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Screecha

Screecha

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Hi All,

Back for some more information/opinions. I did a search and could not find anybodies opinion on what they think of the Navigation system in the 5th Gens. I have never owned a vehicle with Navigation so I would like the people who have experience with Navigation systems to let me know what they think about the one in the 5th Gen's. Do you guys like it compared to other navigation systems? Ease of use?

All thoughts and opinions are appreciated.

Thanks
 
Thanks Arc. It helps a little. Some people like it some don't. I guess we will have to wait until we pick the rig up and see how we like it.
 
4Runner NAV verses NUVI

Hi:

The limited NAV is not bad. Its ability to acquire sattelite connections is actually better than my Garmin NUVI. Big disadvantage, is that you can not operate it via the display when the vehicle is in motion, which you can with the NUVI. This limitation is by design. LEXUS NAV while similar is actually better. The bluetooth phone is not as good. You have to go through more commands than other NAV when dialing by name. You also can not adjust the voice volume in this mode with my phone. Maps actually have great detail. So it is not bad, but others are better.
 
I hate my factory NAV, my $200 Garmin NUVI is twice as accurate. Mine will be for sale soon if u want it.
 
First week it had me doing a big circle on an eight lane road...continuous u-turn loop. I was pissed.

I have not turned it on again since then.

Compared to anything with Google maps / navigation, it sucks terribly. I use my Motorola Droid when I need navigation.
 
Mod Not Possible In 5th Gen

Thanks for posting the reference to the mod. I am not aware of anyone able to mod the 5th gen simply through reconfiguration (no wire cutting). I understand the mods do work on the older 4th gen.
 
FWIW I'm very satisified with the NAV in my truck. When I first got it, I would compare its route to my iPhone routes. It has never failed to get me where I needed to go, and with everything "voice progarmmable" you don't need to use the screen while moving. (That's to say you can tell it an address, find certain POI, etc without touching the screen.) The bluetooth has worked fairly flawlessly with my iPhone both in phone and music. This is my first in vehicle NAV system, and although the software could be faster, it seems do to a pretty decent job. (BTW: To the poster who mentioned too much to dial by name. You know you can skip menus by saying the secondary command, right? At the first prompt, you do NOT have to say "PHONE", then "DIAL BY NAME" You can simply say "DIAL BY NAME" at the first prompt)

I think it does a very decent job for factory, I'm happy with it and I don't have to really worry about thieves as nobody steals (knock on wood) factory NAV.

Thanks
 
kmiller8821 said:
(BTW: To the poster who mentioned too much to dial by name. You know you can skip menus by saying the secondary command, right? At the first prompt, you do NOT have to say "PHONE", then "DIAL BY NAME" You can simply say "DIAL BY NAME" at the first prompt)

I think it does a very decent job for factory, I'm happy with it and I don't have to really worry about thieves as nobody steals (knock on wood) factory NAV.

Thanks
Click to expand...

You can also go into the settings and have the audio commands removed. The nav system will simply beeb and you speak your command. The audio commands are still on the screen for your reference. This saves time as well!
 
I wouldn't buy factory nav unless you just like how cool it looks in the dash. It's expensive and you can't take it with you to another vehicle or keep it if/when you trade or sell. You can get nice, portable, upgradeable nav units for a couple hundred bucks or less that are just as effective at getting you where you want to go. Hell, you can even get it on your phone now and just buy a window or friction mount for that. My Droid had an awesome, google maps based, nav system that I used all the time. Unfortunately, I dropped and broke it the other day and now have a new iPhone. Don't know yet how good the nav options are on that yet.
 
TTown said:
You can also go into the settings and have the audio commands removed. The nav system will simply beeb and you speak your command. The audio commands are still on the screen for your reference. This saves time as well!
Click to expand...

Good point. I forgot about that. I turned that "lady" off 3 days after I bought it. I know you can skip to the beep with the voice button but having it read every option was annoying. lol. I just press and talk at the beep now. I'm so used to it that I don't even look at the commands most of the time anymore. It's really been pretty useful for me. I like it, makes me feel like I'm in Star Trek. "Computer, dial by name..." ha
 
T4R_Finally said:
My Droid had an awesome, google maps based, nav system that I used all the time. Unfortunately, I dropped and broke it the other day and now have a new iPhone. Don't know yet how good the nav options are on that yet.
Click to expand...


Google maps based navigation is good in the city when it's good cell phone coverage. I would suggest to get a GPS software locally on the smartphone or buy a GPS unit if you are going off the major roads. Not mentioning that data connecting roaming price might be restrictive if you go to different country : )
 
I live and travel in some VERY rural areas and was very surprised how well the Droid on Verizon did. I also travel around the US on business so it was really handy in rental cars and never experienced any coverage issues doing that. The only thing is, it does use a lot of the phone battery so best to have a car plug unless you aren't going very far.

Bottom line, I'd still prefer a dedicated GPS unit but it's pretty amazing what phones can do these days. I'd rather have a small unit that I can move with me and is also relatively easy to download and install updates to, especially for the difference in the price.
 
The NAV on my '11 TE sent me all over the place when I was driving it home from the dealer. I was fortunate to have my Garmin with me since it was a 400 mile trip. I actually discovered later that one of the preferences on the factory unit was set to avoid toll roads, which explained why it kept trying to take me off of I-95. I like the detail of the unit, though I don't think it is as accurate as the Garmin in telling me mileage and expected time to reach my destination. Could be more operator study is required.
 
chatham said:
The NAV on my '11 TE sent me all over the place when I was driving it home from the dealer. I was fortunate to have my Garmin with me since it was a 400 mile trip. I actually discovered later that one of the preferences on the factory unit was set to avoid toll roads, which explained why it kept trying to take me off of I-95. I like the detail of the unit, though I don't think it is as accurate as the Garmin in telling me mileage and expected time to reach my destination. Could be more operator study is required.
Click to expand...
It also allows you to set the MPH speeds used in travel time calculations, city/highway/interstate, so you can dial it in to match the way you drive.
 
The more I use my Droid smartphone, the more I realize how crappy the built in Nav system is.

* Voice actions on the builtin take about 3 to 4 level of prompts and acknowledgments. Moreover, the level of prompts is variable for the same action (i.e. dialing someone can take 3 or 4 prompts depending on how many numbers are stored for that person). This means you always have to look at the screen to see what to do assuming you've disabled the voice acknowledgments. On a droid, you just say "call xyz mobile", or "navigate to xyz", and you're done.

* Navigation has several issues: Mostly, it has an aversion to making left turns or u-turns. It once took me about a mile out of the way by making successive right turns in order to avoid a simple u turn. Probably a legal liability over-reaction. Also, the timing seems to be a little off, so it displays a navigation action just a little late. Sometimes, you might miss a turn because of this.

* The biggest complaint from most people is the excessive means Toyota went through to disable NAV features while driving: you cannot just cut a wire, to override since the local speed is integrated with the GPS speed, and if they don't agree it locks you out.

* Other minor nuances: no option to dim the unit based on the sunset time at your current location. If you drive with your headlights on during the day, you have to manually "brighten" the display.

* No way to use the address book in your phone over Bluetooth: you have to use the phone numbers stored in your car.

Unfortunately, I haven't seen any alternatives out there that are much better, each have their pluses and minuses. I would love just be able to tether by Droid and use the touch panel screen on the Nav unit to interface to the phone and be done with it.
 
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