Using A Nokia N95 For Sat Nav In Los

[ferguston]

Hi everyone,

Hope this of use to anybody out there.

I had previously asked about using a Nokia N95 for Sat Nav in LOS.

I started using the phone I brought over from the UK. It was on O2 in the UK so there was no need to have it unlocked.

The maps are free,the only cost involved is downloading them onto your memory card via an internet connection. The phone does this for you as you move from place to place in LOS ( You can also scroll around the map of LOS,using the "joy-pad" on the phone to download maps ).

I had to switch my service provider from DTAC to 12 Call as DTAC was too slow. The access cost is 1 Baht per min but,maps are downloaded quickly. The maps appear to be up to date but I've only downloaded maps for around Pattaya, Rayong and the dirt-track (sorry motorway!) to BKK and the north of BKK. They have the usual landmark icons such as temples,monuments,etc.

I've used a Bluetooth GPS receiver sitting on the car dashboard (or around your neck ). The high rises in BKK make satellite detection hit and miss but,out of town satellite detection is OK.

The N95's battery life is poor so an accessory charger is essential.

Route planning is by text but sometimes internet access is needed. The main drawback is, voice navigation is limited to BKK and there is a charge of 332 Baht for 30 days and 2,912 Baht for 1 year. I haven't tried the voice navigation option. The ability to look up addresses and post-codes seems to be limited.

Hope this is of use to members. Anybody else who uses a N95 and who has any tips,etc, please reply!!

Ferguston

[quiksilva]

I brought one last weekend and forked out for 3 years worth of voice navigation. It was pretty good, a bit pricey but worth it I felt. It works great, I have used it to find factories in the middle of deepest darkest Samut Prakarn and get myself back to the office, and have been happy with the directions and routes it chose.

Its not so great in Bangkok I agree, it has issues getting a fix on the GPS but out of town its great. Well worth it.

The best tip I have is to check out www.n95users.com all sorts of useful stuff there.

[ferguston]

I brought one last weekend and forked out for 3 years worth of voice navigation. It was pretty good, a bit pricey but worth it I felt. It works great, I have used it to find factories in the middle of deepest darkest Samut Prakarn and get myself back to the office, and have been happy with the directions and routes it chose.

Its not so great in Bangkok I agree, it has issues getting a fix on the GPS but out of town its great. Well worth it.

The best tip I have is to check out www.n95users.com all sorts of useful stuff there.

[ferguston]

I brought one last weekend and forked out for 3 years worth of voice navigation. It was pretty good, a bit pricey but worth it I felt. It works great, I have used it to find factories in the middle of deepest darkest Samut Prakarn and get myself back to the office, and have been happy with the directions and routes it chose.

Its not so great in Bangkok I agree, it has issues getting a fix on the GPS but out of town its great. Well worth it.

The best tip I have is to check out www.n95users.com all sorts of useful stuff there.

Thanks for the information quiksilva.

A couple of questions:- Does the Voice Navigation cover only the BKK area as detailed in the purchase option ?

Do you find the searching for addresses and post-codes virtually non-existent?

[quiksilva]

Voice Navigation is good for Singapore, KL, Bangkok and so far no problem a little further afield have only been out to Samut Prakarn but it worked great.

I haven't tried postcodes as they are not very specific in Thailand anyway, its not like UK where it will mean one side of the road or the other here it could mean an entire district!

It also does not know house numbers so searches by address are pretty poor, so if I search by address I just use the road (spelled the way it is in the map) and by the Soi number, this works okay.

[deminister]

I feel that both the Nokia N95 and 6610 Navigator are not worth the money at all, maps seem to work only around Bangkok, you must pay on top of the purchase for navigation. Nokia batteries are some of the worst performers in the mobile industry, navigating depletes them within a few hours. Nokia should advertise the prices and the possibilities and not claim that they navigate as such. it is far more interesting to buy a dedicated GPS for your car with real maps, maps that are detailed everywhere in LOS. Thailand is more than BKK and CM.

[steffi]

My advise to download all of Thailand at once. Just take your mobile and a usb cable to TNET or True Internet pay about 40 thb and download the load onto your phones memory card. then you won't have to pay to download them again. You can also put your SD card in it's adapter and use a card reader. I usually have dotnet and Map Loader on a flash drive ready to go.

also make sure you have the latest firmware installed because that will give you assisted GPS which will result in a faster lock. I had an N95 but now have an E90. I find the E90 fits my data inputting needs better.

Hi everyone,

Hope this of use to anybody out there.

I had previously asked about using a Nokia N95 for Sat Nav in LOS.

I started using the phone I brought over from the UK. It was on O2 in the UK so there was no need to have it unlocked.

The maps are free,the only cost involved is downloading them onto your memory card via an internet connection. The phone does this for you as you move from place to place in LOS ( You can also scroll around the map of LOS,using the "joy-pad" on the phone to download maps ).

I had to switch my service provider from DTAC to 12 Call as DTAC was too slow. The access cost is 1 Baht per min but,maps are downloaded quickly. The maps appear to be up to date but I've only downloaded maps for around Pattaya, Rayong and the dirt-track (sorry motorway!) to BKK and the north of BKK. They have the usual landmark icons such as temples,monuments,etc.

I've used a Bluetooth GPS receiver sitting on the car dashboard (or around your neck ). The high rises in BKK make satellite detection hit and miss but,out of town satellite detection is OK.

The N95's battery life is poor so an accessory charger is essential.

Route planning is by text but sometimes internet access is needed. The main drawback is, voice navigation is limited to BKK and there is a charge of 332 Baht for 30 days and 2,912 Baht for 1 year. I haven't tried the voice navigation option. The ability to look up addresses and post-codes seems to be limited.

Hope this is of use to members. Anybody else who uses a N95 and who has any tips,etc, please reply!!

Ferguston

Edited August 12, 2007 by steffi

[Ian_B]

I have used the GPS on my E90 a little now in the 2 weeks I've had it

I downloaded Nokia Maps on my PC and then downloaded the entire Thailand map (was around 50meg if I recall) to my microSD card

Only problem is the spelling of a lot of roads is not the same as what I'm used too

Good for Hotels though - made my way to the Dusit in Hua Hin using it on Thursday

[palm]

I feel that both the Nokia N95 and 6610 Navigator are not worth the money at all, maps seem to work only around Bangkok, you must pay on top of the purchase for navigation. Nokia batteries are some of the worst performers in the mobile industry, navigating depletes them within a few hours. Nokia should advertise the prices and the possibilities and not claim that they navigate as such. it is far more interesting to buy a dedicated GPS for your car with real maps, maps that are detailed everywhere in LOS. Thailand is more than BKK and CM.

Interesting thread...

I need to buy a GPS unit for my car in Thailand.

I currently own a Garmin 60CSx which I use really only for map-making etc on our land. What would you recommend for in-car use - something that can mount in the dashboard? Budget is no problem; I just want something that will speak directions, works well with a car (in my case a Fortuner), and has maps for north of Bangkok up to Phitsanulok.

The N95 seems a bit big and heavy as a mobile phone? So I don't think it would be a great solution for me as both a mobile AND an in-car GPS?

Maybe Nokia have something newer coming out which will be better than the N95 for this?

[dekka007]

Whats the best price you have found the Nokia E90 for in Bangkok?

Thanks

[ferguston]

Steffi, Thanks for the advice. I'll pay a visit to True Internet with a new memory card.

Deminister - I've replied to your PM. I've found the maps pretty accurate at least around the Pattaya area. So much so that when cycling around Baan Amphur, south of Pattaya taking the N95 with you let's you explore all the side roads,etc.

Taking a dedicated Sat Nav with you is not so easy. I was a little fortunate my N95 was a "free" upgrade from O2 back in the UK.

Ferguston

[nullx8]

i think the nokia maps are quite nice feature (and cheap as well)

but for professional Routing not really usefull ....

happy garmin released currently a symbian version of Mobile XT ...

awesome speed and .. smae functions as well known and loved on my PDA ;-)

[quiksilva]

Update after a few more weeks with it, overall Im very happy I have taken it on trips to Hua Hin, Rayong, and have used it to navigate my way out of areas on the other side of the river in Bangkok. The biggest gripe is the time is takes to get a lock on to the satellite but I have not upgraded the firmware yet (how do you do that anyway?)

[nullx8]

i updated the new firmware ... 12 somethings ...

its faster .. but not much .... i just play arround with some other applications .. (hope its about the application and not about the hardware)

[nullx8]

I have not upgraded the firmware yet (how do you do that anyway?)

http://europe.nokia.com/A4176089

go there .... download th updater ....

(dont forget the charger(no charger=no update .. the programm is serious about this), and 30 min time)

all done.

[phazey]

i just picked up an e70 over the weekend that supports GPS. Any chance of some info about these Bluetooth receivers please? Price/outlets etc.

Cheers

[Wolfie]

The N95's battery life is poor so an accessory charger is essential.

I get about 2 days out of a fully charged battery, that normal use (SMS, calls, few photos) - i consider that reasonable all things considered. The GPS drains the battery quite quickly, so yes an accessory charger would be required if you wanted to use it for navigation in the car