Forum Home
PC World Chat
Thread ID: 137138	2014-05-27 04:47:00	Just bought a Garmin 3450 - unbelievable shortcomings!	Digby (677)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
1375962	2014-05-27 04:47:00	I just bought a Garmin 3450 GPS after all the reviews and everyone said they are the best brand. I am just getting used to it of course, but I have found some major shortcomings. I live in Tauranga and wanted to type in two address to go to. One was in 15th avenue - which it will not accept The other was at Te Puna Road which it will also not accept ! yet when driving along these roads it shows them at the top of the screen. I will download the latest map (free maps) to see if it has improved. But surely after all these years of making GPS they would have got that sorted, after all 15th avenue has been there for the last 50 years ! and its a major route. Also the aussie girl pronounces State Highway 2 (SH@) as Shsh 2	Digby (677)
1375963	2014-05-27 05:35:00	Maybe it has Apple Maps? My Tomtom wont accept 15th ave, unless I enter it as fifteenth ave, then it is happy. Te puna rd is a foreign country to the Tomtom too. Perhaps if you approach it via Koha Crescent?	R2x1 (4628)
1375964	2014-05-27 06:37:00	Thanks I'll try Fifteenth avenue. It has lots of the "Te" roads Te Puna road is a long road that has been there a long time with lots of rich orchardists on it. Koha crescent - good one!	Digby (677)
1375965	2014-05-27 09:30:00	I just bought a Garmin 3450 GPS after all the reviews and everyone said they are the best brand. I am just getting used to it of course, but I have found some major shortcomings. I live in Tauranga and wanted to type in two address to go to. One was in 15th avenue - which it will not accept The other was at Te Puna Road which it will also not accept ! yet when driving along these roads it shows them at the top of the screen. I will download the latest map (free maps) to see if it has improved. But surely after all these years of making GPS they would have got that sorted, after all 15th avenue has been there for the last 50 years ! and its a major route. Also the aussie girl pronounces State Highway 2 (SH@) as Shsh 2 You would have been better off getting a decent phone. The GPS is much better and easier to use.	Webdevguy (17166)
1375966	2014-05-27 10:11:00	Yeah just to be annoying I tried both of those on my phone with google maps - typing 15th is all you need for the first one, it's at the top of the list. Took the whole of "Te Puna" to find the 2nd. A phone is still not always as good as a dedicated GPS but it has some advantages :)	dugimodo (138)
1375967	2014-05-27 18:57:00	Finally found Fifteenth avenue and Te Puna. Yes I looked at a smart phone but I do not want to pay a monthly data fee. And to my mind a dedicated GPS "should" be better than a smartphone, just like my digital SLR is better than a smartphone camera.	Digby (677)
1375968	2014-05-27 19:42:00	Also the aussie girl pronounces State Highway 2 (SH@) as Shsh 2 LOL, husbands Navman is like that. Especially maori place names....some of them are rather incomprehensible, you have to look at the screen to see what exactly it is talking about.	pctek (84)
1375969	2014-05-27 21:22:00	Finally found Fifteenth avenue and Te Puna. Yes I looked at a smart phone but I do not want to pay a monthly data fee. And to my mind a dedicated GPS "should" be better than a smartphone, just like my digital SLR is better than a smartphone camera. Just because a dedicated GPS "should" be better doesn't mean they are.;) If you don't want to get a phone on contract why not get one on pre pay? My fiancee often uses the Google turn by turn navigation on her iPhone 5 if we are needing directions when we are out. All good so far :) The user experience on a phone tends to be a whole lot better than on a dedicated GPS :)	Webdevguy (17166)
1375970	2014-05-27 22:27:00	I think there are advantages to each and they both do the job. I use the $19 a month prepay option with Telecom with 500Mb of data and it's usually plenty for me. If I need more it's never because of using the phone as a gps, yes it uses data but unless you navigate with it constantly it's not really enough to notice. On average I'd use mine to navigate 4 or 5 times a month.	dugimodo (138)
1375971	2014-05-27 22:30:00	Smartphone are better IMO for most people. The maps, the lang packs etc .. are updated regularly. Features are added in, like public transportation services etc - timetables. You can drive, bus, train, ferry, walk. You can google addresses not on the dedicated GPS. If you get really stuck you can turn on "google street map views". You can email and IM chat, you can access your cloud drive, some of them also sync a computer folder at home too. So you don't have to manual update that all the time. Saves you carrying 2 devices. You can get prepay and not use a dollar on it - Nav Free is a app that basically downloads the whole NZ map onto your phone's storage and gives you turn by turn guidance from Invercargil to Auckland. So it's the same as dedicated GPS. I guess a Smartphone without data might not get your location as quickly esp - you were in Auckland but didn't use the map until you got to Wellington and then turn it on ... This is car dedicated GPS I know - so for roads. If you were needing a outdoor pursuit GPS would be different though. But it's not the case. Waterproof, rugedness, longer battery, terrrain maps and things like that. From the odd time I used Google Maps - it consumed around 5MB for a 15min journey. Not sure if that was just to kickstart it and plan out the journey or if that is all the time. Ie a 10hr driving trip.	Nomad (952)
1 2 3