morpheus

I have seen that almost everybody with Navi. saying that it is a must have. IMO

So was curious, does anyone have negative feedback about the navigation system in TSX '05.

Dan Martin

It's expensive.

Looks pretty sweet though.

fdl

waste of $$
Could do the same with a $5 map and compass.

just as an example

savage

you gotta get used to the voice commands...if i dont speak clearly it ussually thinks i asked it to find the nearest hotel/motel but you quickly get used to it and find it very helpful and useful...girls are also amazed when they see it

other than that it is probably the best stock navigation system on the market short of the RL which is the same but has the addition of the live traffic info...

GIBSON6594

but worth every

dizzy1

Lots of points for the cool factor, but the only 2 draw backs I see is theft and not watching the road. On my test drive, I was 2 busy playing and pulled out at a 2 way stop sign thinking the other guy was going to stop, not a good move. Theft because you know some one will want to steal it and duct tape it in there '85 chevy pickup with 13" deep dish rims. Nothing is more bling bling in the hood then the Acura nav that doesn't work in a chevy pickup.

theARCHITECT

It is a definite must have...

I am addicted to it now. I won't ever buy a new car without one from now on. Looking for a particular business or restaurant? Just punch it in. I don't even have to think anymore when i drive. It is a whole new driving experience with it to see exactly where you are positioned in relation to everything.

As an architect, i think of everything in plan view, and this definitely helps orient myself. I bet all the people saying it is useless and just use a map just didn't want to shell out the extra dough. Take it from people who have it though, not the cheapskates that are jealous

fdl

How often are you looking for a business or restaurant? once a week? once a month? It really depends on the person.

Its really cool but if you arent going ot use it much its not worth the $$ IMO. If you were on the road all the time, like a traveling salesman, then I would accept it as a "must have".


For me it was an easy choice

bigwilliestyle

I like it quite a bit. You do have to speak somewhat slow and clearly. I find it works pretty good if you have a small pause in between words.

I am a little concerned with theft, but someone would have to really gut the car to get the main components and to get it to work somewhere else would be quite the project, no?

jwb998

I was sure the Navi was something I was going to order. When we (my wife and I) went to test drive a 2005 the other day, they didn't have one with Navi. I asked them to demonstrat it for my wife in a TL (very similar unit). My wife was very impressed. Now she doesn't care about the extra 2 grand! I think the best thing is how it buts all controls (radio, climate control, and Navigation) together but still has secondary ways to control them. Very trick indeed.

triton

My Commute is .4 miles round trip, so It's useless for me. I do plan to get one eventually but I prefer teh aftermarket pioneer models if I"m going to shell out 2K for something. The aftermarket pioneer one also plays dvd, and mp3s.

Tsx536

For the people who don't live in big cities, have you still found the navi to be very useful/up to date/accurate?

VeniceBeachTSX

I think this is really very dependent on the person, I have it, but don't use it much. I rarely find myself in an unfamiliar area with no idea where I'm going or how to get there. I suspect that if you were in sales or some other type of business that required you to often go places you don't know well, or to adjust your plans along the way, it could be valuable.

Me? I rarely leave the house unless I know where I'm going.

In the time I've had it there have been exactly 3 times it was useful. Once, I was looking for a particular hotel to pick up a friend, who had called me when I was already out. Turned out the nav didn't help because it was one of those airport hotels that's constantly changing ownership and affiliation. The nav system had it as a Sheraton, even though it's now something else. Second time I was looking for the best route to a house in the winding streets up in the hills. It was more convienient to follow the moving map than to follow the mapquest map that I had printed out already. Third time I was with a friend who really needed the bathroom quick. I looked for the closes Starbucks...

The major downside for me is that I have to go into the menu system if I want to manually adjust the ventilation system. I do this often enough that it's a bit of a pain, but not a big deal.

But again, my life's pretty predictable and well planned most of the time. I suspect that I wouldn't spend the extra money on a nav system again.

(That said, I don't find the idea completely useless, but mostly I tend to need navigation assistance when I'm far away and in a rental car, not when I'm close to home.)

Whiskers

When you show people your car, its the Navi you show them.

Voice commands can be tough sometimes....IMO they should update the maps better (doesn't show roads that have been there for years).

sauceman

And even then, it's what I am, and I rarely need my road maps (very complete, BTW). I usually get along just fine with finding my way around old style.

For those times when I do need the maps, my North American Michelin Road Map (given to me as a rebate on purchase of winter tires) or my detailed Quebec Road Map gets me anywhere anytime.

As for avoiding traffic jams, I agree the Navi could come to some use, but then again, that's as long as you're not listening to the radio (which I most certainly always do), and you don't know your way around (which doesn't happen in my province).

So for that 0.5% of the time when Navi would come in handy, I think 2k+ gran is pretty expensive. The rest of the time it would be a distraction -- I don't need that.

The only reason why I would find it cool, is that the RL's navi is said to download the recalls, and other pertinent informations and upgrades by Acura. I would assume the TSX's Navi is similar in function and thus would have that feature?

VeniceBeachTSX

I agree, if you're interested in stuff show, then the navi is a neat showpiece.

But again I think it's person-dependent. I don't much care or need to show off my car, and in fact I rarely have the opportunity to do so. And most of the people I deal with wouldn't care anyway. So given the fact that I don't use it much, it's turned out to not have been such a great deal.

Not saying it wouldn't be for somebody else, but I think it's important that you understand your own needs.

Fibonacci

Let's see:

Easy for me,

Mapquest: free

Navi: Two G



PistonFan: who's freshman comp Prof would be proud.

darth62

I couldn't agree with you more. It is an option that works well for some, not for others. For me, I find it incredibly useful, and think it was well worth $2,000. Put simply, I'll never have another vehicle without NAV (in one form or another). But, again, I respect others who feel differently.

bigwilliestyle

Speaking of which, can anyone get it to recognize "Trip Computer" ?

Damn thing... it recognizes most things I say pretty well, but this one I always get a different response. Kinda funny actually.

Whiskers

Say - Info (or information), then Trip Computer.

Montag

I don't have a nav system (or a TSX for that matter - yet) but I do 95% of my driving in areas that I am familiar with so for me the nav system would be a $2000 toy - although a cool one for sure; I would love the trip computer. But there are a lot of other toys I'd rather have for $2000.

Also, nav systems are really in their infancy technologically and I wonder if in four or five years they may be so much more advanced that current ones will appear very rudimentary and thus won't help so much with resale, etc. Think about how cool your Pentium 75 MHz/Windows 95 was when it was new and how fossilized it was five years later. Not a fair analogy I guess, but I just wonder if something similar might happen with navs.

kavallerie

Hey-

i have an 04 with navi, and since it was the last one on the lot i was able to get it for a lot less $$$. i really like it, in that it is fun to play with while i'm not moving , but it's not really a necessity. One HUGE downside i could not have predicted, was my wife's propensity to fiddle with the thing while i am driving, which is a hassle since i have the 6 speed. i mean, just how many Chinese restaurants does she need to fiind? We don't even eat that much Chinese food, for gosh sake! That, and i HATE the finger prints on the touch screen. But it is really useful in hammering home the point in how little distance i travel for time spent on the road in Long Island rush hour traffic!


Kav

Ozzman

For those who use the argument that if you don't drive out of your normal area its not worth or a map does the same thing, they are not that familiar with the nav. I don't drive much out of my area, but it is very useful when doing quite normal everyday driving, for instance looking for a new restaurant in your area that you weren't aware of (the nav will show you were the closest restaurants are, categorized by type of food - really cool). I use it frequently for some not everyday things, like finding a watch repair place or a place to get guitar strings or the next nearest mall that can tell me they are sold out of PS2's. Also will tell you where a business is if you only have the phone number. A map is definately not a substitute anymore than a pen and paper is a substitute for a computer. Yes it costs more, but it also does a lot more.

joerockt

lol...Im glad I have it, its helped me out on several occations where a map and $5 compass would be a bit cumbersome.

Its a luxury item, but I think its paying for itself in time saved instead of getting lost.

VeniceBeachTSX

I think some of us (certainly me) can't imagine getting into the car in the first place without knowing where we're going. I can't remember ever driving around and suddenly deciding that I need to find the closest Chinese restaurant. If I want Chinese, I'm going to figure out where the BEST Chinese restaurant is before I leave the house.

And in truth, I seriously doubt the database is anywhere near up to date. Around here most restaurants don't last six months, let alone the period between database updates...

Bottom line is I think it depends on how you live your life. If you're the kind of person who just decides to suddenly go shopping or to a restaurant while driving around aimlessly, I guess it makes sense. To me, I've just not encountered many situations where I would have used it.

Truth is, I don't spend a second in the car unless I absolutely have to, so my trips tend to be well-planned and somewhat minimal. I don't even really need a map much unless I'm going out of area.

n3ok318

iTrader: (1)

Does voice command still work if you don't get navi?

VeniceBeachTSX

There is no voice command without navi. I actually find the voice command for radio, etc. to be very useful, regardless of the fact that I don't use the navi system much. Something I should have stated earlier.

observer

Personally, I find the voice command to be completely useless. Even if it gets the command right, it's much slower than turning the knob or pushing the button yourself. And when it does get things wrong, it's just a pain to undo whatever wrong it has done.

observer

Okay, that was an exaggeration. It's not completely useless, but it's something that is more cool than is useful.

Belzebutt

The biggest negative is the super-high price.

Some reviewers have also complained that in the navi version the audio and climate controls are not as easy to access/use because they had to be "compressed" to make room for the navi. But I'm sure you can get over that.

n3ok318

iTrader: (1)

It is very expensive option. However, all other cars charge around 2k so..

VeniceBeachTSX

$2k is in line with other cars, and isn't that crazy compared to high-end portable units either.

It's just a matter of what you need and how you'll use it. If you'll use it it's worth the money. If you tend to be pretty stable in where you go (as I am) it may be a lot less useful. Like I said, I find it to be an interesting gadget, but I could think of lots of more interesting gadgets that are at least as useful to me for the same money.

No offense to anybody whose needs are different, of course...

bigwilliestyle

Ahhhhh... interesting... thanks. I'll try that tonight on my way home.

Someone else mentioned how it's cool for radio stations. Though it is somewhat slow to say it, wait for it to repeat, then finally change the channel (when compared to just pressing the buttons), the good thing is you don't have to take your eyes off the road for any reason. Almost a safety feature once you're comfortable with it.

gpsiir

Love it. Only negative I can think of is the upgrades (which in my fast growing area you need to buy pretty much every year) are $200. Easy to be a nay-sayer, if you don't have it. I suspect if it were a $500 dollar option verses an $2000 dollar option, you wouldn't have as many "not worth it" arguments.......

Viking

I have the NAVI, but I'll admit i do not use the Navigation part so much. It has come in handy in trying to find shortcuts when you don't have a map. I also like the Voice commands and the Advanced Trip computer.

To really use the Voice commands you have to memorize the sequence of words. PRMAN set up a list of some of the voice commands: http://www.marlareid.com/tsxnav/navidoc.asp

VeniceBeachTSX

I suspect you're right. In my case, that's probably true. $500 is worth it for the "gadget value." $2000 is a bit much. On my next car (given the same choices) I'd probably save the money to spend on some other accessory or improvement that mattered to me more.

BTC

LB-TSX

I love the nav system. Every time I go on a trip it helps out tremendously. It's expensive but well worth it.

SacQuacker

Not as well and not while driving 70+ mph. As far as $$ goes, what would it cost to drive around with a compass, a GPS, a $5 map of EVERY town and city in the continental US, AND Yellow Pages covering each of those areas? The UHAUL rental alone would exceed the cost of the Navi within a couple of months.

darth62

The map data for Los Angeles county is extremely up-to-date. It is supplied by the same wacky folks who produce the Thomas Guide. Even with various buisnesses closing and opening, I find it to be very accurate for around here.

VeniceBeachTSX

Which still doesn't tell me much about the establishment other than name and location. If they integrated Zagat ratings and such, maybe I'd be more interested, but probably not by that much. I can get those on my palm already, and don't bother with the expense because the reality is that I don't think I'd consult it often "on the road" and there is plenty of free info online if I'm planning an evening out. It's not like I'd go out to much more than a burger stand without some idea of what it is and how good it is.

Do people really go out to dinner (or anywhere) without any clue where they're going before they leave the house?

Like I said, I find it hard to imagine a situation where I find myself in my car somewhere and suddenly need a restaurant, or a specialty store, or much of anything else (maybe a gas station or an ATM, but that's about it). It's a bit different when I'm out of town and completely unfamiliar, but a nav system in the car in the garage at home doesn't help me when I'm in a rental 500 miles away.

My own use has not justified the money spent, to me. But to each their own.

I point this out because I think the ability to benefit from this really depends on who you are and how you manage your life. I'd enourage anybody who is thinking about it to really consider how much "on the go" stuff they realistically use today. If you're the kind of person who is usually happy to go out without so much as a cellphone, you're probably also the kind who won't get much use from the navi. If you're a guy with three mobile devices already, who uses all of them, then navi might be just perfect for you...

And yeah, my cellphone is mostly off and mostly left home outside of normal work hours...