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Author Topic: Factory Nav alternatives?  (Read 7436 times)

Offline Exonian

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Factory Nav alternatives?
« on: 09 January 2015, 15:26 »
Being as I have a very short span of attention I've not spent hours searching the forum and at the end of the day electrical thingys seem to change to something better every other week anyway.

So, having pondered the fact that the Discovery Nav is in no way worth £750 or whatever more than a basic identical looking radio fitted as standard to the GTI/D/R and the Pro Nav isn't worth another grand on top of that when I think back to my RNS 510 I used in two different mk6's which seemed a better unit than the Discovery and not far behind the Pro.

So what ingenious things have forum members decided to use that are mk7 friendly that don't involve sticking a Tom Tom on a suction cup to the screen with a fat cable running to the 12v socket?
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Offline corgi

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #1 on: 09 January 2015, 16:19 »
Quote from: Exonian on 09 January 2015, 15:26
sticking a Tom Tom on a suction cup to the screen with a fat cable running to the 12v socket?

I did this and pocketed the £1300 difference over nav-pro... I suppose I could hard wire it in but can't be bothered... and it means that I can use it in the rental car when I go to France for the Andros Trophy race next week... fat cable and all...  :smiley:
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Offline Exonian

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #2 on: 09 January 2015, 16:46 »
I'm not anti-fat cable - I still use my 2005 vintage nav from time to time! And I've never even updated the maps on that yet it still works ok...  :shocked: more or less...

I was just wondering with all the advances in technology if there was a neat and tidy alternative to the factory nav as I have to admit the fact it's all neatly integrated does help with any car OCD issues I may or may not suffer on any given day so that alone makes the factory nav a temptation and one I gave into with the mk7.
Hindsight however is a great thing and to be honest the Discover Nav is pretty out of date tech when you consider what's available on a cheap phone or tablet these days let alone some of the fancy displays VW are now showcasing.
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Offline Mark V GTD

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #3 on: 09 January 2015, 17:50 »
I still regularly use a ten year old Tomtom Go 300! It works perfectly 99% of the time and can often offer more logical routes than the Discover Pro :-O

Plus being SD card based - if you go over to the US you just swap cards and use it in the rental car :-)
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Offline dippy_x

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #4 on: 09 January 2015, 19:00 »
Brodit clip with an iPhone holder and tomtom.  Pretty good combo!

Isn't the Apple CarPlay thingy meant to be available soon?  This will make the built in sat navs a thing of the past.  Maybe it'll be a firnware upgrade for us early adopters...
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Offline fredgroves

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #5 on: 10 January 2015, 08:14 »
Quote from: dippy_x on 09 January 2015, 19:00
Isn't the Apple CarPlay thingy meant to be available soon?  This will make the built in sat navs a thing of the past.  Maybe it'll be a firnware upgrade for us early adopters...

Whilst that in these days of technology sounds perfectly feasible, I can see VW just giving a firmware upgrade out to everyone about as likely as me becoming the next Pope.

In answer to the OP, if you pick up one of the VW magazines (Volkswagen Driver for example) you will see it stuffed full of adverts for stero/nav units  - seem to remember that you are looking at about 1000 quid for one though. I guess it would make sense if you planned to have more than one Mk7 over time and swapped it between each.
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Offline Dave the Cat

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #6 on: 10 January 2015, 08:32 »
To deal with my OCD and cable issues with screen mounted satnav, I ran a USB extention cable from the 12v socket to the RH cubby hole below the light switch. I now have a standard short UBS cable i plug into the USB extension lead and is much neater and did not involve anything that can't be undone.

See here for Pictures

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=259354.msg2467610;topicseen#msg2467610

All you need is one of these http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2m-USB-2-0-A-Male-to-A-Female-STANDARD-Extension-Cable-BRAND-NEW-HIGH-QUALITY-/271068301505?pt=UK_Computing_USB_Cables&hash=item3f1cee08c1
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Offline Exonian

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #7 on: 10 January 2015, 12:08 »
Nice one Monsieur le Chat, that indeed keeps it all tidy from the lead point of view. Simple but effective.
You could easily go from there to a Brodit clipped to a vent to keep most of the cables out of harms way.  :smiley:

Fred G: believe it or not I've subscribed to Volkswagen Driver mag since it began and VW AUDI car before that (plus VW Motoring before VWD when Neil B was there) since the mid 80s when I was just a pup and couldn't even drive!
In fact I've recently sent about 30 years worth of them for recycling due to moving house  :cry:

No, I was just curious as to the ingenuity of forum members on here as many are very switched on people (forgive pun) as I specced poverty nav on my car and have to admit that unless I keep the car years and years it will have been a waste of £750.
Next time round I doubt I'd bother...
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Offline am1w

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #8 on: 10 January 2015, 12:35 »
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Offline monkeyhanger

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Re: Factory Nav alternatives?
« Reply #9 on: 10 January 2015, 14:40 »
Quote from: am1w on 10 January 2015, 12:35
How about this for £799.99 with an 8" Screen.
http://www.driveaudio.co.uk/vw/44-vw-golf-mk7-premium-navigation-media-system.html

Now that looks a bargain next to Pro Nav (if you really want Nav) About £950 cheaper and has plenty of resale potential at the end if you don't stick it into your next VW. The proof is in it's touch response and quality of the maps - someone will have to take the plunge to know for sure.

If a third party can bang one of these units out for £800 and the vast majority of everything needed for standard Nav is incorporated into the standard audio head unit, it beggars belief how VW came to the decision to charge more than a £400 premium for standard Nav and £1000 for Pro Nav.

It would be handy if the fascia could be replaced in future to match whatever the MK8 or next Gen of other VWs will have.
« Last Edit: 10 January 2015, 15:46 by monkeyhanger »
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