stogie1020

Just picked up a 2016 ILX Premium for the wife.

I am wondering about the AcuraLink™ Navi app.

Does anyone have it?

The dealership had ZERO info on it, and I can't find a good video or website about it other than the itunes store page for the app.

I would love to see a nice clear demo of it (saw a crappy youtube vid) that shows all it can and can't do.

Anyone here have it? Thought/impressions?

Also, what cable to I need to purchase to make it with with iPhone6? Lightning-to-miniHDMI?

Drake3287

I have it, it's a great system. My dealer also knew nothing about it and even told me it doesn't do rerouting, when in fact it does. Although I would have liked to have had the full navigation, this saved us a ton of money and generally I only use navigation once in awhile so this was a great alternative.

It's basically the same navigation as the standard Acura one but uses your iPhone to supply the mapping instead. You simply need to buy a couple of the required Apple cords (I already had two of them) and purchase the $59.00 Acura app. If you share your car with a spouse or girl friend, all you have to do is add them to your "family sharing" on your phone so they don't have to purchase a second $59.00 app.

Once you play around with it you'll find it's pretty nice, WELL worth the money for the cables and app. It's even better then the Ford Sync system I have in my F150. Here's the video I have, not sure if you saw this one.


or

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zBte1WnyT8

stogie1020

Drake, great info, thanks.

One question... can I have the car audio playing from XM/Sirius (or anything) while the app is running and still get the voice prompts for turns, etc.?

Does it cut in to whatever audio source is currently playing to tell you to turn, and then switch back to the radio/XM/etc.?

stogie1020

Drake,

Second question:

Does the adapter charge the phone while it's hooked up? If I was going on a 8 hour road trip, could I leave this in the NAV feature the whole time or would it drain the battery?

Drake3287

One of the 3 cords you need is the power cord that comes with your iPhone, (USB to Lightning) so yes, it powers your phone at the same time. As for listening to the radio, XM, etc., doesn't affect it, the voice messages/directions just temporarily mute the music for a second if I remember right.

It also has the ability to turn off voice commands if it bothers you. Another thing to remember is that the system uses your data plan for receiving the maps. That worried me at first thinking it would eat up all my data plan but it didn't. I tried it on a long drive from the Bay Area to San Diego (500 + miles) and the data use was still very low. Not worth a worry after all.

Long story short, it's a great $100. or so investment.

stogie1020

awesome, thanks!

ceb

If it uses phone data to get map info, then what happens if you lose cell coverage? A situation you often run into in the midwest - say those 20,000 miles on I-70 through Kansas or from Utah to New Mexico.

Thmanx

I guess thats a debate you'd have to have with your cellphone provider.


I mean if your out in the stiqs of Montana and want Navi, then yes you'd need an integrated system. But for the majority of people out there who live in the city its a great option.


Frankly, those people who are out in the marketplace who are buying Built-In Navi's, already intended on buying them anyway.
But for those who don't see the value of the upgrade cost, a $60 app is much appreciated and makes Acura a F*ton of money in the process. But I paid it, and I'm happy I did.

csj0219

Does anyone know if this iPhone App uses Apple map or does it use map from its app?

Thmanx

It uses its own proprietary Acura map. But that's not all a bad thing. Has quick links for things like food and gas, as well as providing a heads up when your using the navagation function on which lanes to stay in so you don't accidentally merge onto another freeway or the like.

ceb

It isn't a cell provider issue, it is a question of how Acura incorporated the cell phone system into the car.

There are two ways. The first is how your cell phone works. Maps and your position are downloaded continually using your cell data with GPS support. When your cell service goes away, so does your mapping.

The second is for the system to use your cell phone to download you entire trip data at the beginning, using GPS to determine your location along the way. Rerouting may not be available but other things like lane guidance and the like may work.

Both have their advantages. the first is easier to implement and allows for rerouting and POI searches. The second has the advantage of giving you turn-by-turn directions in areas where there is no signal.

For all of us city slickers it may make little difference on a day-to-day basis BUT it may be important to know how it works lest you be stuck on I-70 looking for the world's largest gopher statue but sadly being out of cell phone coverage and not being able to find this amazing POI.

When I worked in C-Springs I had nav on my Verizon phone, my Sprint phone and my AT&T iPad and there were several places in town where I lost cell and nav service.

That said, the mere ability to get any sort of integrated nav for about $100 is a great deal, regardless of limitations. It is just important to understand the limitations before you realize that you should have taken that left at Albuquerque - but you had no cell service.

magrufnis

Sorry for bumping this old post, but I recently purchased a 2016 ILX and was hoping to use the AcuraLink Nav system. However, I also use my phone as my primary source of music. Would I still be able to play music on my phone via bluetooth while also using the navigation? What about phone calls or if I return home on my iphone? I guess what I'm asking is whether the app is able to work in the background, or if I lose functionality of my phone with the app running.

Thanks for all your help!

Joseph Park

I have a 16 Premium and the dealer said yes you would still be able to navigate and play music at the same time over BT. It would be like it you had Google maps on your phone and had Pandora on at the same time, if the navigation had a turn by turn direction it would briefly override the music.

I don't have an iOS device anymore but I heard the problem is that the app is NOT compatible with the later versions of iOS 9 like 9.3. With this being said I HIGHLY doubt Acura will update to iOS 10 compatibility making the $60 app and $100 dongle useless. The best solution is if Acura finally offers Android Auto and Apple Car Play on 2018 models. I have seen a hack with certain 3rd party accessories that allows you to stream Android/iOS from your device directly to your screen, but this requires a little too much work for me.

shmobby

I know for a fact that IOS 9.3.2 does not work. It looks like 9.3.3 is out now, so I will download that and try it out next time I have an opportunity.

Rae Rad

I had this app for my former 2016 premium ILX Aspec. It is a great concept but, it froze on me too often and at times i needed to restart my phone to get it back up forcing me to pull over on the side of the road to set the destination again. It made me late to a meeting twice. Keep in mind during a call data wont work. While i was on a call I notice I lost my data and had to either end the call or see when is my next exit. Also the HDMI flickers and shows static. I used 3 different wires all different sizes and still dealt with flickering.
In my experience this app is unrelieable. If you end up getting the app. Just keep a Garmin in the glove compartment just incase.

shmobby

Interesting. I also saw the static and flickering and just assumed it was the cable I was using.

I guess the bottom line is that a system that is integrated into the vehicle is always going to be more reliable unless you completely separate it.

Who do you have for service? I use data while on phone calls all the time on AT&T.

Rae Rad

I have Verizon. But i live upstate NY and reception up here is not so great even with verizon that is considered one of the best service providers when it come to reception.