07Ex

I have a TomTom, not sure what model, and it's good enough for what I need.

screwface

it scares me to know that 20 years from now people won't even know how to navigate because everyone will be dependent on little boxes to explain how to go anywhere. i guess it's a good tool if you're not skilled in spatial orientation but i find it to be pretty bloody useless

viper_2_4

It just makes it easier...

by your logic computer's shouldnt' exist...

if a voice aided navigation system prevents 1 person from trying to drive with a map and not paying attention, and then getting into an accident, it seems worth it...

zyepher

If im in kingston, ontario and want to know where the nearest swiss chalet is while im driving around?

screwface

that's not my logic. i never even drew a comparison. a computer is a useful tool, just like a calculator. neither discount practical knowledge, quite the opposite; both require practical knowledge to be used to their potentials.

on the other hand, in-car navigation systems are not tools at all. they replace practical knowledge with simple words and pictures that a child could understand. frankly, i'm wary about sharing the road with people who either lack the knowledge to work a real map and compass or are so foolish that they actually need a navi system to prevent them from doing something as stupid as attempt to read a map WHILE driving rather than pulling over to do so.

ask someone or use a phone book. takes about as much effort as actually walking from the car into the swiss chalet.

anyway i don't wanna argue with anyone i just see navigation to be as important a part of GETTING somewhere as the actual driving is (unless you're driving aimlessly of course.) frankly, part of the adventure of driving is getting lost then found again and eating at unfamiliar places. if you're gonna have a box tell you where you oughtta go you may as well just hop on a train and follow the tracks.

daquel

Magellan 3140 works for me.....Bluetooth....$200....Kijiji.....Brand new...

Pyro

that's a huge assumption dude. yes i understand where you're coming from but realistically there are a lot more reasons for GPS than to just get it to tell you how to get from point A to point B

In the summer, i worked at an engineering firm as a quality control consultant and it required a lot of on site work in different locations. GPS was huge in optimizing my time in getting from place to place. I dont' have the time to purchase separate maps for different parts of ontario, going from random sites in Prince Edward County to Orillia to Simcoe and Muskoka. the GPS worked wonders for me.

Your arguement about a phonebook is also flawed since it is directed at places of business that you can look up. If i need to find the closest TD or RBC atm machine, or the nearest Petro-Canada, in a town i'm not familiar with, the phone book won't save me. I had to work in Ottawa for a couple weeks in the summer and they dont' have too man Petro Canada's around. They mainly had Ultramars and my company gas card only worked for petro.

also your comparison how calculators still require knowledge and skill to fully utilize it's potential is true and i would argue it is the same for any type of navigation aid, whether electronic or paper. your view of the GPS system and how nobody will know how to use a map because the GPS gives you direction by direction instructions on how to get there is pretty much the equivilent of saying 20 years from now people won't know how to do basic arithmetic because you just punch in the numbers and operators and it will give you an answer.

Another point i want to bring up is that for myself personally (can't speak for everyone), i never use the direction by direction guide unless i need to find the closest gas station in a town i'm unfamiliar with etc, the GPS merely serves as an electronic map displayed on a screen. The navigation and routes taken are of my own choosing.

screwface

well you've convinced me. where's the best price on a tomtom?

Cynikal.Mindset

when alex and I went to steves house a couple years ago the navi in the tsx was useful cuz we couldnt find his damn house!

szuberi

you cant be serious with this? what you mentioned is the very reason a GPS is needed. a couple of years ago....i found myself doing just what you said in the suburbs of chicago looking for freakin directions from gas bar attendants....fcukin hated that plus also had my wife screaming at me for my lack of direction sense.

GPS FTW....no road trips without it.