Introduction

We’ve been testing navis, and not few of them. Thanks to PDA Futár, GPS Trade Kft and Navi-Gate Kft 8 devices designed for navigation have arrived together. The field was quite varied, as the cheapest piece did cost just a bit more than 50.000 HUF, whereas the most expensive one has more than double the price. Of course this does not mean that the participants of our test cover the whole offer, but we have been selecting from the ones with the highest sales.

So what can we get for this? According to current fashion this is called a PNA, Personal Navigation Assistant. Translating to standard language, this means a device restricted to navigational functions compared to a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), of course in case the operation in the manufacturer’s workshop was successful. In a word, it is a navi. I could start cracking some cheap jokes like I haven’t been testing for a long time and now Bog dumps so many navis on me, but on one hand this is not true, and on the other hand I leave the use of cheap jokes to Bog. (I will take advantage of this possibility on the following pages – Bog) We chose to test so many devices intentionally, as our goal was to clear up what are we paying for in the much more expensive devices and if it has any sense.

When visiting CeBIT in spring, it was already clear that personal navigation is one of the fields going through an explosive growth. This is not only true for Hungary, but it can be experienced in all parts of Europe, but in America and Asia too (there especially). Days of paper maps and methods like "let’s ask the auntie over there" are numbered. Rapidly falling prices and highly precise and up-to-date navigational software have a huge part in this evolution. These software are changing from alternatives to necessities for many of us not only because of their better and better map database, but also because of the extending POI database, which turns them into guidebooks. And then I haven’t yet said anything about the comfort provided by the TMC (okay, this doesn’t yet function in Hungary and maybe it wouldn’t really have sense in Budapest), but all these functions show that these machines are becoming a "part of the household" like the television, or the washing machine (whoa, this Terminator-like idea is not too attractive, but nothing better occurred to me right now).

The participants of our test are very much alike, with the exception of one – a paternity investigation would probably have some ugly results. It’s navigational software are from the Nav’n’go, no matter what name do they have. This is the reason why we won’t mention the precision of the maps and the functions of the navi software, as we already did this many times, it’s enough to remember the review of Mio C310, or the Mio C510, or even the Mio C250. There is no lack of comparative reviews, in the test bearing the title Cheap navis against each other we had the opportunity of getting to know the capabilities of the software most suitable for the Hungarian market. The one and only refreshing exception is a Nüvi device, which already had some representatives in the editorial office, for example the Nüvi 310, and the Nüvi 660 too. The latter one appears in my current review too. Our dear readers can now rightfully ask: why? Well, the answer is simple: the Nüvi 660’s price has fallen a lot and this way it can be a part of this review’s “contest”. We have hidden a surprise somewhere in this test, but we won’t tell you where. :-)

Altina A660

The Altina A660 was almost the last one to touch my windscreen. The main reason for this was that it was lacking a mains charger so I could only charge it with the car charger, and since the battery was empty, it didn’t really want to start up. It took revenge for being neglected by not starting up until being charged for about fifteen minutes. The other reason for being one of the last ones tested is that I didn’t really like it’s shape. There are no problems with it, it’s a black, soft plastic box, relatively small, there are no improper design solutions. In one part though, the whole picture is ruined by the 3 buttons on top of the device. I had the opportunity to meet the rightmost one several times; this is the power button (I kept pressing it for minutes). Near this an up and a down function button, which didn’t really fulfill their functions, or I was too lame for them. (You can never rule this out - Bog) Furthermore, this pattern of three elements is made of such a “bazaar-quality”, transparent plastic that even operators of Chinese copy workshops would be ashamed of putting such a thing on their devices.

This Altina is the proud owner of the imaginary prize for the longest passive holder. The aforementioned component is minimum half a meter long, ideal for short-sighted people, while bus drivers can stick it on the most distant part of the panorama window, they will still reach it easily. In turn they get such amplitude which makes the oscillations of a Geiger-Müller counter appearing in the wildest nightmares of a nuclear scientist look like tiny vibrations. This basically defines the usability of the gadget, I have chained the wild beast with the cable of the car charger – with little success. (I also share the opinion, this holder is horroristic, in a sex shop it could easily be on the shelf of extra-extreme accessories)

The aforementioned set is the contents of the box, plus some papers. Sadly there is no mains charger. The display is a 3,5" size, QVGA resolution TFT with standard picture quality. It does not excel in luminosity, but it’s enough for navigation. The device runs Windows CE v 5.0, which is kept alive by Samsung’s 2440 processor with a speed of 400 Mhz, which is absolutely suitable. Navigation is handled by a built-in 20 channel SirfStar III receiver. During the test the system performed very well, and iGO did its usual best. It found the satellites quickly and held on to them strong. The speaker produces a strong box-like sound. When charged completely it can navigate for about two hours on battery. Besides navigation it is capable of playing movies and music. In conclusion it is a decent job, but it shows that it’s not made after the latest fashion.

Pros: compact size, precise, fast navigation.
Cons: passive.

Neverloss N627

The Neverloss N627 is a really elegant piece. Based on its name we never get lost with it, however this needs more than hanging it from our neck (given its size we would look really funny with it), it is much more recommended to stick it on our car’s windshield. The casing of the gadget is made of the more and more fashionable soft plastic, which makes it feel as a quality work. It’s angular shape emphasizes it’s elegance even more, although the overall picture is much ruined by the passive holder, which, I think, is the worst possible. Unfortunately it’s not stiff, but it’s the "goose-neck" type, the one which looks like as if been cut from a high-voltage power cable. A sucking disk with a ratchet is used to keep the whole thing on the windshield, but I say such a system won’t last more than 20 "sucks". Unfortunately the contrast is too powerful.

It’s not overwhelmed with buttons anyway. On top of it we can find the large power button, everything else is controlled by tampering with the 4.3 inch touchscreen. The screen’s resolution is 480x272 pixels by the way; I was content with its luminosity, although I found it a bit pale. A 400 Mhz Samsung 2440 processor is ticking inside the Neverloss, serving the Windows CE Net v4.2 operating system. The processor handles any tasks flawlessly, I didn’t experience even a second of delay during the test. The box includes the navi itself, the car holder, the car charger, the iGO software with full Europe map, the manual and a stylus, although we won’t need this too much. Unfortunately the mains charger is missing.

Finding satellites was fast, there were no problems with precision during navigation. The iGO did its task rapidly. It has a TMC interface, so in happier parts of the world it can help avoid roadblocks, in case we install a suitable antenna. Sound volume was ample, there were no problems with sound quality either. Upon taking off from the charger, the Neverloss needed recharging after about two hours of continuous navigation. Besides navigation we can make use of the device in means of listening to music and watching videos, the system has no problems with these tasks. My overall impression was good, as downsides I could mention the passive holder and the lack of the mains charger.

Mapilot M6000

The Mapilot is tiny. It’s the smallest from the whole competition but I risk saying that we won’t find any smaller navi on the market. This doesn’t mean that it didn’t receive a 3.5" size QVGA resolution display, but it lacks any other useless features. Based on its shape it resembles TomTom navis, the manufacturer might have had the purpose to make them easily mixed up, or maybe they just dind’t have any better idea. In the box we can find, besides the device, the passive holder, the car charger and a stylus. There is no mains charger.

The Mapilot also runs Windows CE Net v4.2 Core on a Samsung processor, but the speed is only 300 Mhz in this case. This doesn’t affect navigation speed, so there are no problems here. It reacts a bit slower when watching movies; I didn’t experience any slowdowns when listening to MP3s. The built-in SirfStar III antenna finds satellites quickly and with precision. It kept the signal alive without problems during navigation too. Besides the power button, the Mapilot only includes a volume button and nothing else. The small sizes means a relatively small weight, it’s easy to put it in our pockets; this is the device I consider the most suitable replacement for paper maps when taking a walk in the city.

In spite of the small size, the manufacturer succeeded in including a 950 mAh battery and since the processor with a lower clock speed is less hungry, the Mapilot can take pride in having a considerable amount of online time. It can navigate for much more than two hours when fully charged and this is a great performance. Unfortunately nothing can be perfect, so the luminosity and color-richness of the display is not really what I would have expected, although this is not so important during navigation, until the sun starts to shine. And then the voice navigation helps; this is where I have found the next flaw: sound quality is not the best. I would say it sounds as if the navigator was talking from a bucket.

The device is TMC-ready, so if we obtain a proper antenna we can easily avoid traffic jams, for example in London. Overall, the Mapilot is a friendly little piece of hardware.

Pros: small size, long battery time.
Cons: sound quality, lack of mains charger.

Bluepanther N4410BT

The hot-shot of the test. Unfortunately it malfunctioned at us, but this must have been the flaw of the this one piece. Details later. The Bluepanther arrived from Korea. Expert eyes might observe immediately the resemblance between this and the MyGuide 4300 model. But before turning the page its worth comparing the two navis. On one hand the front panel buttons visible on the MyGuide are gone, on the other hand the antenna of the GPS cannot be turned and furthermore the battery cannot be changed. But this is not the end of the list of differences: this blue wild animal is driven by a dual-core processor. Wow! The clock speed is 2x200 Mhz, which gives a real spin to the Windows CE v5.0 Core system, I didn’t experience not a moment of slowdown during the test. It is equipped with a relatively large, 2000 mAh battery, which allows it to run for almost 3 hours, supposed we don’t exploit all the features, as there are many of these.

Besides navigation, the Bluepanther pampers its owner with tons of applications: we can view pictures, play movies and music too. This is helped by the stereo sound system (muhaha), which works during navigation too, with a quality a bit inferior to the one expected. If this is still not enough we can keep a driving history, just be sure to keep it away from our wife, or we can start explaining where we have been. It is ideal for those with a company car, in case we have to report where we have been using the fuel. We also get a calculator, so we can keep track of the average consumption, and a notepad, which is very useful. Last but not least, the Bluepanther can function as a loudspeaker, connecting to our phone through Bluetooth. Its quality was adequate. The machine is capable of such functions – considered meaningless by me – like redirecting the sound of the MP3 player to the 3.5 jack output when actively navigating. Hooray, at least we won’t hear the sound of the traffic – there are few things with such an accident risk like this. (It’s quite fun connecting it to a normal car’s head assembly, we can hear the MP3 from the factory speakers and the navigation sound at the same time - Bog)

The mega-display with it’s 4.3" size and 480x272 pixel resolution is capable of displaying the user experience. The iGO can take advantage of this, so when in Budapest we can see half of the city at once. There is a TMC connector, in case we would be taking it with us when traveling abroad. The gadget’s speed was convincing by all means, but this was expected from the dual-core processor. So let’s see the downsides: the sample device we received was probably faulty as it forgot the time every 5 minutes and reset it to 2:00 AM. This meant that during the day iGO switched to night mode, making the screen practically invisible. I tried setting the time again but after five minutes it was night-time again. (Quality Columbian stuff can provide similar experience - Bog) So I have mixed feelings regarding the most expensive participant, probably a non-faulty device can give a better experience.

Pros: large display, fast processor, many applications.
Cons: quality of the speaker.

Novogo T300

Novogo is a Taiwanese corporation. As such, anything can be imagined of it, in spite of not being widely known in Hungary. After a little investigation we succeeded in finding a whole portfolio of products, so they really think things seriously. The company has four series. The "C" series is the stylish one, the "S" is strong in fashion, the "A" has advantages in performance, while the "T" series is the mobile one. The T300 is the entry-level model of the T series, it has two bigger brothers (to tell the truth, only these two are present on the manufacturer’s website). The T300 is a showy piece, but it differs from the button-less navis popular nowadays, as there are a bunch of keys on its right side. In olden times the good old Mio 169 had a similar design. The navi arrived in a large, cube-shaped box, being associated by a car charger, a mains charger, a passive holder and some papers.

The gadget is made of quality materials, its assembly is convincing. This quality-feeling is further enhanced by the passive holder which is probably the best in the whole competition. It’s the thick, stiff type, which can be turned in any direction, but it can also be fastened, so the Novogo moves as much as our windshield: nothing. I can only congratulate the manufacturer in this matter, I really don’t understand why this isn’t the standard holder given with navis nowadays. I think everyone can realize that the advantage of motionlessness is readability, which is important when taking into consideration safety on the roads (I know, officially it’s not right and proper looking at this when driving, but anyway).

The device’s 266 Mhz processor drove it without problems, and with the 1000 mAh battery provided a long online time, due to the low power consumption. The display is a 3.5" large TFT, its luminosity and contrast are not exceptional but acceptable. What is strange, however, is the large area near the display packed with buttons. There is the power button, volume buttons, map zooming buttons, a button for repeating the voice command and one for memorizing the current position on the map; the question is why, as the iGO software knows all of these. Unfortunately this ruins the so far positive judgment quite much, as they could have easily left out this 3 cm, and then we would be facing a device suitable by all means. (This is a matter of taste: I have taken this navi with me on a weekend trip and I’ve been grateful many times for the buttons, handling was easier for me this way – Bog)

The foldable antenna and the SirfStar III chipset provide a fast and precise navigation, while the iGO does its job as usual: I was pleased with the navigation. The Novogo was a pleasant, positive surprise, considering its modest price, it seems a good choice.

Pros: quality materials used, exceptional passive holder.

Cons: useless hardware buttons, relatively weaker processor.

Tibo A1700

And then here’s the Tibo. It reminds me of a friendly cow. This is further emphasized as it received quite a plump shape from its designers. Altogether it is a friendly piece, though the casing is not made of the nowadays fashionable soft plastic, but of the classic hard one, moreover, the front cover has some glittering plastic parts too. In the box we can find, besides the device, the passive holder, a car charger, a stylus, a manual and the inevitable iGO software. Unfortunately no mains charger made it to the package. The Tibo is not of Chinese, but of Korean origin, in spite of this, the system is very similar; I might mention the display which is officially capable of displaying 16 million shades of color, which is not as prominent during navigation as I would have expected, especially because Windows can take advantage of this feature only when viewing pictures.

The Tibo is an OEM manufacturer too, although the brands found by me were just as well-known as the name Tibo itself. It is a positive aspect that the brand is present in Western-Europe too, so we can rightfully hope that the company will exist in the future too. The heart of the gadget is the usual 2440 Samsung processor with a clock speed of 400 Mhz, which drives this navi without problems, just like all the others. The operating system used us the Windows CE .Net 4.2 Core. The device of course employs TMC support too, just like all the others.

Navigation is helped by the SirfStar III chipset, with a foldable antenna. The manufacturer didn’t take any chances by any means, as the device can be inserted in the car holder only with an unfolded antenna. The car holder is the goose-neck type, it’s not too long, so it won’t "wave in the wind" as much as the Altina for example, but it still can’t hold a candle to Novogo’s solution. Inserting it in its holder is a bit tricky, as we have to press two buttons at the same time, but we don’t see them (for me it is usual that the holder is already on the windshield when inserting the navi). The display has a size of 3.5", there is no lack of luminosity. It finds the satellites quickly, this is probably helped by the foldable antenna.

Navigation was fast and flawless; I was very content with the accuracy. It is of course capable of MP# playback, picture viewing and video playback, although the importance of these features is a much debated question. The battery didn’t really shine during the test: the maximum online time was about 1 hour and 20 minutes. The Tibo is equipped with stereo speakers, so listening to Uncle Moss is a real experience, although only in means of sound volume, as there would be much to improve in means of sound quality. The top of it all is that the volume control is a standard pot, just like at the old Sokol radios.

Pros: good display, fast, precise, fine passive holder
Cons: battery, tricky insertion into the passive holder, lack of mains charger.

Airis T930

The Airis arrived a bit later than the others, but it also remained a bit more, so I can’t say I didn’t have time to deal with it. The PNA with an attractive price was a positive experience. First I was afraid of the cover reminding me of COMECON plastics, but seeing it day by the day I realized that the situation is not at all that bad. Of course it’s not even close to the competitors covered with soft plastic, the comforting feeling can be, that those are not even close to the Airis in price. The guys at Airis succeeded in doing this by avoiding a bazaar-like design, which is promising. Regarding its shape we can acknowledge it with a yawn. Probably the designer team had only a ruler at their disposal, as the shape of this gadget is one we could describe with words: carved with an axe. In spite of this the shape is not bad and size isn’t huge either.

The overall impression is much improved by the passive holder, which (however not being of the stiff kind) has the flexible goose-neck design, but it’s short, so it won’t shake and the insertion of the device is probably the world’s most simple and best solution: it has to be slid in its holder from upwards, just like a bank card to an ATM, and that’s it. No snaps or small buttons and in turn the effect of treeing is omitted. Nice. The Airis won’t win the title for the navi with the most buttons, as it has only one, the power button. Anything else can be accessed trough the 3.5" size touchscreen which has a really good readability.

The Airis received – as a great surprise – a Samsung processor, from the 400 Mhz type and runs the Windows CE 5.0 operating system with iGO. The SirfStar III antenna was very quick and the signal was stable. There can be no charges against the speed of the device, I didn’t experience any slowdowns. Considering extra functions, the Airis has the usual picture viewing and music playbavk features. I congratulate, it is a decent job. Pros: price, passive holder, stable functioning. Cons: cover made of lower quality material.

Nüvi

And now for the Nüvi. Until now it didn’t compete in the same race as the others, but now, thanks to a great decrease in its price, it turned into a considerable alternative (although it could have turned into a peacock). It has already been tested by master Polacheck, and he was satisfied with it, with the exception of the map. Since then a year has passed and something has happened as it was perfectly navigating at me and I traveled through lower-Austria besides a number of small settlements in Hungary. So regarding the map there has been a major improvement. (Note: now the TopMap database is behind the software - Bog) The packaging is still a large cube and its sontents are the same too: device, passive holder, mains charger, car charger (the interesting is that it has quite a thick wire and it is united with the TMC antenna which can be stuck to the windshield with two rubber disks) and papers.

The Nüvi doesn’t navigate with iGO. This is a minus from me, taking in consideration that I have been the most satisfied by now with this software form Nav’N’Go. The Nüvi’s graphical map is quite plain, its advantage being that it’s perfectly transparent and that all texts appear with a font size of minimum 14, thus easing the job of the driver. Turning on the device two things are striking: the huge, 480x272 resolution display and its visibility. I put another navi near it. It was sunny weather and the Nüvi was so much better, that it was suspicious. I started putting all of the navis on the windshield and I must say that the others have much to learn. It pressed the others down in means of luminosity and visibility, like Raikkönen did the Super Aguri cars starting from the last place. By night I saw curious eyes staring at my car when stopped at the red light. Unfortunately they weren’t looking at me, but at the Nüvi sitting on the windshield.

The passive holder is perfect. It holds the machine completely motionless and the charger is plugged in this too after what we can insert the navi with the unfolded antenna. It finds the satellites quickly and the connection is stable, it made me angry only once: when exiting the subterranean garage of MOM Park it showed no signal and asked me if I am inside a building. I answered yes, when it said that okay, than the GPS antenna is turned off. It took me 5 minutes of navigation through the menu system until I found out how to turn it back on.

The Nüvi 660 is also capable of functioning as a Bluetooth loudspeaker, easing this way proper driving. It was a friendly, aesthetic companion. The map can be strange for an eye used to iGO, but it is easy to handle. The TMC antenna included in the base pack is a gallant choice and the passive holder is perfect. As a downside I could mention the bit complicated menu system and the software un-Hungarian in some parts. The best was when it told me: go 300 meters and then purn right. :-))

Summary, conclusion

We summarize, we conclude. So, I had some interesting days, although I can call eventful mostly the last one. Why? Until I was in the testing phase, the navis were quickly changing each other on the windshield of my car. To tell the truth all of them were navigating fine and gave somewhat the same experience. Of course for more money we can get a bit larger display, or horribile dictu a real queer like the Bluepanther or the Nüvi, but altogether we get the same stuff for our money. As I mentioned in the beginning there are no real differences in means of hardware, the design and our wallet can truly make difference. In case of the participants of our test, the prices reflect the value quite well. I’ve made a simple table, in which I gave points based on all kinds of objective and subjective ways near the factual parameters. On the end, the final order of the navis was almost the same what we could have when sorting them by price.

I must repeat that the cheapest one did its job just as well as the most expensive. If I have to distribute awards then the Nüvi gets the “Recommended” one for its surprisingly good display and the exceptional passive holder; I give a “Liked it” award to the Bluepanther for the dual-core processor, the wholesome of applications and the widescreen display, and the Novogo also gets one for the quality passive holder and its favorable price. There are no problems with the other navis either, as they fulfilled their functions completely and perfectly, but for an award one has to do something outstanding.

And now it’s time for the surprise! A determining experience of the last day was, when I met Bog and we stuck all the contestants on the windshield. While we were discussing the details, I observed some curious-looking people on the street. The passers-by probably couldn’t possibly imagine why is there a smaller kind of exhibition in the car. Seeing them I told one of them: "Eight pieces!" The reply was: "So that you won’t get lost for sure, right?" But one is enough for going for sure, you can believe me. The surprise is a video below, which we recorded during driving as the navis were chanting like a Gregorian chorus. Have fun!

Garmin nüvi 660	Bluepanther N4410BT	Novogo T300

Gubro

Translated by Szaszati

The navis (Bluepanther, Altina, Novogo, Neverloss, Mapilot, Tibo) were provided by PDA Futár, the Airis by GPS Trade Kft and the Garmint by Navi-Gate Kft.