Phones and GPS

[John Armstrong]

Due for a phone upgrade and already have had loads of Nokia ones so am usually happy with how to do things on them. So, looking at getting one which can handle GPS'ing so when I'm away with work I've got a phone and gps, and hopefully act as a back up if the normal bike one goes TU when away from home.

I'm guessing that the N95 and 6220 can do the GPS and phone bit, but is there anything extra you need to buy, like a XT Mobile add on, and then does it cost to use it as a GPS?

And, are the screens so small it makes navigating like using the quest without the glasses?

TVM

And if it should be in the GPS section, sorry.

 

[John Armstrong]

Different tack, is the new N95 much better than the old one? Better as in easier to use, longer battery, and ignoring the inbuilt 8gb storage space which does away with the need for a card which then lets you use it as a GPS

 

[ChasMill]

Have a look at the Garmin Mobile XT card - £90 for the whole of Europe. Slots into any GPS enabled phone (N95 for example). Saw one demonstrated at the Motor Show last weekend - very impressive. It links with the address book on your phone and with Google.

 

[John Armstrong]

That's the sort of thing I'm looking at, unfortunately the new N95 has done away with the expansion slot for 8gb of internal memory, otherwise I'd be onto Orange to change the phone

 

[ChasMill]

You can still get "old" N95 with the expansion slot. Alternatively, get a pre-owned (second hand) one?

 

[John Armstrong]

You can still get "old" N95 with the expansion slot. Alternatively, get a pre-owned (second hand) one?

Are there any "real world" differences between the old and the new?

 

[ChasMill]

AFAIK not many - the new ones have iphone/itouch type tilt screen.

There are plenty of other GPS enabled phones on the market with expansion slots (Blackberrys included). The bloke on the Garmin stand had a very flash touch screen phone that he demonstrated the card on - can't for the life of me remember the make though.

 

[John Armstrong]

The bloke on the Garmin stand had a very flash touch screen phone that he demonstrated the card on - can't for the life of me remember the make though.

Nuvifone?

http://www8.garmin.com/nuvifone/

 

[ChasMill]

Nuvifone?

http://www8.garmin.com/nuvifone/

That's the one!

 

[John Armstrong]

That's the one!

But not this year:
http://www.phonesreview.co.uk/2008/07/31/delayed-until-2009-the-garmin-nuvifone/

probably wouldn't want to pay "latest toy" prices as well