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Old 07-31-2020, 04:07 PM   #1
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Let's Talk GPS!

On my cars, I've been using Android Auto, but not crazy about it.

With my new Minnie, I'd like the best I can get, and add back up camera.

Also, a very big screen.

What's the current hot ticket? I'm looking at the Garmin RV8.

Ideas? Right now there is no nav and only a radio with cassette.
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Old 07-31-2020, 04:22 PM   #2
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We’ve got a Garmin RV770. I guess the new version has an even bigger screen. (8”, I think). It’s never really steered us wrong.
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Old 07-31-2020, 04:40 PM   #3
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I would buy one from Buydig refurbished.
They have a one yr warranty and are very inexpensive.
As far as I’m concerned don’t pay much for a GPS

The Drive Smart 61. Is $120

https://www.buydig.com/shop/product/...-Year-Warranty
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Old 07-31-2020, 05:35 PM   #4
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We have used Garmin Gps for a long, long time and we find it is really good but nothing is totally reliable without doing some checking.
My daughter tends to use her phone but when traveling together, we often find my Garmin or her phone nav both have problems of different sorts at different times.
Phones are only as reliable as your planning and the cell coverage which can be totally useless in lots of places. Her phone set to get there faster route leads us down goat paths which at times. We once came to a fellow loaded a shed onto his truck as he was not expecting anybody on that street! It might have been the shortest and possibly quicker but not with a torn down shed half loaded on the truck!
Garmin also can't be fully trusted to give what you perceive as the best route, as it may feel saving four minutes and 3 miles is far better than going on a four lane interstate which parallels the old highway route. Garmin does not do well on figuring whether there are farm machines moving on the old highway!
I will not drive far without giving the Garmin a chance to route me but I also will not drive far in unknown areas without checking it's thinking!
I do not recommend combining backup cameras and GPS as all electronics become obsolete way too fast for me to have one function ruin the use of the other. The more complex an electronic item is, the sooner it becomes obsolete or breaks down.
Thinking of how many drove around with an eight track built into their dash when they really wanted a CD ?
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Old 07-31-2020, 05:44 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by Morich View Post
We have used Garmin Gps for a long, long time and we find it is really good but nothing is totally reliable without doing some checking.
My daughter tends to use her phone but when traveling together, we often find my Garmin or her phone nav both have problems of different sorts at different times. ?
That's why it's probably better to have both.

BTW, you can download maps to your Google Maps phone, which helps for travelling through spotty locations, but not for needing to enter a new location when you don't have service.
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Old 07-31-2020, 07:24 PM   #6
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Some great comments here. I am leaning toward the bigger garmins RV 77...etc.
We've hit so many areas with bad cell service that I want to make sure we also have GPS.

I wonder how useful the Garmin "campground features" are?
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Old 07-31-2020, 09:08 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by DesertRatt View Post
Some great comments here. I am leaning toward the bigger garmins RV 77...etc.
We've hit so many areas with bad cell service that I want to make sure we also have GPS.

I wonder how useful the Garmin "campground features" are?
A tad off subject...I remember having one of this first Garmin GPS units, way before the smart phone. On a plane, I was watching the Garmin as we flew over cities. I had my destination plugged in, and of course it kept rerouting me as we were never over any one highway for more than a second or two.

Somebody called the flight attendant, because they had never seem one, and worried about what I was up to. I got a kick out of that...
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Old 08-01-2020, 07:38 AM   #8
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I went ahead and bought the Garmin RV780 for $309. I'll work on the BU camera separately.

Wireless or wired? Hmmmm?
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Old 08-01-2020, 08:01 AM   #9
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I have mostly stopped using the built-in GPS devices and now rely on the phone based units. I use Apple Play to display either Google Maps or Sygic GPS on the info screens in both my car and my RV. Google Maps is pretty good if you have a decent cell signal and Sygic uses downloaded maps so you don't need an internet signal. I used to use Android Auto but find that Apple Play is more dependable.

One of the things I have found is that if you keep the Sygic maps updated they are really pretty good. I used to complain that their speed limit information was wrong but that turned out to be due to my downloaded maps being old. When I updated the maps the speed limit information was spot on.

I still have my old Rand McNally unit, and it was the best GPS device I ever had. Far better than my Garmin units, but I find that the phone based units have more accurate and up-to-date maps and as long as they will display on the vehicle's info system they are what I now use.
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Old 08-01-2020, 08:14 AM   #10
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I find that the phone based units have more accurate and up-to-date maps and as long as they will display on the vehicle's info system they are what I now use.
It's amazing how quickly Google Maps updates road changes, including most importantly roads that are shut down. But down in Tacoma the state has the SB lanes of I-5 running over on what was and will be the NB lanes' bridge, and that doesn't get updated, apparently because it's temporary for construction????

https://memegenerator.net/img/instan...acoma-dome.jpg
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Old 08-01-2020, 08:26 AM   #11
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It's amazing how quickly Google Maps updates road changes, including most importantly roads that are shut down. But down in Tacoma the state has the SB lanes of I-5 running over on what was and will be the NB lanes' bridge, and that doesn't get updated, apparently because it's temporary for construction????

https://memegenerator.net/img/instan...acoma-dome.jpg
My old Rand McNally offered map updates every year, the Sygic app offers them every 3 or 4 months and you can buy monthly updates. Google Maps probably updates every week or perhaps even more frequently.

Google Maps is great if you have an internet connection, or if you know where you are going and download the route, but Sygic is very helpful if you have no internet connection and we are frequently in areas where our service is either very poor or non-existent.
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Old 08-01-2020, 08:36 AM   #12
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Sygic is very helpful if you have no internet connection and we are frequently in areas where our service is either very poor or non-existent.
Yes, thank you for reminding me of that program. I haven't used it for years, but it would be nice for that purpose.
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Old 08-01-2020, 08:45 AM   #13
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Our last roadtrip (by car, not RV) was up in the Black Hills and that area. We relied on Android Autoplay, but there were large swaths of the area with ZERO bars of cell service.

Generally, what I like about Android is they have very nice voice instructions compared to the last GPS I owned about 5 years ago. I'm hoping Garmin has improved theirs.
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Old 08-01-2020, 08:57 AM   #14
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Generally, what I like about Android is they have very nice voice instructions compared to the last GPS I owned about 5 years ago. I'm hoping Garmin has improved theirs.
I have always muted the voice instructions, finding them annoying. It does require though that you pay attention. It's not like back in the days of maps you needed the maps to shout out the instructions at you.
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Old 08-01-2020, 10:33 AM   #15
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I went ahead and bought the Garmin RV780 for $309. I'll work on the BU camera separately.

Wireless or wired? Hmmmm?
Check out RVcams.com. I bought replacement cameras and a new monitor for my system. They have all sorts of equipment and Tim there is very knowledgeable and helpful.
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Old 08-01-2020, 10:48 AM   #16
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Couple of Option

I have a Garmin TRUCKER GPS which provides option to enter the Height of unit. I have seen extended antennas go flying off the top while traveling under a too low for the unit bridge.
Also, RV LIFE has a new app out...pretty good so far with minimum use. But, it too, provides height options.
Having been one of those "airheads" that forgot to lower the stationary wingard and had it ripped off under a low bridge, I know that is it MUCH CHEAPER to buy a gps that has height option than to replace Any antenna.
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Old 08-01-2020, 11:48 AM   #17
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I have a Garmin TRUCKER GPS which provides option to enter the Height of unit.
I am a bit surprised at how hard it is to find a phone based nav system for RVs that will display through the info system on the vehicle. Cars - yes, RVs - not so much.

As I mentioned I sometimes use Sygic as a nav system, especially when I have no cell service, but they also have a truck system. The truck system has all of the options that I would need for an RV, but it does not display through the info system, and so it is of no use to me. I suppose trucks may not have an info system for display, but Sygic could do some work and make the app usable for RVs as well, but they apparently decided to not do so.

Anyone know a good phone based system for RVs?
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Old 08-05-2020, 04:31 PM   #18
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We have a 21VD on the 2019 Sprinter chassis with the 10.25" MBUX display, which supports both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay (via a USB connection).

We've only used Android Auto since purchasing our View in early June. [We've been working with Mercedes since we purchased our View and 2 months later, they still haven't been able to activate the Mercedes Pro Connect software that is used by the MBUX system, so we use AA for everything.]

Because AA is using cloud-based data, it is more up-to-date than other systems that rely on local data. It can be helpful in finding gas stations, but not as useful when trying to find ones that have "auto" diesel for our Sprinter.

Overall AA works pretty well on the 10.25" display, other than having black bands at the sides of the display because AA doesn't know how to enlarge the AA window to fill the entire display.

AA navigation also does a pretty good job not only with live traffic and re-routing around congestion, but also providing notifications of upcoming traffic issues.

When driving our View, we do miss the giant 17" navigation displays we have in our Tesla EVs - but they don't have a bathroom, kitchen, dinette or bed...
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Old 08-05-2020, 04:35 PM   #19
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Because AA is using cloud-based data, it is more up-to-date than other systems that rely on local data.
Yes, provided the supplier keeps their maps up to date.

We often use Google Maps as our navigation system but it is not helpful when we have no cell signal.
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Old 08-05-2020, 04:41 PM   #20
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That is the downside of cloud-based navigation packages, and why Tesla still has an on-board map database that can be used for routing when the Internet isn't available.

Unfortunately, the AA navigation software doesn't have that offline map data, and only works when Internet is available.
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