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We have 2 satnavs, a tomtom and a cheap one. We dont use them much as the last few years weve not travelled much. A few years ago when one of my grandsons was learning to swim I use to take him to a nearby spa. I knew exactly how to get there but was convinced there was a shorter route. So setting the SN to continue the quickest route I set off. So far so good until I entered the area where the spa was. " turn right and straight on....recalculating...at the next exit turn left, after 200 m turn " you get the gist. I finished up going round in circles and eventually got stuck as I couldnt turn round and had to reverse quite a way back

 Every time I passed a certain point where there were 3 old men sitting( oops they were old to me then) they just glared at me and probably thought " woman driver"

I did however find a quicker route just by looking around.

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I wouldn't say mine's the best.  I don't use it much anymore.  It was handy when we were driving to Canada and back.  It once helped us to find a dentist in South Dakota when Mrs. L had a tooth problem on the way.  Apart from that I mostly consider them a novelty at best and a distraction at worst.

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One of the best in car driving aids, provided you keep it up to date, many have lifetime free map updates. Given that we do not have too many choices on alternative routes outside the urban areas I use it as a speed warning due to the constant changes in limits that we suffer from here and a warning of traffic delays on your proposed route. You must still of course use common sense.

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I used mine on my recent drive to Amsterdam but once I'd found the E40 after leaving Calais it became redundant. They are useful but in the UK I don't really need one. In Glasgow, which I used to know quite well, I turned it on as the city has changed enormously since I was last there but had to turn it off again. I found it way to distracting in heavy traffic and simply relied on road signs to navigate my way out.

At work we had TomToms and for an experiment set it from 'fastest' to 'shortest' route on a journey from Carlton to Nuthall. It seems it overlays the map with a straight line and takes you through Nottingham using every little side road closest to the straight line. I went down streets I didn't even know existed and had to give up.

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I detest the damn things. I had one for Christmas years ago, and I never took it out of the box for months. 

I was brought up on a mid 50's AA Book of the Road, and OS maps. 

Every time we use it, madam and I end up rowing. She's no idea whatsoever of postcodes, and I expect an instant response, so it's a recipe for disaster. 

I only need to visit a place once, and it registers instantly ! 

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So true Brew, but I've always thought that some basic form of map reading should also be compulsory.

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