maple-guy

I've been lurking around for a year or so and lately I decided that there was an issue I needed advise on to verify if I'm asking too much... So here's my first post wich looks more like a rant!

I recently tested a few Navigation GPS (Magellan and Garmin) and after testing Odysey mobile on my Axim x51v I decided to go with 'the best' Tom Tom 6. It was more expensive than the others but it was supposed to be worth every penny.

I ordered, received and installed Tom Tom 6. Very Very nice interface, very easy to use with no stylus, nice voices, etc, a little slow to calculate a route but I can live with it.

Time to get serious... I try to set my home base only to find out that when I select my town and my street name (every variation of it) I always end up in another town with a similar street name. I found out later that they misspelled 'hatley' and put 'halley' instead. If it's only that, I can live with it also...

Now the first trip... I was going to my sister's (who lives 900km away) but I needed to make a stop along the way and didn't know the location of the store. I enter the city name, the street and the address. Soon I realized that I was moving away from my target. Again, Tom Tom directed my to a nearby city with a similar street name. They was NO was to select my destination but to directly select it on the map and use the 'navigate to' function. A later call to Tom Tom's tech support confirmed that problem on several counts that I later encountered. I said to myself 'this is dangerous, I can't rely on that to navigate'

Later I found several streets and roads that have been there for decades that are missing etc etc...

That being said, I can understand that manufacturer don't get things right always on the first try. Microsoft always has several monumental problems on most software but they manage to fix it in updates and service packs without charging the customer.

Tom Tom on the other end, while acknowledging and verifying all the map bugs I reported told me that there was nothing they could do and that I would have to purchase a map update that may or may not fix my problem in the future. I can't even verify the resolution of the problem before purchasing. While they take great credit for the coverage of the maps, POI and stuff, they are quick to dismiss map problems as 'not really being their fault'. They try to have it both ways. In the end, who's responsible for the product? I have a navigation software that I can't navigate with and the manufacturer won't fix it unless I pay for something that should have been there in the first place... Am I asking to much?

While not quite as good looking, at least Odysey managed to have everything right on the map side.

Can we generalize and say that the Navteq maps are better for North-America (Canada at least) than the Tele-Atlas maps?

Using Navteq maps, is Iguidance better that Odysey for the VGA display scrolling?

Thanks for reading and have a good evening!

djmadfx

Try inputting your stuff using the zip code instead of town and state. Let me know how that goes for you.

RobMan

Navteq versus TeleAtlas? The answer -- it depends! Depends on age of map data and where you are. Sorry!

This LINK is a neat source to directly compare the two map sources. You can look anywhere in US and Canada and drill down to compare the two. Check it out!

__________________

stevenator65

My father just moved into his brand new home 1 month ago. It's already on TT6.

maple-guy

djmadfx: Doesn't work... I tried. I also tried 'LIVE' with the Tom Tom guy which was ironically named Thomas and he witnessed the problem. If there's a way (which is entirely possible) we both didn't know how to do it so it's not really obvious. I've got at least a dozen examples but here's one of them which had me drive 8km in the wrong direction last week.

Go into the 'explore map' section of TT6 and try to input the address to that store:

Quebec City Store

There's a map on the page so you can validate your findings.

For some unknown reason, I'm able to navigate the map (in the 'explore map' section ) and manually select the address and navigate to it.

Try it and let me know what you think.

JF.

maple-guy

Originally Posted by RobMan

Navteq versus TeleAtlas? The answer -- it depends! Depends on age of map data and where you are. Sorry! This LINK is a neat source to directly compare the two map sources. You can look anywhere in US and Canada and drill down to compare the two. Check it out!

Thanks for the link, I'm only able to see the TeleAtlas maps, the Navteq choice shows a blank screen. Are you seeing the same thing?

Thanks

redchev1

I purchased TT6 for my x51v last week and received it on Thursday and immediately used it on a weekend trip. Great service from buyGPSnow as usual. Easy to use and excellent interface but I noticed a few map problems even though the TT web says I have up to date maps.

There are four year old roads in my neighborhood that show on my year old Pharos Ostia software but not on TT6.

TT6 directed me to make a left turn across the oncoming lanes of traffic (divided highway) where no left turn route existed.

A few miles away, TT6 directed me to take a right turn and go around several blocks to go left at a freeway exit where a left turn was legal and had a signal for 25 years.

I like the TT6 software but am a bit disappointed with my non-refundable purchase since I had never run into such goofy directions with my "less slick" Ostia software.

maple-guy

Originally Posted by redchev1

I like the TT6 software but am a bit disappointed with my non-refundable purchase since I had never run into such goofy directions with my "less slick" Ostia software.

Indeed, that is very disturbing. I can live with the fact that the software is not refundable as most software are. What is more disturbing is that they are not willing to fix their broken software unless we pay for should have been correct in the first place.

I mean, the age of the maps is one thing but as you say incorrect directions and in my case, directions to one city/street that end up in another city is unacceptable and borderline dangerous.

Even in the PPC world, I've been developing database driven software for a fleet of Axims on delivery trucks for 4 years and when one or more software package as a bug, the developers are more than willing to fix it to bring their software up to par to its own specs.

Shame on Tom Tom