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Maps and navigation

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peterc10

Android Enthusiast
At present I have an HTC Hero, but my contract runs out in a little while and I am just preparing the ground for the inevitable discussion I will have with Orange about upgrade and costs. The Hero is now showing its age a bit and one of the phones I am considering to replace it is the HTC Desire HD.

I understand that there is a built in Maps and Nav system that allows for maps to be downloaded by wifi and stored on the SD card, thus not incurring mobile data charges, and making maps instantly available. I would like to know a bit more about this as it would be a major plus point for me.

Is the system based upon the existing Google Nav app I have on my Hero?

Is downloading map data easy? For example can I download all of the UK maps in one go, and store them on the SD card? Can I then download another country's maps for when I go on holiday there, then, after the holiday, remove them to save card space and reload them later when I need them again?

How well does the system work?

Many thanks in advance for your help. I will become a regular visitor here if I get the Desire!
 
i have only had my dhd for 3 days and already have full uk maps using sygic navigation. i used that on the iphone4 and was amazed they did it for android. it was a 1.7gb download from a torrent site, after copying to sd card i installed and downloaded the uk map over wifi as that was about 450mb.
 
I, too, use Sygic and know all about what it can and can't do. But I paid for mine rather than nicking it! I really want to know about the inbuilt mapping system though.
 
For a complete explanation of the premium nav system, suggest you download the DHD manual from the HTC website, there is something like 10 pages about it.
When the phone first arrives, you get to try it free for a month and then you have to pay if you want to continue to use it to give you directions. Think it is about
 
The cheeky b****rs.

If you look at HTC's site here you will see that they say you can download the maps for free. And they also say that you can then use Google Maps Navigation to give you turn by turn directions - again no mention of paying anything! :mad:

And when I read the user guide it says that I may have to pay from premium maps, which is the turn by turn instructions! It says in some countries you get a free voucher for Premium - can anybody tell me please if that applies to the UK?

If it does not then I think I will be reporting the HTC UK site to the ASA for being misleading :mad:

Frankly I am not going to pay
 
Thanks for that info - very revealing.

Now I feel even more annoyed with HTC - their website is VERY misleading on this :mad::mad:

In reality they are no different to any other phone in respect of Sat Nav. Either you use Google Nav for free but pay for downloading all the time, and especially when you need it most, i.e. when you are roaming. Or you can buy a Sat Nav app with maps you can save on the SD card. I already have two of those!

And I still am not sure what your
 
Maps can be easily downloaded for free from the device, then use Google Navigation which I've found is far more accurate than HTC's Premium option AND G-nav is free (bar a very small data transfer per navigation).

Simples...
 
Thanks for that Farqui, but I am a bit confused by the answer. I am not sure what your reference to "small data transfer" is. Any mobile data transfer is expensive when you are roaming in Europe and impossible when you are roaming in the USA.

So the maps can be downloaded for free to the device in advance so to speak and then those maps can be used by Google Navigation, (not Google Maps) for turn by turn instructions without downloading its own maps via mobile data as it usually does?

The reason I ask is because the type of maps Google Maps uses is different from that used by Google Nav. Google Maps is based upon bitmap images of a map downloaded in individual tiles, whereas Google Nav is based upon a Raster image which constantly updates as you move. I have been told that third party apps are unable to use the Google Nav map data, although they can use the Google Maps data.
 
I think google maps and navigation uses vector drawing now, not tiles so it should cut down on data transfer now and also faster loading screen. I have use google navigation before, as long as you cache the route on wifi, you can basically use navigation without a mobile data connection (tried it and it works). The only problem is if you deviate from the route I am not sure what will happen without data. I heard in the latest google maps they cache a bit more of the maps before travelling, but I haven't tried it.
 
My version of Google Maps (for Android 2.1) still uses tiles I am afraid. That is why it takes a lot longer to load when on the move (and a lot more data) than the equivalent maps using Google Nav. And I think it is the same for other versions (or at least that is what I have been told). And caching won't work for me. In the UK I may want two or three routes in a day with no wifi in between. And I certainly can't cache three weeks of touring to places I don't know I am going to visit when I am on holiday in the USA for example.

What I want it to do is what HTC suggests it does on their website, whilst hinting that it does it for free. I am glad I have asked here because it appears that it does not do either!
 
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