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Aaayup Miducks. As you know we are often out in the countryside enjoying the scenery and completely getting lost (well sort of) deliberately. We always manage to get back home though, eventually. All part of the fun. Hubbs would like to replace our oldish SatNav for his birthday next week, and he only wants one to cover 'The British Isles' as we will only ever be visiting these isles, neither of us has any interest in going further afield. I wondered if any of you NS have  a good or bad opinion on what is on offer in the shops and bearing in mind we can't spend a fortune, as we need to keep the spare dosh for any Cafes, Icecream parlours and Tea Rooms that we happen to pass while we are lost........:biggrin:

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Thanks Jonab, We do need a reliable SatNav for when we have to find a specific destination and homeward journey, but would never use one for our countryside expeditions, you're right, it would spoil it for us. We never get lost for long, we know we are somewhere in England most of the time! In fact we are just taking Daughter and G-Daughter on one of those trips as soon as we have finished drinking tea and messing about on computers.:biggrin:

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Mines a Noza Tec, a cheapo from E bay, does ok for every where we want to go, four different types of voice (mans voice,womans voice, in two different styles each) speed camera warning, tells you when you are over the speed limit,plenty of warning when to change position on the road etc, someone will be along in a bit with their sat nav experience, plenty to choose from though, mines just a basic cheapo like I said

 

Rog

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I’ve got a Garmin Nuvi55LM, still in its box, never needed it and didn’t actually want it when it was given to me as a gift.   The SatNav in my Audi is the best I’ve ever used but I don’t usually need it anyway.  The problem with using a cell phone app is it runs the battery down quickly, surely. 

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We use Tom Tom as I like to see the ETA when we are travelling anywhere...  even when we know the way!  As I'm always the navigator, I always have a road map on my knee as well because - like Lizzie - I like to see the bigger picture.  We like to hear the different voices too - the Irishman (Sean) is my favourite although we've got a lady at the moment.

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Car sat navs are a bit "iffy" especially when you know the best route and the sat nav has other ideas. I've done so much so much business travel that I don't need assistance other than to find the street when I reach the town plus it's also useful for ETA . "Route recalculation" is always being yelled at me!  :biggrin:

 

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If I had to pick one item of tech to keep it would be sat nav. I worked in the 70's as a tv service engineer covering all Notts, Derby and Leicester. Loved the job but trying to find a specific address in an area you didn't know drove me mental. My car has sat nav but the best I've found without doubt is the 'Waze' app on a smart phone. Spots jams and routes you around. Brilliant. 

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Travelled the country all of it,, from the 60s until this year with work,,,used to be given a place destination and just went and found it............there was great satisfaction back in the day......look on a map,,work out the route to go...then set off....would do the same even now ,,loved it,,last mile or two would ask a local where such and such street is ?   Sat-navs ?  no way,,just make people lazy,,and add to the no talking to strangers syndrome,,....its good to talk,,

                       Hope to get back in the 'Saddle' as it were,,  Missed my early morning starts to foreign parts,,reckon 6 months be back at it.......Glasgow,, Cardiff,, Penzance,, John a groats,, not a problem,, Ben will be there,, no sat-nav thanks..........;)

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I think that if you use a SatNav all the time you miss out on what is around you when you’re driving.  You arrive at the destination and have no idea which town you’ve gone by even.  

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I have travelled just about everywhere in Europe without a satnav and found the right places on time  for the appointment.

I do have a problem now in the UK though - the roads have changed so much. I am having to do journeys that I did 15 - 20 years ago and the fact that I used to know the routes is a disadvantage. Got completely lost in Liverpool and Birmingham 2 weeks ago. A TomTom is on my birthday list :biggrin:

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I know what you mean PP,,...I'm ok getting to any city,,,,but then the Cities have changed so much in the last 20 years i have to ask and pull over,, so prob' need a Tom tom as well,,but only for the inner Cities.....game in it  lol

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28 minutes ago, LizzieM said:

I think that if you use a SatNav all the time you miss out on what is around you when you’re driving.  You arrive at the destination and have no idea which town you’ve gone by even.  

 

My youngest son drives round the country a lot,, he'll say things like ''went to Hereford yesterday Dad'' i say did you go through so and so ?.....dunno he says ,just followed me sat-nav''   i think how sad................

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I've not lived in the UK since the advent of sat navs and, although the hire car we had during my visit last Christmas was fitted with one, it wasn't used as I know the area so well that I thought that anything the device told me would be wrong.

That idea of the sat nav being wrong and useless is based on their performance down here where, if following the advice offered by that ghastly mechanical woman's voice, it takes twice as long to get to most places than if you use the local roads - which Mme Sat Nav is unaware of. Admittedly these local roads are little more than dirt tracks but, if they get you where you want and/or need to go safely and in good time, there is no contest.

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I used my satnav a couple of weeks ago to get to an industrial estate near Alfreton, about 25 miles away. I was directed up was is virtually a farm track which goes through the old Boot's Farm Estate in Thurgarton. It comes out on the top of Oxton hill. I've travelled this track many years ago but it's rough in places and there is now a locked gate near the microlite airfield. You can understand why people who blindly follow the instructions get stuck. My wife, who was waiting to collect someone from the bus, had to redirect an artic. that had been routed this way last week.

 

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