Built-in sat nav - Is it worth it ?

They all have the ability to have the SD card sat nav, it's there anyway. Just the difference is the SD card in the slot and its initialising by the dealer.
 
Does the SD card based sat-nav have traffic updates and diversions? Or is that limited to the Tech pack only?
 
Personally I would never waste my money on the Audi built-in Sat/Nav. I used it for a day when it was fitted to a demo A3 I drove before I bought my current car.

I much prefer my small TomTom ONE unit. I have it mounted on the right-hand side of the windscreen and hard wired into the car so that only about 50mm of cable is visible between the door rubber and the unit. Being right-handed it make it very easy to enter info using the qwerty keyboard. I can have map updates 4 times a year for a maximum of £75 a year and much less if you buy them when TomTom have an offer. I have free for life updates of the PGPSW speed camera database which are very simple to load and the unit beeps whenever I approach a fixed camera site. The routing is good and works to road name and number in the road and full postcodes. I can also easily remove the unit from the car and set up Favourites or Point of Interest or a complete route at my desk rather than sitting in the car. When I purchased the unit it cost me £99.
 
No doubt about it the ability to have the camera database can be very valuable.
 
steeve said:
No doubt about it the ability to have the camera database can be very valuable.
Click to expand...

IMHO, this is totally unnecessary......all you have to do is stick to the speed limit to avoid getting 'flashed'!! :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: mjcourtney and cemerson
It depends if you always drive like a little goody two shoes. To me speed limits are just numbers and very often do not bare any relationship to the road or conditions. 30 mph in a 30 limit whilst passing a school as the children are coming out is too fast. 80-90 mph an an almost empty dry motorway is also quite safe providing the driving is concentrating on his driving and not talking on the phone or some other distraction. When I'm only holiday in Germany I and many other drive 100-120 mph on a de-restricted autobahn with no problem at all. Because of the speeds involved drivers do not hog the outside lane but leave it free for cars overtaking them at these sort of speed. Unlike in the UK where most drive stick in the outside lane doing just 70-80 mph and think the are such good and careful drivers. I have been driving for 48 years and have never had or caused any form of accident although I did have a young lady in a Fiesta in Germany crash into the back of my car at a speed with the speed limit for the road. The problem was she was busy chatting to her passenger and didn't notice that I was stopped behind another car at a set of traffic lights. My Audi was a write off and never did come back from Germany.

Speed cameras are mostly about making money and not very much to do with road safety. This is why most police forces offer so called Speed awareness courses in return for not giving you 3 points on your licence. These have only come in to being since the police and speed camera partnerships had to send all the 'fine' money to the treasury. These courses cost more than the £60 fine and the police are allowed to keep all the money.

I understand it is possible to get a speed camera database to load on the standard Audi Sat/Nav but I don't think anyone has yet come up with a way to make it give an audible beep beep as you approach a camera site. So do you drive along watch the screen all the time?
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: steeve
Vertigo1 said:
Bear in mind what else you get with the tech pack, including the funky music interface controls with album artwork etc. Also, from what I've been told by the dealer, although don't take this as gospel, the Tech Pack includes the high-end phone connectivity with Google Earth imagery etc.
Click to expand...

re: google maps overlay - that is correct . I have the tech pack. I didn't take long to think about it as I like tech. However the price was steep and im voming from a tom tom one lol.

Advantages of the inbuolt sat nav v standalone device
  • no cabling, no mess
  • no interfering with the windscreen- some numpties place it in the middle. Also
  • no detaching and attaching - this was a right pain in that I rarely used it.
  • either to control with mmi controls and closer to hand - touch controls and lean over to reach the standalone is a pain
Ive also seen the standard Sd satnav in an a3 and compared to the tech pack version id say the techpack version and extra features are worth it. the standard a3 screen is lame and feels like comparing vga to 1080p
 
h5djr said:
It depends if you always drive like a little goody two shoes. To me speed limits are just numbers and very often do not bare any relationship to the road or conditions. 30 mph in a 30 limit whilst passing a school as the children are coming out is too fast. 80-90 mph an an almost empty dry motorway is also quite safe providing the driving is concentrating on his driving and not talking on the phone or some other distraction. When I'm only holiday in Germany I and many other drive 100-120 mph on a de-restricted autobahn with no problem at all. Because of the speeds involved drivers do not hog the outside lane but leave it free for cars overtaking them at these sort of speed. Unlike in the UK where most drive stick in the outside lane doing just 70-80 mph and think the are such good and careful drivers. I have been driving for 48 years and have never had or caused any form of accident although I did have a young lady in a Fiesta in Germany crash into the back of my car at a speed with the speed limit for the road. The problem was she was busy chatting to her passenger and didn't notice that I was stopped behind another car at a set of traffic lights. My Audi was a write off and never did come back from Germany.

Speed cameras are mostly about making money and not very much to do with road safety. This is why most police forces offer so called Speed awareness courses in return for not giving you 3 points on your licence. These have only come in to being since the police and speed camera partnerships had to send all the 'fine' money to the treasury. These courses cost more than the £60 fine and the police are allowed to keep all the money.

I understand it is possible to get a speed camera database to load on the standard Audi Sat/Nav but I don't think anyone has yet come up with a way to make it give an audible beep beep as you approach a camera site. So do you drive along watch the screen all the time?
Click to expand...

completely agree. I don't see a problem doing 100mph+ on a clear stretch of motorway if it was legal. obviously it isn't so I don't. Problem in this country there are too many road hog numpties who seem in capable of moving over to the free inside lane - middle laners used to be common, now its outside laners. agree re: schools although most of time the parents parking is such a nightmare that doing 10mph is near impossible
 
seniorjj said:
I would be interested to know what other run of the mill brands offer a better screen as standard on their hatchback A3 sized model? Seat Leon, ford focus, VW golf, skoda, vauxhall astra, Hyundai i30, Honda civic all don't.

The Mercedes C180 has a 5.8 inch (same as A3), but Mercedes aren't run of the mill.

Comparing to the previous A3 standard screen it's a massive improvement.

I think you are underselling the standard screen - sure it's no tech pack but it's better than any competitor same sized car.

Agree that if u spend loads of time in the car might be worth it tho!
Click to expand...


ive seen the merc screen in the a class, b class and cls and they are laughable - hideous and just stuck on and look tacky
 
TheFiftheElement said:
Couldn't give a stuff about the higher res screen, or the tech pack .. most of the time my screen is hidden away in the dash .. there's less to go wrong if you don't spec it, and no matter what you choose will, the tech will still be way out of date in 3-4 years when I trade it in ..

For me it's an S3, not a 35K mobile laptop ..

I do understand folk like their toys though, or have to have their cars fully loaded .. anyhow the smaller screen does in no way look out of place or cheap ..
Click to expand...

some of us like tech but your out of date in 3-4 years comment is ridiculous - of course tech will be out of date even a year later but what do you do wait forever

oh my s3 is a mobile office with its lan so mobile laptop isn't far office lol
 
The Challinor said:
In my defence I was overwhelmed with the awesomeness of the car and picking the colour I assumed the screen would equal my 6 year old Pioneer unit, then I saw a A3 with SD nav and felt sick
Click to expand...

and your 6 year old pioneer unit was how much? let me guess £1000 ill bet
 
royalsteve68 said:
re: google maps overlay - that is correct . I have the tech pack. I didn't take long to think about it as I like tech. However the price was steep and im voming from a tom tom one lol.

Advantages of the inbuolt sat nav v standalone device
  • no cabling, no mess
  • no interfering with the windscreen- some numpties place it in the middle. Also
  • no detaching and attaching - this was a right pain in that I rarely used it.
  • either to control with mmi controls and closer to hand - touch controls and lean over to reach the standalone is a pain
Ive also seen the standard Sd satnav in an a3 and compared to the tech pack version id say the techpack version and extra features are worth it. the standard a3 screen is lame and feels like comparing vga to 1080p
Click to expand...

In my particular case, with my TomTom mounted on the right-hand end of the windscreen,
* I only have 50mm of cable visible, it does not interfere with my view through the screen and I only have to flick my eyes slightly to the right if I need any info from the unit whilst I'm driving
* I can detach it to set up routes, POIs and Favourites if I want to, but it normally stays put unless I need to do an update
* I can set up any information or routes using my right-hand on the touch screen without have to lean over or move from my normal driving position, although I tend to do this when I'm stopped anyway.
* I also like they way the view of the map enlarges when I come to a junction or roundabout so that it's much easier to see which exit to take together with the spoken instructions.
 
AllanG said:
Pleased to hear you're the 'perfect' driver, Dave R!!! ;)
Click to expand...
I did not say I was a 'perfect' driver just that I had not had or caused an accident in 48 years. I have taken part in several 'advanced' driving courses over the years mostly with police drivers. There is no such thing as a 'perfect' driver or though there are an awful lot of very bad drivers around.
 
h5djr said:
Personally I would never waste my money on the Audi built-in Sat/Nav.
Click to expand...

Whether it's a "waste of money" is merely your opinion. I'm sure there are those of us who'd consider options you've chosen to be a waste of money.

royalsteve68 said:
Advantages of the inbuolt sat nav v standalone device

no cabling, no mess
no interfering with the windscreen- some numpties place it in the middle. Also
no detaching and attaching - this was a right pain in that I rarely used it.
either to control with mmi controls and closer to hand - touch controls and lean over to reach the standalone is a pain
Click to expand...

You can also add bigger screen (on the Tech Pack at least), lowering the entertainment volume when directions are spoken and direction graphics in the DIS.

royalsteve68 said:
ive seen the merc screen in the a class, b class and cls and they are laughable - hideous and just stuck on and look tacky
Click to expand...

The screen in the A-Class is a total joke I must say - looks like they just stuck an iPad to the dash as an afterthought.
 
Vertigo1 said:
Whether it's a "waste of money" is merely your opinion. I'm sure there are those of us who'd consider options you've chosen to be a waste of money.
Click to expand...

Yes I should have said to me it would be a total waste of money. I have no use for the SD Sat/Nav or the Tech pack but I'm sure to some it is important and provides useful facilities. As I personally do not even have any form of smartphone and do not want to be 'contactable' when I'm driving they would be of no use to me. I just think my TomTom stand alone unit gives me much more that the standard Audi Sat/Nav system.[/QUOTE]
 
In answer to the question - 'Built-in sat nav - Is it worth it ?'

Depends on your point of view & needs I suppose. For me? Not worth it

I have a portable sat-nav which I use if needed.

TBH I never fix it to the windscreen as I find the constant scrolling of the sat-nav screen distracting

When I do use it have it, i have it in the centre console with the screen out of view and listen to the directions rather than watch on the screen where I'm going. Before I contemplate a journey which I need the sat-nav I always do a bit of quick research on the journey on Google maps on the PC anyway

But I accept what works for me doesn't work for others

As always, just my opinion of course ... :whistle2:

PS Saw these yesterday http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/tom...ree-life-time-map-updates-79-halfords-1980238
 
royalsteve68 said:
and your 6 year old pioneer unit was how much? let me guess £1000 ill bet
Click to expand...

I brought my current S3 when 2 years old so I didn't buy it but checked and was around £2,000.

My point is that I'm shocked how Audi can get away with the standard unit when devices like mine were out 6 years ago and obviously are much better now therefor the price of technology has come down.

I personally could not live with SD nav and really hate the stuck in the window approach, I do really like the intergrated OEM look, obviously all subjective.
 
h5djr said:
It depends if you always drive like a little goody two shoes. To me speed limits are just numbers and very often do not bare any relationship to the road or conditions. 30 mph in a 30 limit whilst passing a school as the children are coming out is too fast.
Click to expand...

Indeed, that's why they are called 'limits'. You are allowed to use your judgement to decide how fast to drive up to that limit.
 
  • Like
Reactions: glospete and AllanG
cemerson said:
Indeed, that's why they are called 'limits'. You are allowed to use your judgement to decide how fast to drive up to that limit.
Click to expand...
If the 'limits' were set to a more reasonable figure in relation to modern cars and were more consistent, then I sure many more people would consider sticking to the limit. Just about every country in the EU has an 80 mph limit on motorways. Perhaps rather than preventing us from purchasing powerful vacuum cleaners for example, the EU could standardise the speed limits and other traffic rules across the EU.

Again quoting Germany they have one limit inside a town (60 kph), one limit outside a town (100 kph) and generally limits on autobahns were the speed needs to be restricted for a very good reason. Because they are allowed to do any speed on the autobahn where there a no speed restriction, when there is one, drivers know it is there for a good reason and generally stick to it.
 
h5djr said:
Perhaps rather than preventing us from purchasing powerful vacuum cleaners for example, the EU could
Click to expand...

.... deal with the Ebola outbreak, deal with the extremists murdering thousands, help provide fresh drinking water to millions etc.

But no, let's ban vacuum cleaners over 2kW (what about electric cars then) and 100W light bulbs. :(
 
  • Like
Reactions: h5djr and The Challinor
h5djr said:
If the 'limits' were set to a more reasonable figure in relation to modern cars and were more consistent, then I sure many more people would consider sticking to the limit. Just about every country in the EU has an 80 mph limit on motorways. Perhaps rather than preventing us from purchasing powerful vacuum cleaners for example, the EU could standardise the speed limits and other traffic rules across the EU.

Again quoting Germany they have one limit inside a town (60 kph), one limit outside a town (100 kph) and generally limits on autobahns were the speed needs to be restricted for a very good reason. Because they are allowed to do any speed on the autobahn where there a no speed restriction, when there is one, drivers know it is there for a good reason and generally stick to it.
Click to expand...

Yes, but on the other hand, the road accident rate in Germany is substantially higher than it is here.
 
^ Whoa :p

There are stats, and there are stats !

Surely you'd have to consider the number of km of roads in each country, the number of registered vehicles in each country, then then number of accidents of types of roads in each country in order to get a meaningful comparison ;)
 
cemerson said:
Yes, but on the other hand, the road accident rate in Germany is substantially higher than it is here.
Click to expand...
That's true, but the accident rate in most European countries including Germany, is drooping at a faster rate that it is in the UK. Personally I would still prefer the greater freedom offered in Germany. Mind you I dread to think what the rate in Germany would be like if all a German needed to drive was to pass the UK driving test rather than the much more comprehensive German test.
 
Exceeding the speed limit is so easy without knowing it. In quiet smooth modern cars like an A3 or S3 even if it's a 1.4 the difference in speed between exceeding and not exceeding the limit enough to bet a fine is so small and hardly noticeable. And those few mph over can result in a conviction. Whilst some fixed cameras are in dangerous places it would seem the scamera vans park in places where it's more likely to result in a conviction, like at the bottom of a hill etc.
I use many good quality wide A roads, few houses (those there are, are set back), very few junctions, excellent surface and visibility and no serious accidents as far as I'm aware. Yet they're fifty and you actually pass a derestriction sign when turning off up a single track road with grass in the middle. It's beyond belief.
There are many good roads where I would imagine almost 100% of drivers might question the posted limits. There's a huge difference between doing 55 in a 50 limit on a quiet rural A road than doing 35 or more past a school.

I still think being made aware of where cameras are is a useful driving tool. Or even being alerted when we creep over the posted limits.
 
  • Like
Reactions: h5djr and Pulp84
I think it will be interesting with the inevitable introduction of "black boxes" by insurance companies happens regarding keeping to limits.

At the moment car insurance is calculated on a set of fixed variables - age, car type, points, accidents etc - it is not necessarily a true indication of someone's driving style or how well they drive day to day. Black boxes add a dimension of allowing insurers to price a customer instantly for the risk. I wouldn't be surprised either that if your telemetry records show a few 100mph moments - there will be a clause in your policy to either revoke the policy or heavily charge you.

Because of this, I feel built in sat-nav will be an even-more popular extra where it will call out limits. This added to speed limit recognition will keep people in check I feel more so to protect their bank balance. Yeah there will be the odd insurer that will be lax - but not sure the big guys will be.

Sometimes I simply can not believe my speedo reading after 5 or 6 seconds of full throttle. It does make you think sometimes.....
 
There is a lot of chatter in the insurance industry about using this technology to calculate insurance premiums. Think there was an article on the Daily Mail about this too not that long ago.

Its inevitable - I'm just intrested to see what it will do to peoples driving habits if they have to pay a higher risk fee for exceeding speed limits etc.
 
They will just be hacked by people, totally insane way to try and control people.

How do you add the speed camera warnings to the Audi sat nav? I think £500 is an awful lot to pay for the SD based one, the card is like £40 on eBay but needs a dealer to do it, not sure what they charge.

Today I used a BMW with sat nav, came in handy as I really needed it, though for £500 on the Audi I would rather get a really good sat nav. I don't use it much.
 
natebrice said:
Does the SD card based sat-nav have traffic updates and diversions? Or is that limited to the Tech pack only?
Click to expand...
Not sure if you got a reply but mine gives me traffic updates and diversions
 
This thread seems to have quickly changed direction to speed related driving lol
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

S
Service agreement. Is it worth it?
Replies
11
Views
4K
Spinstorm
Spinstorm
ahfh1
Audi Service Plan - Is it worth it?
Replies
63
Views
27K
JohnM100
JohnM100
The_Ironist
Worth it?
Replies
19
Views
2K
S1girl
S1girl
Jwhalley96
Is Tech Pack worth it?
Replies
17
Views
44K
Audi Bairn
Audi Bairn
SM18
Built in SatNav
Replies
5
Views
906
Wibbly
Wibbly
Top
Back