Poll: Hard Nav or Big Screen?

[frank4711]

My Ram display is good and I just program the destination for the day and plug in the S7 yes I am a droid ... works great ... talks to me all the way there

[Magnatudes]

Find a place overhead to build in a large ultrawide split screen monitor (i.e. 28" 32:9 aspect ratio) with multiple HDMI/RCA inputs. Remotely display the stereo screen, provide a port for user supplied micro-PC/laptop for more sophisticated GPS/resident software like truck routing, truck stops, hunter maps, even Google Earth-like mapping systems that require gigs of storage, a port for displaying chassis diagnostics & notifications, and/or camera video.

We got to get away from these dinky displays that are mounted way over in the center of a dashboard and not within a quick eye glance. It's a safety issue as well.

[pickeljr]

Yeah us Senior citizens seem to like the large screen, especially for quick sighting and decisions in traffic. I also do a lot of travei\ling and relying on cell coverage between Alaska, Canada and the lower 48, places with out "your particular cell coverage can be a bear" My wife/navigator likes the phone BUT I have made many a U turn and gone out of the way depending on the phone GPS.

[Magnatudes]

Originally Posted by pickeljr

Yeah us Senior citizens seem to like the large screen, especially for quick sighting and decisions in traffic. I also do a lot of travei\ling and relying on cell coverage between Alaska, Canada and the lower 48, places with out "your particular cell coverage can be a bear" My wife/navigator likes the phone BUT I have made many a U turn and gone out of the way depending on the phone GPS.

Very well said. Many here of a younger generation travel mainly on highways and hang out in parking lot style campgrounds where cellphone coverage is not an issue for them. They also don't mind consuming a lot of cellphone bandwidth with all of their toy apps and paying for it.

Quick traffic decisions with dependency on tiny GPS display in the center of the vehicle just don't cut it. And God forbid driving late up the Alcan hoping a place comes up soon where one can shutdown for the night.

[Barch]

Big screen with Apple CarPlay and/or Android equivalent is the way to go. Constantly updated for free and easy to use. As already mentioned, if you are going to be out of cell phone range, you can download Google or Apple maps ahead of time. I have a Hard Nav in my 2015 Silverado. It is already out of date, they want $100 to update it every year, and the data is not as good as Google or Apple Maps.

[Motorhome1]

I have the KENWOOD with Garmin RV mapping and think it’s great. As long as a fixed RV map is available I would always choose that regardless of screen size. Large screens are great when fully integrated but most automotive screens now include lots of other option operated from the screen, heating, aircon, lighting, etc to save switch space on the dash. Then you end up having to go through many screen just to adjust something. Many times I end up hitting the wrong thing on the touch screen. Unless the M2 gets a new integrated dash I’m sticking with smaller screens. If apple oe Waze allows RV dimensions to be entered I would reconsider.

[Jpheifer]

I use an iPad Pro for navigation and the unit that’s mounted and came with my dx3 to pair to play my directions and music off my iPad . If the head unit in mine needs to be replaced due to the limitations of updating my rand McNally unit I will replace it with. Me wood head unit as I did this in my last unit and it was a great pairing - hope this helps you with your decision.

[Gumpster808]

I’d say bigger screen and lose the built in nav. None of us are getting younger and the larger screens seem to be easier to see these days [emoji3]

We use a separate nav as well as phones for waze and other maps. CarPlay would be nice so those could display on the main screen.

All of the built in nav units we’ve had in various vehicles over the years were a hassle to update the maps and usually expensive. One was so expensive I said the heck with it and bought a new stand alone unit for less money than they wanted to just update the maps.

[TTC]

I am a computer challenged dinosaur- I prefer a hardwired, dedicated in-dash Garmin GPS like the the Ram 8.4 or Ram 12 inch screen. It is difficult poking those little-bity buttons on the keyboard, peeking at a tiny screen display- a couple of times I have attempted to use Goggle maps it led me on non-RV friendly roads - also the issue of lack of cell phone coverage even in the Eastern US in the George Washington-Thomas Jefferson National Forest in West Virginia there is no cell coverage in most of it.

[Magnatudes]

If you think the Renegade & Jayco approach with a Garmin RV-BBT601 detachable screen is a gimmick, try this.

First step: Separate GPS from the stereo
Second step: Place powered magnetic mounts in strategic locations like just above your face in an RV, on the dash of your home car/SUV, on the windshield column on your offroad jeep, in your toad, and in your 4x4 side-by side

This is heading in the right direction

Owners Manual

Next step = Bug Garmin for a built-in wireless HDMI output

For your convenience:

Watch

Getting Started

Review

[Big-Foot]

If you get the Garmin unit, make sure you get lifetime free updates. Paying $100+ a year for updates is really a bummer...

[ckspenc]

Just be aware... “Lifetime Maps” refers to the lifetime of the device, not the owner. Usually is only good for 3-5 years!

[wabakami]

Originally Posted by Bill Davis

Ok, here’s the old guy opinion. I don’t care what size the screen is as long as it is easy to use the radio. Am fm and XM. I like my Garmin navigation unit that I can take into the house and sit in my lazy boy and pre program for the next trip. I do use my cellphone at times for around town use in my toad and when I’m at home.
My 3 series came with nav in the radio and I pulled the module so it’s a radio only and the radio screen is always up.
My rear camera is in the mirror on the windshield and I like that as well. I could do without the side view cameras as I prefer using my mirrors but there only annoying when I use the turn signals so I don’t mind them.
I know I’m in the extreme minority but that’s ok.
I like mechanical switches and knobs as well if that tells you anything.

Yup, well said!

Geoff
.

[Jeep_Life]

So is this also an available real estate issue on the dash or cockpit (RAM / M2)? Because there are ways to place all your gizmos in a safe and fashionable manner. Just ask all the Jeep and Toyota overlander types. I have a Vector Bar in my Jeep and have 4 things attached to it via 67 designs mounts. I also have another type bar that mounts near my sun visors that I can also attach mounts to. My Jeep windshield is not wide at all. But I still have plenty of visibility and accessibility to them.And if needed I can adjust the mounts of the devices to have the co-pilot (Wife) be in the navigator role.

[MrGoWing]

I use Sygic as my navigation app on my iPhone/Apple CarPlay. The maps you choose are downloaded to your phone. You do not need cellular coverage for it to work. As long as you have satellite reception which I believe cell phones have you are good to go. It is an excellent navigation app.

[Rancher Rob]

I like having the built-in garmin nav and just upgraded to that kenwood unit.
It's great having the nav constantly on display so that I can use my phone to search for a gas station or a place to eat. I just have to glance over to the built-in nav to see which turn I take next going through the cities. Every once and a while, I actually look at the road too!

[Magnatudes]

If the 8" RV890 is not large enough

Garmin January Press Release

Details

Short Customer Video

[Invisibleman]

I don't find any commonality between GPS Nav and radio. They have nothing to do with one another. Trying to integrate the radio display with GPS nav is just not practical. I can live with a relatively moderately dash size (not sure of DIM) radio, XM, serious whatever is fine with me as long as it has some button presets. But I want a totally separate, larger the better, nav display whether it be Garmen based or RV trip wizard or the periphery of really good truck/RV oriented GPS nav apps that will run on small ipad or Windows based tablets. I guess the question is, where do you put this nice, separate display, so, the interest in integration with the one spot that already exists.

[Magnatudes]

Originally Posted by Invisibleman

I guess the question is, where do you put this nice, separate display, so, the interest in integration with the one spot that already exists.

Garmin RV890 & RV1090 run on the Android OS.

Kenwood DNX775RVS = ~$1,500

Garmin RV890 = ~$400
Kenwood DMX1057XR = ~$1,100

[vlamgat]

Originally Posted by RV Randy

I work in a high tech industry and am pretty tuned into what all of the smart phones can do today. However, when I retire and have to start paying a monthly fee for smartphone level functionality out of my pocket I may return to just basic phone/text service. And, if you plan to travel to remote areas of Alaska, Canada, Mexico, where cell phone coverage will never be as good as it is in the lower 48, how does that impact the functionality if you rely solely on the phone version? On that basis you can make the Android/Carplay standard but keep the in-dash OEM nav system as an option.

And the coverage is far from ubiquitous in the lower 48 especially away from cities and off the Interstates. Just this weekend, my Wineguard was unable to receive ATT but the phone could receive T Mobile. I repeatedly find myself getting he message on the phone that there was no signal while relying on it for GPS guidance. This happens in hilly country and in the areas above. In OH, WI, FL (even with no hills) and TX and others.

So if you absolutely have to find that place, camp site, gas station whatever and you are off the interstate in rural America, the Android/Car Play are not ready for prime time. Promised, one day (maybe) but not until the investment in new towers for 5G is near completion will the fill-in 4G be accomplished. WilsonPro (who have a vested interest) report that 70% of the land mass of the lower 48 has signal too weak to carry voice and their estimate is that 30% is too weak to carry data which is how you can miss that turn off.

Also - as 5G is rolled out, phones with early 4G are not going to be upgraded to receive these signals and process them in a way that can use Android/Carplay. I have a 2018 phone that will not connect all Android functions with the 2020/1 UUConnect for example while the 2020 phone does so. This cycle of forced obsolescence will increase with 5G, so without a hardware based Nav we will be back to small phone screens trying to receive a GPS signal (probable) and a cell signal (maybe).