Sat Nav - phone/Avtex/Garmin? (1 Viewer)

[Ginge tourer]

Is the £330 price tag worth it for the Avtex Tourer Two Sat Nav GPS or will my phone suffice (or a Garmin)?
Starting tour of UK in April, including NC500, and as new to Motorhoming just wondering best set up for navigation.
Thanks

 

[Gixer]

Google Maps doesn't let you put vehicle size in - I have CoPilot so I can do this

 

[The Wino]

We still use a cheapo chinese truck sat nav. Not perfect but a perfect price!

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[suavecarve]

If you have a newer Ducato with a pop-up dashboard it's possible to fit a 10in tablet and run any mapping app (Maps.me for us) tethered to a data source. I do this and split the screen between mapping, entertainment via the Aux input to the radio and a GPS speed indicator.

We use the garmin 760 mainly because we have one and it is good for heights weights and size of screen
But maps.me is great (for us aswell) as it does so much more.
Eg places to stay in europe which are then 2 clicks away from being in a satnav on the same maps.me and how far it zooms in and all offline.
Great bit of kit

 

[63720]

We use the garmin 760 mainly because we have one and it is good for heights weights and size of screen
But maps.me is great (for us aswell) as it does so much more.
Eg places to stay in europe which are then 2 clicks away from being in a satnav on the same maps.me and how far it zooms in and all offline.
Great bit of kit
View attachment 478469View attachment 478470View attachment 478472

We also use a Garmin but Maps.me give a great view of the bigger picture. Before using the tablet the Garmin would take us on ridiculous, and unknown, shortcuts dodging washing lines or roads with grass in the middle and even pedestrian shopping streets all to save a Km off the route. Now with the tablet we can see whether to take the turning or continue on the main road - it's brilliant.

 

[Sixty-nine Chevy]

Very happy with our Tourer Two. It has performed perfectly in UK, France and Spain. Maybe my age/eyesight, but I wouldn't like to try to navigate from a phone screen for long periods. Quite a price, but worth it for the use we get out of it.

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[ByronMH]

Another CoPilot user here (with the Caravan version). I also use it on a 10" tablet and find it works fine. Lots of tweaking for your preference of vehicle and journey type (right down to preferring main over primary roads, and primary over secondary etc). Aside from maps updating, as it's an app, the software is also maintained and updated regularly.

 

[63720]

While in Spain has anyone laughed at the satnav pronouncing the names of the roads in town centres, some are so long that we reach the next turn before it's finsihed

 

[Gixer]

While in Spain has anyone laughed at the satnav pronouncing the names of the roads in town centres, some are so long that we reach the next turn before it's finsihed

Same in Wales

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[AMK]

Ipad with Sygic works well for me with google maps for back up.

 

[Gellyneck]

While in Spain has anyone laughed at the satnav pronouncing the names of the roads in town centres, some are so long that we reach the next turn before it's finsihed

You should hear some of the pronunciation of Scottish place names!

 

[TDub49]

We adopt a belt and braces approach. Primary navigation tool is a Garmin Camper 770 (works fine as long as you remember to keep the Garmin Express app updated and it allows input of van dimensions etc plus has lifetime map updates). Available for around £250 or less on eBay. From its position on the dashboard, pilot and co-pilot can monitor this.

Co-pilot also then has a smart phone with whatever seems the most useful (at the time) free nav software running plus also one of those quaint book thingies with pretty coloured pictures of roads in them (I think they are called "road atlases") which are handy to refer to to look ahead, consider diversions etc. and don't require phone signals, GPS or power.

And we still manage to get lost . . . . .

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[The Wino]

We adopt a belt and braces approach. Primary navigation tool is a Garmin Camper 770 (works fine as long as you remember to keep the Garmin Express app updated and it allows input of van dimensions etc plus has lifetime map updates). Available for around £250 or less on eBay. From its position on the dashboard, pilot and co-pilot can monitor this.

Co-pilot also then has a smart phone with whatever seems the most useful (at the time) free nav software running plus also one of those quaint book thingies with pretty coloured pictures of roads in them (I think they are called "road atlases") which are handy to refer to to look ahead, consider diversions etc. and don't require phone signals, GPS or power.

And we still manage to get lost . . . . .

We have a different approach cheapo chinese sat nav and try to remember that you can see some really nice places if you go the wrong way sometimes and there usually no rush.

 

[marchie]

A current Atlas is very useful to get an idea of the area and road layouts for a larger area than the satnav can display on screen. It makes it more difficult to get lost, so we just have to put more effort into the task ... And we invariably succeed, like the proverbial toothless budgie

Steve & Elaine

 

[Oldchappers]

Try Road Lords. Free app android/iOS. designed for trucks and works similarly to Waze. Uses google maps

Not sure if there is an iOS version. Shame.

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[marchie]

Alan Carr does a lovely routine from the days when satnavs were expensive enough to be worth breaking into cars to steal. In 'Ultra Camp' mode, he starts, 'It wasn't the fact that my lovely, shiny, pink car had been violated by being broken into; it wasn't even the damage they caused to steal my lady with THE voice. It was the way she betrayed me so easily by giving her affections to her new owner. The last thing I heard her say as I chased the thief down the street [mincing run across the stage], was 'After 100 metres, take the first turn left ...'. 'Hussy!'

Steve

 

[SpeedyDux]

I wouldn't rely on a phone for navigation on its own after an incoming call made me miss a junction on the M25.

Horses for courses. The Garmin 760 is very good overall, and I have learned to ignore a few iffy directions that would take me off the main road for silly shortcuts.

 

[Hammie]

We still use a cheapo chinese truck sat nav. Not perfect but a perfect price!

I’m happy with my Goldbay for now £35. Inputs the sizes etc.