else in the entire country. I enjoy exploring new places and without the Garmin, I would get lost a lot. At one time I was the greatest skeptic but that changed after I bought the first Garmin with the ESRI map. Peace of mind and always knowing where I am at is worth a lot to me. It DOES know which streets are one way. If you do take a wrong turn, the Garmin will quickly recalculate a new route. I would HATE to travel without a GPS.

Added - I used to be that guy parked along side of the road completely lost and looking at a huge map that has NO small sois on it. Be careful with the Garmin if you choose the shortest route because it DOES contain a lot of goat paths and dirt roads. Good location instincts do you very little good here because most small roads change direction often and seldom go in a straight line, in fact some actually go in a circle. I hate to take the same boring route every time and now I don't have to.

The Nuvi 750 has another neat thing. When you park and take it out of the holder, it marks exactly where you are parked. When you are finished doing what you want to do and wandering about wherever looks interesting it will find the car for you. Maybe it sounds silly to lose your car but some parks have MANY parking lots and it is indeed possible to lose your car. It's fun to wander around and not worry about where you are going or where you have been.

Edited by Gary A, 2008-08-25 09:40:00.

[Theyreallrubbish]

I have AGPS in my Nokia N95 and while you can buy navigation software I find the free map software is good enough as you know exactly where you are and can plan from the map by zooming in and out and scrolling in and out.

Also, how do you input an address in Thailand when the address system is so messed up?

[Dave the Dude]

madjbs, on 2008-08-24 19:53:52, said:

Oh and this was a Garmin 200w I think.

If you really still want one I would go for the Mio C520 (I think thats what its called). Same price and map as the garmin but lots more features.

Hi Ozsamurai

I've got a C520 and I am pleased with it. Good size screen,3d view functions is good, Bluetooth for the BIB!,easy to switch between english/thai spoken word, same maps as Garmin(ESRI) and cheaper!!
NOTE: there was a BIG system update that I downloaded earlier in the year, so If you go for one make sure its got the latest version installed.

Dave

[bdenner]

I'm very happy with my Mio 220 (9900 Baht at Pantip) and use it both here in Thailand with SpeedNavi and Mio Map software and in Aust with a Mio Map package. In Thailand I found the SpeedNavi package more accurate and has more features and inbuilt POI's.

[ozsamurai]

Id love to take a up close look at the garmin, for features and price, where would you recommend I go in BKK?  I will be in Oz for a few weeks, so I would like to gauge price before as I may get it cheaper there

Oz

[Dave the Dude]

Pantip is probably the best choice to view both. If you buy from Oz dont forget to factor-in the (sometimes expensive) cost for Thai map downloads.

Dave

[zepplin]

ozsamurai, on 2008-08-25 10:23:12, said:

Id love to take a up close look at the garmin, for features and price, where would you recommend I go in BKK? I will be in Oz for a few weeks, so I would like to gauge price before as I may get it cheaper there

Oz

ive got a garmin and have done 25000 kms around thailand in it and its never let me down.a must for sure.thais cannot give direction,thai ladys cannot read a map -in thai or not and its easy to miss street names here -best thing barr none i have bought in thailand bought it at plantip plaza for 15500 bht or try the gadget shop -google them they have good deals as well and throw away any map.the only thing mine doent like is trhe sky train so be carefull there-blocks the signals good luck

[Gary A]

ozsamurai, on 2008-08-25 10:23:12, said:

Id love to take a up close look at the garmin, for features and price, where would you recommend I go in BKK?  I will be in Oz for a few weeks, so I would like to gauge price before as I may get it cheaper there

Oz

Here's a link for Bangkok. They are expensive but the support is excellent. There is a guy named Art and his English is perfect;

http://www.gadgetrend.com/

[canopy]

How do mobile phones that have GPS rate?

[Prudent_rabbit]

canopy, on 2008-08-25 11:43:44, said:

How do mobile phones that have GPS rate?

I have the Garmin Nuvi 200 and would not leave home without it, great to get to all he Golf Courses, never get lost.  Also I like the "Detour" button, stuck in traffic on your present journey, just press Detour and it will find an alternate route.

If you are looking at the price in Aus, they will be cheaper, but you will get stung for maps, better to buy here, get them to throw in a Map for Australia as well and then claim the VAT back when you travel back to Aus

[justcruisin]

quote]

I have the Garmin Nuvi 200 and would not leave home without it, great to get to all he Golf Courses, never get lost. Also I like the "Detour" button, stuck in traffic on your present journey, just press Detour and it will find an alternate route.

If you are looking at the price in Aus, they will be cheaper, but you will get stung for maps, better to buy here, get them to throw in a Map for Australia as well and then claim the VAT back when you travel back to Aus



[/quote]

The Garmin Nuvi is a good choice for price and features.
About 12,500 Bt for one in Pantip including map hardware in english and thai.
I don't think ESRI have a map for Aus but they are probably the only one for S/E Asia.
I use a Nuvi on a big bike when touring also,but it locked up last time for some reason,a huge amount of vibration it doesn't like.
Gps is essential for getting in and out of Bkk...I would be still there without one !
Happy touring
Aus Rich

[tete]

The garmin nuvi 310 is on promotion 12900 bath.Gadgetrend.

[Governor]

tete, on 2008-08-28 15:43:27, said:

The garmin nuvi 310 is on promotion 12900 bath.Gadgetrend.

Strewth they are only £75 in Halfords, plus 35,000 Baht airfare, pluse the Thai maps and language downloads.

OK, where is Gadget trend please?

[Gary A]

Governor, on 2008-08-28 19:00:37, said:

tete, on 2008-08-28 15:43:27, said:

The garmin nuvi 310 is on promotion 12900 bath.Gadgetrend.

Strewth they are only £75 in Halfords, plus 35,000 Baht airfare, pluse the Thai maps and language downloads.

OK, where is Gadget trend please?

They have a map on their web site. If you know what you want, they will accept payment through an ATM transfer and deliver the product right to your home. Link below;

http://www.gadgetrend.com

[ozsamurai]

OK I went for the Nuvi 310 on special at panthip at mobile world for 12900, got the Aussie maps included.  The base unit already has UK/Ireland preloaded and Thai maps of course.  The guy tried on the 2000 for extra Oz map, but I wouldn't have it.

   Took it for a test drive to BangNa, and was mildly impressed, flyovers are a problem for it, so the GPS sensitivity is not all that good, the voice prompts are slow, and sometimes wrong.  The voice prompt is telling me to keep right, the map says I have a left turn coming!!  Follow the map, don't listen to the dam_n voice...

   After de-activating the Toll Roads, it still lead me to god knows what highway where I couldn't get off and ended up paying a toll, again the accuracy of the GPS is to fault, it could not determine if I was on the highway or the side road, even though I moved to the extreme right hand lane.

  All in all, not a good start to the Nuvi.  My $200 cheapy in Oz did a better job.  I made sure I installed all the latest updates today from the site, will give it another go.

   On the good side functionality was good, easy to use, set up and configure etc..  but lots of stuff I don't need from a navigation system, MP3, currency converter, conversions etc.. this stuff is the job of a PDA. Garmin should spend more time in developing the software/maps than this crud I think.

Oz

[Gary A]

ozsamurai, on 2008-08-28 20:06:15, said:

OK I went for the Nuvi 310 on special at panthip at mobile world for 12900, got the Aussie maps included.  The base unit already has UK/Ireland preloaded and Thai maps of course.  The guy tried on the 2000 for extra Oz map, but I wouldn't have it.

   Took it for a test drive to BangNa, and was mildly impressed, flyovers are a problem for it, so the GPS sensitivity is not all that good, the voice prompts are slow, and sometimes wrong.  The voice prompt is telling me to keep right, the map says I have a left turn coming!!  Follow the map, don't listen to the dam_n voice...

   After de-activating the Toll Roads, it still lead me to god knows what highway where I couldn't get off and ended up paying a toll, again the accuracy of the GPS is to fault, it could not determine if I was on the highway or the side road, even though I moved to the extreme right hand lane.

  All in all, not a good start to the Nuvi.  My $200 cheapy in Oz did a better job.  I made sure I installed all the latest updates today from the site, will give it another go.

   On the good side functionality was good, easy to use, set up and configure etc..  but lots of stuff I don't need from a navigation system, MP3, currency converter, conversions etc.. this stuff is the job of a PDA. Garmin should spend more time in developing the software/maps than this crud I think.

Oz

I'm sorry that you are not happy with your unit. I can only say that the unit is only as good as the map. The latest ESRI map version is Thailand Version 8.1. If you have the genuine ESRI map, you are entitled to this latest map for free. After the first free update, the cost is 1,500 baht for each new update.

[madjbs]

Same problems I had. I was not surprised really as I think Bangkok is a very GPS unfriendly place.

[indothai]

I love my GPS (garmin), bought it 2 years ago in BKK for an arm and a leg, but... that was 2 years ago.  I NEVER leave home without it.

I'm thinking of getting another soon, and from what i've been hearing, it seems that the competition is very close to garmin units.  I hear they are more "intelligent", easier to use, cheaper...  I have yet to do a survey, but I will definetly give the competition a good look.

Comment's I get are from previous Garmin owners.