GPS door to door directions

[Guest sebvad]

I'd be very interested in any software that i could install on my phone that would essentially transform my phone into a gps system that would prompt me while driving (ie, turn left in 2 miles on state street).

1) is this possible with this device

2) and if so, can someone suggest which software packages i'd need?

thanks

Edited November 20, 2005 by sebvad

[Guest mrslother]

I'd be very interested in any software that i could install on my phone that would essentially transform my phone into a gps system that would prompt me while driving (ie, turn left in 2 miles on state street).

1) is this possible with this device

2) and if so, can someone suggest which software packages i'd need?

thanks

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The short answer is "Yes", it is possible.

I have a bluetooth GPS (Holix GPSlim 236) that works well with the mpx220. The software, however, is another thing.

I have tried Metropolis, CoPilot and MapTech's Outdoor Navigator. Here is my really brief rundown:

-CoPilot: I want to like this one but it just continues to piss me off. It constantly crashes on the MPx220 (always complains about a memory allocation failure). It doesn't track your path hence does not allow you to "backtrack" (if you get lost, it doesn't really show you how to get "unlost"). Has some neat "online" features.

-Metropolis: Inexpensive and reasonably easy to use. No online features like CoPilot (eg. allowing others to track your trip progress on a web site). Does show "breadcrumbs" of where you've been, but I have not seen anyway to save that route nor away to "reverse" the path.

-Outdoor Navigator: Super cheap. Cumbersome to use (map usage is not very intuitive). Does not create routes for navigation. I see this as a hiking tool since it shows you were you are on a bitmap topo map.

I am working with ALK.com (CoPilot) to resolve the crashes. I expect to receive the latest version (v6.0) of CoPilot this week. Hopefully it will solve the crashes.

I really want to try TomTom's smartphone solution but they do not sell it in the US. I have asked for an explanation (my mpx220 uses the Asian ROM hence won't have US specific issues) but a) they took over a week to answer my question and :) they didn't answer the question. My brief experience with them and reading from other posts on the net TomTom's software rocks, but their support sucks.

I hope this helps.

[Guest sebvad]

Thanks - what i hear you saying is that i need not only a software component, but - and this is probably painfully obvious to everyone - that i'll also need a separate GPS reciever (the phone itself isn't going to be able to be utilized as a GPS unit in and of itself..

The short answer is "Yes", it is possible.

I have a bluetooth GPS (Holix GPSlim 236) that works well with the mpx220. The software, however, is another thing.

I have tried Metropolis, CoPilot and MapTech's Outdoor Navigator. Here is my really brief rundown:

-CoPilot: I want to like this one but it just continues to piss me off. It constantly crashes on the MPx220 (always complains about a memory allocation failure). It doesn't track your path hence does not allow you to "backtrack" (if you get lost, it doesn't really show you how to get "unlost"). Has some neat "online" features.

-Metropolis: Inexpensive and reasonably easy to use. No online features like CoPilot (eg. allowing others to track your trip progress on a web site). Does show "breadcrumbs" of where you've been, but I have not seen anyway to save that route nor away to "reverse" the path.

-Outdoor Navigator: Super cheap. Cumbersome to use (map usage is not very intuitive). Does not create routes for navigation. I see this as a hiking tool since it shows you were you are on a bitmap topo map.

I am working with ALK.com (CoPilot) to resolve the crashes. I expect to receive the latest version (v6.0) of CoPilot this week. Hopefully it will solve the crashes.

I really want to try TomTom's smartphone solution but they do not sell it in the US. I have asked for an explanation (my mpx220 uses the Asian ROM hence won't have US specific issues) but a) they took over a week to answer my question and :) they didn't answer the question. My brief experience with them and reading from other posts on the net TomTom's software rocks, but their support sucks.

I hope this helps.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>