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Original poster

SatNavs: hmmm

112 replies

holidaywonk · 30/12/2009 12:18

They're a bit weird aren't they? I asked it to direct me back from the tip today (two miles from home) and it tried to send me via the M25 (ie a journey of about 10 miles).

Am also finding the constant beeping very distracting. I don't break the speed limit very often so I don't NEED to know where the speed cameras are so STOP BEEPING AT ME

Can you tell I got one for Xmas?

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LouLouH · 30/12/2009 12:24

lol, my OH has one and the fricking thing does my head in. I threatened to launch it out the window, especially as he has the irish womans voice 'coz it sounds sexy'! i change it back to the male english one at every opportunity just to piss him off like it pisses me off.

And when we were going somewhere i had directions in my hand to a car show we were going to and i said dont turn right off the roundabout go straight but no he listened to the satnav and where did we end up at a giant bloody park (the venue was on the other side of the park seperated by a brick wall!).

I hate them! Good old map and common sense!

Original poster
holidaywonk · 30/12/2009 12:35

Yes, you hear all those stories about people driving off harbour walls into the sea because the satnav told them to do it. I'm beginning to see how that could happen (almost) - you sort of turn your brain off and drive like a submissive robot.

I can see it really coming into its own when I have to go somewhere completely unfamiliar and don't have anyone to navigate for me (I hate trying to read maps while driving). But I've been quite surprised, testing it out on routes that I'm familiar with, at how illogical/slow/long some of its preferred routes are.

No sexy voices on ours, just some BBC newsreader type.

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blithedance · 30/12/2009 12:39

I am terrible at navigating, have mental block. 20 years of attempting to follow paper maps have not helped me. I can forgive the satnav its occasional peculiarities for the fact that it will GET ME HOME wherever I am.

blithedance · 30/12/2009 12:40

What you must never do, though, is follow the satnav if it takes you off a route you already know/can see by common sense. That always ends in a brick wall/ tiny country lane.

Original poster
holidaywonk · 30/12/2009 12:43

LOL. I was irritating it today by following my own route and ignoring its instructions. It kept saying 'recalculating' in a slightly passive-aggressive way. I was hoping that it would eventually scream 'Do what you WANT' and turn itself off. Actually that's a feature I'd recommend if there are any satnav developers reading this.

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LouLouH · 30/12/2009 12:50

holidaywonk amazing idea! It'd actually be like your OH giving directions as well, nothing beats the good old wobblies when out in the car deciding which way to go!

NorbertDentressAngel · 30/12/2009 12:56

DP bought one a few weeks ago after saying for years we didn't need one (thats because hes usually got me to navigate for him , but hes got some work that involves him travelling for the next month or so).

Hes also set it to the Irish womans voice but I think it was on the TomTom website that you can listen to and download (some for free) different voices.

Some hilarious ones on there but you couldn't listen to them telling you where to go, it would drive you mad.

LouLouH · 30/12/2009 13:03

NorbertDentressAngel yep thats the one. Satnav and the irish womans voice. My OH loves it, he wanted a welsh womans voice but couldn't be bothered to download. His came with the irish one on already. But i can't moan as long as he gets his thrills from a satnav i dont care! lol

Original poster
holidaywonk · 30/12/2009 13:11

Yeah you could have all sorts of alternative modes:

grumpy spouse ('Slow down FFS, we can't afford another £60 fine!')
nervous back-seat driver ('turn right at the next junction and AAARGH WATCH OUT FOR THAT LORRY')
pass-agg ('well I did mean right there, but you've gone straight on, so let me just recalculate, it's not like I've got anything else to do' )

etc

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LouLouH · 30/12/2009 13:12

lol, think you should put it to the tomtom peeps

LouLouH · 30/12/2009 13:12

lol, think you should put it to the tomtom peeps

Original poster
holidaywonk · 30/12/2009 13:13

We have a Garmin because that's what the man at Halfords told me to get. I think he saw me coming.

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DoesntTheTurkeyDragOn · 30/12/2009 13:18

"Good old map and common sense!"

No use when you are alone in the car with 3 children and someone shuts the road ahead of you, forcing you to make a snap decision which way to detour, without having any idea where you are... I thought I was never going to arrive at my destination.

This Christmas we had Elfred the Elf navigating for us. It took him over 30 minutes to work out that we were going a different route to the one he wanted us to take. Eventually, we were all chorusing "NO!" when he kept telling us to turn right. At one point, I'd stopped listening and heard him promising to put in a good word with Santa for me - presumably as a bribe to follow his instructions.

DoesntTheTurkeyDragOn · 30/12/2009 13:18

Mine's a Garmin and it's fab. They have great customer service too.

Original poster
holidaywonk · 30/12/2009 13:23

I'm LIKING the sound of Elfred. Did you download him?

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DoesntTheTurkeyDragOn · 30/12/2009 13:28

Yes, he was free from the Garmin website. I forgot to change my car into a reindeer though, which is a shame. Oh, and apparently, when Santas not looking they take the sleigh out for a joy ride. I had to explain to the SmallDragons what joyriding was after that.

At Halloween we had Dr Nightmare who announced in a Count Dracula voice "arriving at your dreadful destination." Useful for visiting In-laws I suspect.

navyeyelasH · 30/12/2009 13:34

if it's directing you onto nearest motorway you may need to change the setting to shortest time rather than shortest distance? (or other way - I get confused?!).

You can also normally tur off the beeping for cameras

HTH

NorbertDentressAngel · 30/12/2009 13:39

lol at the elf. I like the idea of seasonal variations.

One of the funniest we listened to on the website was a West Midlands voice "yow need to turn roight"

Original poster
holidaywonk · 30/12/2009 15:47

Thanks navy. I haven't figured out the preferences. DP snatched the manual and has eaten it or whatever the hell it is that men do with instruction manuals in preference to actually reading them.

Thanks also DragOn for the Elf info. Will have to find Garmin website and have a shufti.

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WebDude · 31/12/2009 11:03

I think (as a non-driver) the only thing I can suggest is to ask how one gets updates to the database held in the device...

I only mention it because in my area there are two roads with the same name within 2 miles of each other. A database fault in the Royal Mail postcode -> location database meant that various mapping sites on the web used to get the wrong place (ie not the 'Pine Close' where I live, the one in the next village). I reported that 3 years ago and it is now correct on services on the web, but a friend's fairly new (12-18 months old) SatNav still directs to the wrong one...

Web services that I've checked and are OK:
192.com bing.com maps.Google.com MapQuest.com MultiMap.com StreetMap.co.uk

Ponders · 31/12/2009 11:35

I have a Garmin & also love it but regularly want to punch the woman in it - how do you download other voices, I didn't know you could?

wonk, I was going to suggest the preference setting thing too - mine tried to make me go to a motorway too when I first got it. (The "manual" is very very small & not much help really - a Garmin works v well as an intelligence test )

Original poster
holidaywonk · 31/12/2009 17:18

Thanks Dude

And THANKS, Ponders

(Um, can you tell me how to do it then? Am I going for shortest distance or shortest time?)

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Original poster
holidaywonk · 31/12/2009 17:19

I guess it's shortest distance isn't it. Do please ignore me. I haven't even started drinking yet.

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Ponders · 31/12/2009 20:19

Sorry, I think I had to get one of my children to do mine

onebatmother · 01/01/2010 01:16

HOW DO YOU GET PREFERENCES??

and WHY does she say ricalculating? REcalculating you divot.