Hi all...

I am going going to get another TL soon. Most likely a 2008. I know the 2009 is coming.

My question is... Should I get the TL with Navigation or use a Garmin 780?

The reason I ask is because if you have a Garmin 780, you know it has many wonderful features like MSN Direct. I am not at all familiar with the 2008 TL's Navigation.

So... Do you prefer a portable or a built in and why?

(I apologize if this was asked already. If so, please point me in the right direction. Thanks!)

 

do you have to ask.....of course TL with NAVI.

 

No, I don't seem to remember much discussion about Navigation systems on these boards... mostly updates on book club meetings and christian rock concerts....

 

go for the one with navi, less chance of break ins as no one can really use the OEM navi in other cars, as well, the entire car is integrated into it. I say go for a TL-S with Navi.

 

Besides a much larger screen, the OEM in Acura is one of the best stock navis in the auto industry.

 

and considering it has traffic and all the bells and whistles i'd go acura navi. it just look better all around

 

Not to mention the look of the navi adds that extra touch to the interior.

 

 

Actually, nav lowers the resale value of your car, statistically there are more problems with factory installed nav units, plus a portable unit can be moved to another vehicle, if that applies to you.

Also, this only applies to me but, I can not bring myself to spend an extra $2000 for factory installed nav. Just my opinion. Your mileage may vary.

 

I have the Garmin AND the TL Navi. TL Navi is better overall (less worries over theft, screen is in a good location, get the benefits of having the text for your audio, plus XM NAVTraffic). The Garmin is for my Tahoe btw.

 

use the $ 2000 and get something that actually looks better like aftermarket wheels or something that sounds better like a new sound system. Honestly i have the portable navigation and use it once in month if even, sometimes i felt like i should have bought it but even when i drove the loaner i didnt find much use of it....the only thing i guess it does look a little better with the navi but as i said i would put the money towards something more usefull

 

vote for integrated Navi

 

+1

 

I regret not going for the Navi. So don't make the same mistake!!! The TL navi is one of the best in the mkt today.

 

no idea how that works, but generally TL's (at least the one's that i've seen) resale for more if they have Navi.

the fact about the unit being moved to another vehicle is a downside, because it increases the risk of a break-in.

the price thing makes sense though.

 

+1

 

I love my Navi on my 08 Type S very much so, i tend to get lost alot, so with the 8'' nav to guide me home with a click of a button is very useful, plus its very nice with back up mirror feature i have on my S and i think Acura has one of the best nav in the market.

 

I believe it is not the best, but the easiest to use. The factory Navi does lag behind the competition, but it offers something that the aftermarket units cannot deliver, integration. The car is integrated well into the navi system, and believe it or not, it comes in handy. even though it stares at you to, and is idle 90% of the time, the audio screen is much better as you can see ALL the data, you have a nice back-up camera, you have a better look too.

Also yes, you may loose the money on paper, but in real life, you get it back. If you have a nav system, you have a much higher chance of selling the car rather than a non-navi, and as well, you will have more room to elbow around when selling the car. Will you get the 2K back, no, but you will get back a bit in other ways. I say go for it and negoitate the price. Right now my dealer is offering an 08 TL-S for 33K plus tax, tag and title. 1 dollar over invoice with the 2-3K cash back.

 

The TL Nav is not only a GPS navigation system, but it is also intergrated with your HVAC, your Bluetooth phone, and your sound system. So it is quite a bit more than just a navigation product.

 

I have an 2004 TL without Nav. I have had several loaner Acura TL's and TSX's with Navigation. I also bought a Garmin Nuvi 750 a couple months ago. I found navigation wise (around here anyway) they are both about the same. A few mistakes and unknown roads. Missing POI etc.

I too could not justify 1500 to 2000 for navigation I would use at most once a month on average. Yes the built in features and screen are VERY nice as is the back up camera. However for a savings of at least $1100 I think for me the Garmin was the better deal.

For someone who drives a lot further from home or gets lost easier I can see how the built in makes more sense. I like that I can move the Garmin from car to car. I can get either MSN or regular FM traffic later if I want. However many reports say the traffic isn't accurate enough.

Both are far from perfect. Both have had me make wrong turns or not quite gotten me EXACTLY to the address. But, last week I used my Garmin to take me to the door of the DMV in Goshen, NY about 45 mins from my apartment in a town I had never been to.

And I do worry about someone stealing it or me dropping it which as others have said is not an issue of the built in one.

That said when I buy probably the car after the next one if they are down around 750 or less for a built in one I would seriously consider getting it built in. Just think that price point is a few years down the road.

Or if I was to buy the TLs. lol

 

I have a 2005 6MT TL non-Nav, I don't regret the decision at all. For $2K I was able to get a decent portable GPS Nav with voice that I can transfer between vehicles and a 50" Plasma HDTV (Black Friday). Having a portable GPS is more important to me when I travel with rental cars. Although I must agree the center stack of the Navi is far better looking than the non-Navi.

FWIW, a 50" plasma does not fit into a TL backseat or trunk. The reason our other vehicle is a Honda Pilot

 

I'll have to agree. I've heard problems with the factory installed NAVI can get quite pricey. I have a Garmin, and I love the portability. Besides, I really only need the NAVI for places I have not been or when I go out of town. It's rare that I use it in town. Being able to use it in different cars, especially rentals is a plus for me. And regarding theft for the portable units, well, it's not like you can't hide the unit away in the glove box along with the mount, or heck, it's so small you can put it in your pocket. Just my

 

the fact that they make this car without a navi is a waist...the dash with out a navi is ugly...period!!...if the extra cost of having the navi is too much, then you probably shouldnt be buying this car to begin with....i would think that a person buying a tl could also have the garmin if he/she so desired....this car is aimed at higher income levels...

 

TL with NAVI.... One of the best factory navis and it looks so much better!!

 

My recently traded 04 didn't have nav. My new 08 does. I wish now I would have purchased the nav with the 04 even though I was more cost-conscious then. As others have said, it does much more than serve as a GPS device and adds so much more to the car itself. Ultimately however, it is your money. There are pros and cons to each unit. Go with what your heart/wallet tell you.

 

Definitely get the navi with the car. Acura has a great nav, but I think my navi in my Lexus is better. The color and sharpness is a lot clearer compared to the Acura one, but the Lexus has one HUGH flaw. If you need to change input destinations while you are driving, you can't, gotta do a complete stop.

 

that flaw right there is why the acura is better than that of the lexus....

 

I'd have to say go navi...but it really depends on your needs. We travel a lot so the navi is excellent for its intended purpose, taking you to a new destination without getting lost (along with providing traffic updates, restaurant reviews, alternate routes, etc). But that argument could be made for any navi. The integrated navi looks and performs flawlessly and offers a host of other features that a portable unit won't, as other posters have stated. For us it came down to a matter of style, the integrated system has a touch of class. A portable system, suction cupped to your windshield/glareshield, looks kinda dorky. :wink:

 

tl with navi ftmfw!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

navi and plug a slim ps2 and use it as a dvd player... games on occasion

 

I see I'm in the same boat as a few other TL members here.
As nice as the Acura navi was, spending $2000 extra for it was not an option. Now I have a Tomtom One LE for $130 and it gets the job done. I don't like to become overly dependent on it, just turn it on in unfamiliar areas.

 

on a side note, I recently got to view the navi in a brand new Jeep, and that thing was horrible. Difficult to navigate around, had to stop to input anything, 3d view was hard to see up ahead...

I will never get another car without navi built in. I've said it before and I'll say it again, its easy to see, easy to use, not a theft risk, you wont lose it, it is well integrated with the rest of the car, but the only important thing to consider is that all of the above add up to the least distracting and easiest to use navi products. Who cares if the Garmin has a million features if I'm likely to kill myself trying to use them all while driving? Even seeing a navi charge cord or mount can prompt thieves to break in thinking its hidden somewhere. Will the Garmin mute my radio which is blasting away at full volume to spit out directions or ring an incoming call? or patch my phone through to the restaurant i'm going to, to make a reservation? Can I easily read and play with the large screen out of the corner of my eye?

 

I have navi in my TL but not in my older MDX. I love having it and have but one regret. Acura is really screwing us with the pricy update disk. For what they want for the upgrade (~$180) you can buy some portable units today.

That said, I will continue to support it and complain about the upgrade price. All of the positive points mentioned apply. Better to have and not need than the opposite.

 

I've had a few different portable GPS units (Garmin Nuvi 200w, TomTom One 3rd edition, Navigon 5100), and I've got to say that I prefer the navi system in my '04 TL to all of them. The reason is that the screen is so much bigger, it's so much easier to type things.

With a smaller unit, even with a 4.3" inch screen which is considered a big screen for portable navi, it's very difficult to press a series of commands, especially if you're trying to do it while driving. With the big TL screen everything is spaced far apart so that typing things in is a breeze and it's very easy to see from a distance, whereas with the portable navi systems you have to have it closer to you and concentrate more on hitting a particular key as they are spaced very close together.

Also it is very nice that the navigation is integrated with the car, so you can click the button on the steering wheel and say "find gas station" or "find restaurant" and the results will just show up without having to press anything on the navi unit. The results are also a lot easier to browse through on the big screen. Also another very helpful feature with the navi system is being able to find a POI, and then press the call button and it will call the POI with your bluetooth connected phone.

Also another feature is if you go to "Personal addresses" you can type in phone numbers to go with your addresses, so you can just send calls through the navigation system if you don't want to deal with the voice recognition on the HFL in the '04's. I think in the '07+ TL's you can just store all the numbers anyway so you wouldn't have to worry about this if you get an '08, but '04-'06 you would have to record each name and number to be used with voice recognition, which is kind of a hassle particularly when you record names that sound at all similar because the HFL will say it sounds too much like a previous entry in the voice recognition phone book.

What I do is I mainly use the TL nav screen while driving, but as I haven't updated the DVD version and my current version is from 2004 so there are lots of roads/POI's/addresses missing and the DVD update hasn't been available from Alpine for months...I bring along a "backup" navi system which is currently a Navigon 5100. This system costs about $250-300 (the acura navi DVD update costs about $200) and has recent maps, a really nice screen for it's small size, and it is the only GPS navi system offered in north america that comes with free traffic updates for life through TMC and it also has zagat ratings and text-to-speech directions (it says all the street names).

So basically I have similar features to the new navi systems, (traffic, zagat, new maps) without spending money on an update disc or an '07+ TL nav system. Also if I am traveling in another car I can take the portable nav system with me. It's not perfect as it is missing a lot of POI's and the directions sometimes take you in a strange route, but it does have new maps so if you type in the address of a POI it will almost always have it. Also just yesterday they released a huge 1.8 gb update you can download from their website which updates the maps and fixes a lot of stuff (I haven't had a chance to play around w/ it too much so I don't know what it has fixed).

So basically I would highly recommend getting the navigation with your TL, but if you decide you would rather get a portable one with the same basic features (again the TL would be integrated into the car which is a huge bonus), I would recommend the navigon series if you don't want to pay for traffic updates, or a garmin system if you want to pay a monthly/yearly fee for traffic but have much better POI's and driving directions. The garmin systems can get pretty expensive though, but if money doesn't matter they do provide a much better navigation system.

 

Wish I had gotten NAV but my choices were non-NBP w/ NAV and NBP w/o. I got NBP

 

I've also got the TomTom One, and while it's nice to move it between the TL and the Pilot if we're going on a trip, none of the portables I've seen are big enough to be anywhere near as useful as built in. That's why I'm seriously considering a CarPC.

Also, you can easily hack the NAV to add functions like DVD and back-up cam, from what I've heard.

 

I always go with the Navi, as I want the built in navigation (have had portable untis stolen from the center console of cars in the past), and I want to be able to hack the Navi for other the other functions.

I use mine for:

• Navigation
• Watching Movies
• Backup Camera
• Audio controls (I like them better than the little screen at the top)

 

The Garmin nuvi 760 and 780 have bluetooth so you can send it commands and make calls on it much like the HFL. I didn't bother with that and went with the cheaper 750 unit so I have no idea how well it works. Also I believe you can get your cellphone's text messages on the display as well but, again I didn't get one of these units so can not confirm how well this works.

Just curious for those that hack your built in navigation so you can watch movies or play playstation on them. How often do you really do that? I would imagine most if not all of us have a larger screen at home with a more comfortable couch or chairs?

Just curious is all not hating on those that do this. I think its kind of cool to make it do all these things. Just wondering on the praticality of it.

 

easy fix, just did my roommates is350 last weekend.........now he can change destinations while driving. Its as easy as grounding 1 wire

 

fyi, google maps. mobile.google.com provides a free navi software for your cell. It has live traffic conditions which is my primary use for it.