View Full Version : Sat Nav
I've booked Sat Nav along with our 7 seater mini-van through these OV forums but I've never used it before. We are not due to arrive until Saturday 28th April so obviously don't have the unit yet...just looking for some advice on it. They mentioned pre-loading the unit with where our villa is, but I'm not keen on that idea in case the car/keys get stolen and the culprit then knows where we are staying and that no one is home. At what stage do they input this information and is it possible just to have the resort (ie Emerald Island) set as 'home' instead?
pieman790
17-04-2007, 10:02
I am sure it is possible to have the resort set as home.
Why not keep your car keys seperate from your sat Nav unit as it is unlikely you will loose both your car keys and the sat Unit at the same time.
We always have our villa address put as the home address and never had a problem with it
Hi Baz,
You can have the resort as the 'home' address if you would prefer, drop an email to Roger, and I am sure he can sort you out
florida4sun
17-04-2007, 12:22
Hello,
you will not leaving the unit in the vehicle anyway, dont forget if it gets stolen you are resposible for it (most travel insurances will cover this, worth making sure yours does). The unit is small and can be removed very easily by yourself. Emerald Isle is not yet on the mapping software so it would be set to the entrance of the resort anyway.
If emsil this request to satnav@uscarhire.co.uk then we will set it for you[msnsmile]
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by baz
I've booked Sat Nav along with our 7 seater mini-van through these OV forums but I've never used it before. We are not due to arrive until Saturday 28th April so obviously don't have the unit yet...just looking for some advice on it. They mentioned pre-loading the unit with where our villa is, but I'm not keen on that idea in case the car/keys get stolen and the culprit then knows where we are staying and that no one is home. At what stage do they input this information and is it possible just to have the resort (ie Emerald Island) set as 'home' instead?
[/quote]
Thanks, I've never used sat nav before so I'd no idea the size of the unit or how it operates. I'll mail the request as suggested, I was waiting on them mailing me and asking! Holiday mode kicking in already.
Got my unit, ready to go, quickie question. What's the best way to ship it over with me...in hand luggage (if that is allowed) or in the suitcase?
Katys Grandad
27-04-2007, 00:30
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by baz
Got my unit, ready to go, quickie question. What's the best way to ship it over with me...in hand luggage (if that is allowed) or in the suitcase?
[/quote]
I don't see any reason why you can't have it in your carry-on provided it fits inside your regulation sized bag. Remember to switch it off though!!
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by baz
Got my unit, ready to go, quickie question. What's the best way to ship it over with me...in hand luggage (if that is allowed) or in the suitcase?[/quote]I wouldn't put it in your hold luggage in case that gets lost. I always take ours in our hand luggage, smothered in bubble wrap.
Cheers folks...hand luggage...bubble wrap...check!
DawnSwift
09-05-2007, 23:25
Just a word of warning I bought my husband a TomTom910 for his birthday because it had USA maps but when we got there it wouldn't work. We discovered when we got home we should have activated this part on the computer before we went so check this out so you don't make the same mistake we did.
Happy travelling
Dawn
florida4sun
10-05-2007, 01:29
These are hire units which are already activated.
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by DawnSwift
Just a word of warning I bought my husband a TomTom910 for his birthday because it had USA maps but when we got there it wouldn't work. We discovered when we got home we should have activated this part on the computer before we went so check this out so you don't make the same mistake we did.
Happy travelling
Dawn
[/quote]
Having now experienced this I feel it is fair to make some comment on the service. Everything arrived as planned on time and intact and in perfect working order, with clear instructions how to return the unit. However...
If like me you've not used Sat Nav before then the operating instructions are in serious need of revision. All the piece of paper told me was how to turn the thing on and not a lot else. We were at a total loss as to what indicated what on the screen and a diagram illustrating the functions would have been a great help. (eg this indicates the road you are on, this indicates the direction you are facing, this indicates the distance to your next turn etc).
Something else worth noting is the major roadworks on the I4. They seem to be adding new slip roads at some junctions which led to us being instructed to take turns 800 yards after we passed where the new exit began. We did get used to this eventually and I've no doubt that the sofware will be updated soon enough but it was a tad annoying at first. It may also be worth the manufacturers adding an 'easiest' route function in addition to 'fastest' and 'shortest'. On the way to Busch Gardens we were treated to a tour of what can only be described as 'surburban Florida' instead of taking us straight down the I4. We've still no idea why, and it got us there in the end, but it just didn't seem to make sense.
Please don't take this post as a major negative, over the piece I think it was to our advantage to have Sat Nav and it always provided a degree of comfort when we went anywhere new, and I would encourage others to follow suit...I'm just offering some constructive critisism to improve the service.
This is my first year getting my sat nav from here and know how to use them now, but last year we got our car and sat nav from travel city and had no idea how to use them. We were very lucky the guard on the gate set it all up for us and even fitted the unit to the windscreen as I had it on my daughters knee at first [msnembarrased]
They dont take long to get used to it. Though we still laugh because all we used to get out of ours was make a u turn, as we found it hard to trust as it seemed to take us out of our way at times[msneek]
ShirleyD
14-05-2007, 03:21
Hi Barry, we have just purchased a Sat Nav which my hubby was taking to Florida with him, as his usual map reader (me) was stuck in the UK [msnsad]. I have to agree, the instructions are not the best and I was quite annoyed I couldn't programme it to take the routes I would use, but as you say, it is great to have, because, even if it does take you by the scenic route, it does get you there :D A bigger downside for me is my husband says he is now taking even less notice of the routes he travelled, so if it goes wrong, I may never see him again [msnwink]
florida4sun
14-05-2007, 11:59
Mmmm did you not follow the link to the full online manual, which you can download and print print off, I cannot see how we can offer more than that. We also provide instructions on the basics with the unit (programming addresses, using stored locations, using home location).
To be fair the units are very easy to use. Touch the screen twice and it will take you home location. The booklet provided does go through the basics of programming addresses. We do not include instructions for advanced functions, as these are not required.
Indications of where you are and distance to the next turning are given clearly on the screen.
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by baz
Having now experienced this I feel it is fair to make some comment on the service. Everything arrived as planned on time and intact and in perfect working order, with clear instructions how to return the unit. However...
If like me you've not used Sat Nav before then the operating instructions are in serious need of revision. All the piece of paper told me was how to turn the thing on and not a lot else. We were at a total loss as to what indicated what on the screen and a diagram illustrating the functions would have been a great help. (eg this indicates the road you are on, this indicates the direction you are facing, this indicates the distance to your next turn etc).
New roads are an issue as they add new roads and junctions everyday, maps around around 2-4 years out of date as soon as they become available. That said a little common sense figures this out (as did yourself) and the unit will keep recalculating and trying to take you in th right direction. So once you are through the 'new bit' it will still guide you onwards.
Something else worth noting is the major roadworks on the I4. They seem to be adding new slip roads at some junctions which led to us being instructed to take turns 800 yards after we passed where the new exit began. We did get used to this eventually and I've no doubt that the sofware will be updated soon enough but it was a tad annoying at first. It may also be worth the manufacturers adding an 'easiest' route function in addition to 'fastest' and 'shortest'. On the way to Busch Gardens we were treated to a tour of what can only be described as 'surburban Florida' instead of taking us straight down the I4. We've still no idea why, and it got us there in the end, but it just didn't seem to make sense.
Please don't take this post as a major negative, over the piece I think it was to our advantage to have Sat Nav and it always provided a degree of comfort when we went anywhere new, and I would encourage others to follow suit...I'm just offering some constructive critisism to improve the service.
[/quote]
I wasn't aware of a link to the full online manual, to be fair I assumed full operating instructions would arrive with the unit so I probably missed that...maybe you should empasise that a wee bit more for thickos like me then? The units are easy to use and well worth taking, but without said instructions there can be a lot of conflicting information on the screen if you don't know what you are looking at.
"Indications of where you are and distance to the next turning are given clearly on the screen."
That may well be the case but I can assure you that the software is not totally up to date with the road changes being made. This is not a criticism either, it would be impossible to keep up with changes all the time. The new off ramp from World Drive onto the 192 now starts over 800 yards prior to the old one and when instructed to 'bear right' you are already well past the exit. I'm not having a go, just wanting to make others aware and not get caught the same way we did. Otherwise everything was A-Okay and I wouldn't hesistate to take the Sat Nav again.
for someone who has problem getting a dvd to play[msneek] i found the sat nav from this site very easy to use with just the basic instructions that had been included
i do agree that you sometimes have to ignore the unit or you miss your turn off especially with the new roads on and off the I4 especially around WDW but the beauty of having it is that if you do take a wrong turn it soons put you right
we plan on hiring another for our next trip, it took so much pressure of me, as my husband didn't scream at me as half as much as usual when i'm navigating [msnwink]
Mizzy
Hi
I hired a sat nav from here for our holiday last year and being a thicko like most of us are i agree completly with baz, we had the same problem, i wonder if we had the same sat nav!! when mentioned on my return i was told i had it on WALKING mode, this was i was told why the sat nav was a little slow. i dont remember changing it to this , didnt know you could. [sporty]
Saying that i would hire from here again, like you Baz it was something little but quite annoying.
Ali
floridadreamvilla.co.uk
18-05-2007, 01:05
I use TomTom all the time when I'm driving both in the UK and abroad and as long as you use it with a little bit of discretion you will be fine - don't follow what it says to the letter as very occasionally it does get things wrong e.g. one way roads (very infrequently).
In Florida, the main problem is the pace of building in some areas far outstrips the ability of any mapping company to keep up with, no matter how good they are. As above, if you take what it says within the context of what you can see yourself when driving you won't go far wrong - and even if you do, the unit comes into it's own as it can get you home from anywhere, even if you don't have a clue where you are.
I'd guess the main thing you need to know are how to navigate to home, how to navigate to a point of interest (theme park etc etc) and how to navigate to a street address. All are very easy to do once you know how - it's very intuitive [msnsmile].
Hi Guy's
Can anybody please let me know what it is that has to be activated to allow my Tom Tom 910 to work when i get to Florida.
As Dawn mentions above, how exactly and what do i have to activate.
Any help much appreciated.
Cheers Dave.
S&VEdwards
19-05-2007, 03:08
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:
Can anybody please let me know what it is that has to be activated to allow my Tom Tom 910 to work when i get to Florida.
As Dawn mentions above, how exactly and what do i have to activate.
Any help much appreciated.
Cheers Dave.[/quote]
When I bought the 910 I entered all the addresses into the North America maps here in the UK ready for when we arrived in Florida. We got to the airport and pressed the home button but kept getting the no signal message, we got to the villa without the assistance of the sat nav, gave it a bit of thought and decided to change the map to the UK then back to North America, problem solved.
We hired a sat nav from this site last year and having never used one before found it easy and quick to programme,the home address was already set in as points of interest,my husband sat and went all through the sat nav the night before we were using it to get used to it.We toured around a lot with no problems at all,would definately hire one from here next time