Google to iPhone users: No free navigation for you!

destardi,
Many thanks for your sarcasic response.

I take it you don’t like maps on your memory card? Tell me why.

Look, I appreciate your concern with any entity knowing everything about you, ‘big brother’ is something we should all watch out for.

Maybe I’m wrong here, but Google is not a government entity. There are safety checks in place for who can access what information, and in 10 years if Google is flashing advertisements directed to me personally as I drive past an outdoor advertising board on the highway because of Google nav, i’m ok with that.

Easy invasion of privacy is inevitable because of technology, but that doesn’t mean we can’t force respect and specific policies for the protection of our privacy.

And are you referring to maps with no turn by turn? I hate those kind.

Privacy is just one point of my post. No, Google isn’t a gov entity, and if they were do you think I would trust them more? Every company gets away with what it can (and gov too). Saying there are government regulations is laughable to me. Anything and everything can and will be done behind closed doors.

Nokia own Navteq. For 10 phones or so, they offer maps with turn-by-turn in 72+ countries. Some of their coverage is iffy in some countries, but damn good in most. Every mapping company has weaknesses.

For other phones, they ask a yearly fee for turn-by-turn directions, which is quite low (and reasonable).

But this isn’t about them, specifically. In fact I’m a critic of GPS on phones because their implementations are often poor compared to dedicated devices.

It’s about other alternatives (dedicated devices in addition to phones) and others doing an (IMO) better job than something that relies on net access for maps to be downloaded (as long as your GPS phone or bluetooth GPS receiver is sensitive enough).

I was wondering about your point 2 and 3. I used built in GPS in one car and a TomTom GPS in the other. The only time I need GPS is when I’m in another country and paying expensive roaming charges. Google’s GPS presumably needs to download map data as it goes along? That would work out to be quite expensive for me to run.

Mike, exactly.

Costs are really an issue in some countries. Not only that, I would never rely on a device that depends on internet access for my primary navigation needs.

“Data connection lost” errors and so forth are not my idea of reliable navigation.

Thanks for reading through some of the crazy wording I used. I should have proof-read that post before pressing send!

Probably a daft question, but is the Google GPS solution based on the Maps app like I have on my iPhone? If so then I’ve been stung before with hefty data roaming charges when I used it to navigate around a city on foot.

I recently downloaded the Navigon GPS app which seems to have the map data stored in memory, although I haven’t really used it yet

Mike,
I don’t have an iPhone but basically any phone that has Assisted-GPS (relying or falling back on on internet or phone network for location information) must have those features disabled in the software and/or phone settings (Nokia included) if you don’t want to incur data charges.

Sometimes disabling all those features is a bit of a lesson of adjusting multiple settings around the phone.

So the phone doesn’t go online or at least warn you before going online.

People have been stung with hefty charges just by having the A-GPS (Assisted GPS) of the phone connecting to the network, transferring a few bytes of data now and then (not to mention maps if using a mapping product without offline maps).

Regards

Honestly, with no sarcasm, I have used Google’s nav, and I have yet to have a ‘connection lost’ error.

I think it pre-loads maps, and then only downloads updates if you veer from your route, in which case if there is no connectivity available to update your route, you *still* have the previous maps on your phone can you can just backtrack.

I wouldn’t necessarily say he ignores all those things you listed. He is just saying for a person who is already paying monthly data fees and has a smart phone why upgrade your GPS when you have a smart phone that is very capable of the job. As far as network failure the Droid does cache the maps to the phone once you start the navigation. While I am sure there are some privacy implications I would argue on any network your privacy may be compromised.

Other competitors may give free maps etc but the saying always go you get what you pay for. I just went to New York last week and I was able to make very good use of my droid finding directions, places to eat, shop etc both while driving and walking around. We had to use my phone for directions a couple times instead of my friends Garmin because the Garmin would not accept the address of the location we had to go to.

John,
Great to read your response.

His main thrust was price and an updated map, and I just wanted to illustrate that the same result could have been achieved with less money and with some advantages many don’t consider.

Converged devices are convenient and can do a good job for many that will buy one anyway (and have cheap data plans). I don’t doubt that.

I guess what surprises me is people consider Google the be-all and end-all, when there are advantages and disadvantages to every GPS product / device (and map).

The fact that many count on enthusiast sites like this count dedicated units down-for-the-count is surprising to me, too, but maybe it shouldn’t be.

Other options have their advantages and even the phones themselves can be far less sensitive than regular GPS units if their A-GPS features are disabled for full offline use (ie. just using the GPS satellites).

Basically there are advantages and disadvantages with each hardware and software device.

I appreciate your response.

Your points are all weak, especially if you’re cross-posting on tech blogs under the same ID.

1) I was just a casual user of phones, but I wanted something more powerful. I envied the iPhone, but was not about to drop Verizon for AT&T just for that. I waited it out, and then the Droid came. So, I upgraded just because I was in the market for a smartphone.

If someone wants to buy a product, they buy it, period.

What you’re missing ‘user’, is that free Google navigation is just the icing on the cake.

Don’t get me wrong, I can understand your being preoccupied with “costs” since you own a product that rarely changes over years, except for software, so you have to keep absorbing the costs of buying essentially the same device with meager O/S updates, as well as proprietary connective cables, as well as over 75% of your aps.

/I paid for a smartphone I was in the market for, and got extra perks with it from Google…that’s all the casual user will see from his/her point of view. Cost was already calculated when the phone was bought.

And FYI, if you’re telling me computer forensics people can’t examine the map you just downloaded to use offline, or monitor your cellphone signal for location you’re either a dummy, or just using straw man arguments. Give it up.

You said:

“Don’t get me wrong, I can understand your being preoccupied with “costs” since you own a product that rarely changes over years, except for software, so you have to keep absorbing the costs of buying essentially the same device with meager O/S updates, as well as proprietary connective cables, as well as over 75% of your aps.”
—————
Interesting, destardi.
Your assumptions are really interesting. For what its worth, I don’t own a device with a proprietary cable. But keep guessing.

You said:
“And FYI, if you’re telling me computer forensics people can’t examine the map you just downloaded to use offline, or monitor your cellphone signal for location you’re either a dummy, or just using straw man arguments. Give it up.”
——————
You are talking about the cops, who don’t track you daily like Google is/does unless you are a suspect to them. You are comparing this to Google and how we willingly give up our location information, emails and web travels to the same company, keeping tabs on it all. How is this even remotely the same thing?

Of course cops can track you down if they have a reason to. Is that what I’m talking about here?

the point is he’s got a phone to do everything he wants, thus cutting out another gadget he doesn’t need. his droid does the GPSing, so why pay money for a garmin when you have to pretty much buy it again (price wise) for its updates in a few years?
it’s called integrated solutions. i have one device that does the functions of multiple devices, thus cutting the amount of money i have to spend on more devices because the 1 does it all. yes, a droid is more expensive than a garmin, but it’s not limited to just gps navigation like a garmin is, so essentially it is cheaper overall than having a garmin.
it’s a phone, a browser, email, calendar, apps, the list goes on and on. who uses a gps when they have a smartphone that can do it for them and always has the latest updates that you don’t have to pay separately for?

You said overall it’s cheaper than having a Garmin. We don’t have the figures to prove that.

I say other methods are more reliable and they are what I prefer but again we don’t have the figures to prove that and there are really no figures for what we prefer or find more reliable.

Convergence and required internet access has pluses and minuses when it comes to GPS. A lot depends on how often you use it, the plan you are on and what country you are in, how sensitive your GPS hardware is and what your maps and map updates are priced at.

I don’t think it’s so cut-and-dry as saying a converged device is saving you money with all the hidden costs associated with it and the many variables of location, plan and so on.

1. I see your point if you only carry a feature phone and update to a smart phone just for Google Nav. But if you are a smart phone user, you already paid around $200 for the device and pay monthly charges (which I do). Google Nav is just a free add on.

2. Yes there are privacy implications. Google has your location and uses it for its live traffic data. That is why I use Yahoo mail so I do not put all eggs in one basket. As a general rule, you have to watch your internet habits and should always cover your tracks. I use Google a lot but Google dashboard has no information on me.
Also, you should know that federal government mandates wireless companies to provide the user’s location via GPS or cell tower triangulation for emergency 911 purposes, even on feature phones. So your location is know to third parties regardless.

3. Lack of local map storage is a potential failure, but once the path is calculated, it is saved in memory so even if the data connection is terminated, the map of a certain area around your path is cached. It is a performance concern, but I consider it free and am willing to live with it. Besides, having the map on the network means that it is always up to date.

4. I cannot talk about international data costs, but in the US, even after the data caps on 4G as Verizon and AT&T have indicated, the monthly limit is 5GB. You only use the wireless data network to load the map which is the same as Google maps. Once it is cached, then there is only the GPS signal.

5. For competitor’s maps, I would have to go to Symbian, which I do not want to. I love Android and all its features. (Personal choice). And I love the extras like satellite view overlay and a road level picture of your next turn.

Thanks for your well-reasoned response! Refreshing.

yes, because reading a map while driving is so very safe.

haha.
where the heck am i going?
not to worry! let me bust out my handy dandy 24×36 road map!

right…too stupid to use a regular map. why the f*ck would anyone use a regular map when they have GPS? we love technology, and will use it every change we get. it’s what we do. don’t like it? then use your regular map all you want. i’m using my phone.

thats funny because i normally open Google Maps up on my Droid and just read the map without even thinking about using the Navigation. Also i decided to buy the droid because i saw it on tech blogs all over the internet months before it came out and it proves every day why i was right purchasing it. Its hands down one of, if not the, best phone Verizon has out. So basically your arguments against Google maps and the Droid being are based on your opinion… Wow thats convincing! kids these days…

Sour grapes

Name one country who hasn’t or didn’t or doesn’t abuse human rights.