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| I noticed the desire by many to have the name of the street of an upcoming
maneuver ³spoken². Unless Iıve missed some (well hidden) control, the 800
does NOT do that. Actually, I was surprised that any of the systems provide
that feature, because none of the general purpose speech software Iıve used
has been any good. That means a good system would probably need customized
audio content for every maneuver element (especially street names) in order
to satisfy me. Iıll have to play with a 760 in simulation mode to hear for
myself how well that feature works. They may have eliminated the feature in
the 800 to make room on the (20GB) hard drive for MP3 and pictures ... both
of which I could do without. Otherwise, as far as the basic maneuver
announcement process, the 800 is better than the others Iıve used. Iım not
sure what it is, perhaps the announcement is a bit earlier and there are
more warnings including a chime as you get to the maneuver point (not after
youıve passed it!). Regarding directions, compared to the MOPAR (Alpine)
system which is pretty good, I definitely prefer the 800 ... so far. An
update to the MOPAR system is due this spring, so weıll see how that turns
out (probably mostly just map accuracy fixes).
I also donıt recall seeing ³breadcrumbs² laid down, nor a discussion of a
way to save them in the 800. There is a ³Trip² computer where you can save
Trip information, but I think all it provides are basic statistics (total
distance, etc.). Then again, something may have escaped my trials so far.
Iıll watch more closely for breadcrumbs, and also try to get to some
road-less areas to see if that makes the 800 change personalities. FWIW,
the Alpine provides something they call Trail mode where it saves waypoints
(limited to about 150 IIRC). Of course you can save several of these and so
map out an area thatıs not in the built-in data. You can also set (the
start of) one of these trails as a destination. Iıve found no way to change
the rate at which the Alpine drops its breadcrumbs.
On 10/27/05 20:02, in article BF86E2F3. 40A4E%bcdetterich@so
cal.rr.com, "bcd"
<bcdetterich@socal.rr.com> wrote:
> Just picked it up for use in a Jeep Rubicon, so this is a quick report based
> in fiddling indoors. Iıll stick to comparing it, roughly, to the Meridian
> Platinum and the Alpine (I believe) that came in our 05 Grand Cherokee.
>
> 1. Itıs pretty well built, though the hard drive makes a little more noise
> than I expected when it comes to life. I never had a chance to use the
> earlier RoadMates, so perhaps they were of equal quality.
> 2. Touch screen is really handy and works well even with man-size fingers.
> This beats the non-touch screen in the Grand Cherokee all to heck, but Iım
> sure Iıll miss its large screen. There are a lot of neat related features,
> like touching a POI to get information on it. Again, perhaps the earlier
> RoadMates had this feature as well.
> 3. There are two modes (screens) that provide GPS measurements. Oddly, they
> donıt agree to the last decimal place or two (Lat/Long displays are in decimal
> degrees, with no apparent way to change it).
> 4. The manual and reality donıt always agree. Iım comparing to both the
> included CD and whatıs on-line.
> 5. Though I doubt most folks know or care, they actually provide C/No
> measurements in dBHz (contrary to what the manual implies). PLUS, the C/No
> numbers show well behaved system gain, unlike my Platinum which appears to
> have a major cross-correlation problem. I wonıt know this for sure until I
> get it on a mountain top.
> 6. All this fiddling was done in a house that sits on the side of a hill so
> about 180 deg of visibility is blocked. Still, it was able to acquire and
> use 6 to 8 SVs, with sometimes 10 actually trackable.
> 7. It actually shows some Forest Service roads (apparently major ones).
> Literature says nothing about importing maps from Magellanıs Topo software,
> but hope springs eternal.
> 8. When scrolling over roadless areas of the map, Lat/Long appears, though
> part of it may be off screen. Saving such a position shows the full values,
> so itıs not a total bummer ... just a pain.
> 9. The manual indicates that the GPS Status page displays altitude (meters),
> but it doesnıt. The locate button does display altitude (feet, thank
> goodness).
> 10. The built-in rechargeable battery is a really nice touch. So far I can
> say it lasts at least an hour or so of fiddling and seems to still have plenty
> of charge left. The manual says essentially nothing on the subject.
> 11. There is a connection for an external antenna. Magellan offers one as an
> optional accessory.
> 12. The power connection is on what is essentially the bottom of the package.
> This will be a hurdle to overcome in some mounting situations. It explains a
> rather odd shape of the clip that adapts the 800 to mounting systems (a
> suction cup and flexible gooseneck affair is included in the package).
>
> Hopefully Iıll get some driving time with it in the next couple of days. If
> anything important appears, Iıll post it. Itıll be a bit longer before I can
> run it side by side with the Grand Cherokeeıs system (wifeıs car). Both use
> Navteq maps, but I think the 800ıs may be a little more current.
>
> Of course Iıll check back here periodically in case anyone has a burning
> question.
>
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