I am reading posts here where owners say how great the Nav is in the Acura. I just bought a 2007 RL. I had a Garmin Nuvi 350 in my previous car. The Garmin maps are so much better. There are many more of the local roads shown that either don't appear or are not labeled in the Alpine maps. Also, I really miss the 3-D birds-eye view maps. I think the 3-D birds-eye view is much nicer to use when driving than a 2-D straight overhead view. In looking at the Alpine version history, it seems as though the updates don't update very much at all. I live in a community that has been built for 15 years and my street doesn't appear at all. It was clearly shown on the Garmin maps.

 

I agree the "birds eye" three point perspective view is great. I wish Alpine had it. Maybe in a not to distant future release. Also, the integrated Navtraffic system sucks compared to other things available on the web and for mobile phones. Not sure who's fault that is; Alpine, Acura, or NavTeq

I think the conclusion everyone comes to is based on everything being considered. The voice recognition is the best, you can change nav on the fly while driving, easy to use, etc. It's the best system factory installed with a car. Not sure about the dashboard after market systems.

 

Every thing I have read says that the integrated units are inferior & more expensive to the aftermarket units. They just look cooler.

 

You may need to go into the setup and turn on your unverified area routing to the on position. It may help im not sure though.