Will the Garmin App for the iPhone 4Gs support the Siri voice
interface?
That would be very useful.

On Oct 8, 8:36*pm, PeterM <pmhir...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Will the Garmin App for the iPhone 4Gs support the Siri voice
> interface?
> That would be very useful.

Has anyone had experience with the Garmin app for the iPhone and found
it useful? What are the issues with it?

I have been a longtime Garmin user - more than 15 years - and I have
gone through many units including 2 NUVIs (one of them being the high
end 3790t). A few months ago I purchased the original Garmin app for
my iPhone and then purchased the other when the first updated and did
not have the features I wanted. These two apps are now called "Street
Pilot Onboard USA" and "Street Pilot OnDemand US & Canada". I can use
either and have them both installed but I much prefer the Onboard.

These apps are pretty much the same interface and functionality of the
NUVIs. They even have the same problems and issues since I would
guess they share code (such as the inability to understand the
difference between multilane highways and the parallel service roads).

I much prefer to have a single device in my car than two and what I
discovered after a month or so, that there was very little value added
to either of my NUVIs. So I gave them both to my daughter in Atlanta.

I do not use the extra services for traffic and gas prices as I have
two free apps "BeatTheTraffic" and "GasBuddy" that do an excellent job
(I am willing to currently give up the traffic based routing). I also
use "RadarActive" for red light cameras and speed traps - though
Onboard includes red light cameras (On Demand does not).

An interestingly, in July I purchased a 2011 Toyota Prius 4 with a
navigation system. And I rarely use the Toyota navigation system for
a couple of reasons: (1) Toyota "mothers you" by disabling most of the
navigation features when the car is moving and (2) the Garmin
interface is much simpler and easier to use.

Here is what you need to understand when using an iPhone instead of a
Garmin unit (especially if the iPhone is in an Otterbox case) - the
Garmin units are designed to operate in cars and at high temperatures.
When you put an iPhone in direct sunlight on the dash (even if it is
not hot outside), the unit will heat up and will turn off the
backlight display to cool off long before it shuts down, making
reading any app nearly impossible. What I have found that works
nearly 100% of the time is I have a suction cup RAM-MOUNT with two
joints. I suction to the little window in front of the driver window
and position the iPhone so it is to the left and slightly behind the
steering wheel directly in front of the A/C vent. In addition, direct
sunlight rarely comes to that location. Since I have done that, I
have not seen any overheating issues.

Happy to discuss further such as the bug the apps have. I am not
exactly sure what is going on with Bluetooth or if it is something
specific to the Prius implementation. With BT on my phone turned on,
the Garmin app will not voice prompt at all. If BT is off, you get
voice prompts through the phone. However, if BT is on AND you are
playing audio through the car speakers using the iPhone as a BT Audio
device, then you get Audio & Voice prompts through the car speaker.

Joel

======================

Below was the review I posted in iTunes for "onboard" on 9/6/11:

I have owned Garmin devices since the GPS 45 in the early 90s and have
recently owned two NUVIs including the 3790t. I have given both NUVIs
to my duaghter & son in law in Atlanta (I'm in Houston). I have had an
iPhone4 since last summer and in April bought the Streepilot app. It
had functionality but it was missing some of the stuff I was used to
from the high end NUVI. I bought it at the time for $34.99 - it is a
bit higher now. This is the app that uses maps online and I only once
couldn't get maps when I was in a very rural area of NE Texas. My
issue with this app was always lack of functionality I was used to.
They updated this app to version 7 on 8/31 and I was very disappointed
with the lack of functional improvement though they made one change I
needed (3D view when not on an active route). Turns out they have
different apps as well and one was on sale labor day weekend for $10
off ($19.99) so I purchased "USA". This is the one they call "Onboard"
as the maps download to the iPhone (after 2 or 3 hours using about 1.5
GB which I didn't mind as I have a 32 GB iPhone4). I have to say this
one has impressed me much more and has nearly all the functionality
that was missing in the "Streetpilot" app (which costs more).

There are some things I would still like to see improved but this app
is functional enough not only for me not to require an addition NUVI
in my car but it's even better IMHO than my Prius navigation system
(which will disable most of the functionality when the car is moving).
If you have an iPhone, I would recommend it's worth getting this
weekend to try for $20. Don't worry yet about the traffic & gas.
Traffic is the same miserable traffic on the NUVI (Naviteq). That is
another $20/yr and if you think it is accurate it will aid in the
active routing. I still use "BeatTheTraffic" which has a free and very
cheap version. And Gasbuddy is also free.

Here are some things to consider

1. I currently can not get the voice prompts if I have my iPhone 4
bluetooth feature turned on and it connects in my car. As soon as I
turn bluetooth off the prompts come back. In my mind this is a 'bug'
and not a feature. Garmin needs to get its apps working with
bluetooth turned on or it disables quite a bit of functionality I have
come to expect when using my iPhone 4 in a car with bluetooth support.
Garmin tech support does not consider this a bug and suggests it's an
Appple issue to fix (which I personally disagree with). Apple has
provided APIs (programming interfaces) to support bluetooth and it's
up to the programmers at Garmin to take advantage of that. At a
minimum Garmin should make it's tech support people aware of this
limitation and should describe it on iTunes so potential customers are
aware of it before they purchase.
2. The "favorites' data is not shared between garmin apps, nor
migratible. In fact there is no way to upload / download them either
via mapsource so if you install or reinstall you will lose your data.
This data is NOT backed up during a standard iPhone sync with iTunes
(as far as I can tell).
3. iPhone4's like to overheat quickly on the dash - especially in
Otterbox's. When then happens, the backlight will turn off and you
won't be able to see the app. NUVI's have never had that problem in my
cars (higher operating temps). So I put my iPhone in a RAM-MOUNT
suctioned to the little window in the front left and the position it
over my A/C vent to the left of the steering wheel. Have never had an
issue.
4. Garmin knows nothing about "bluetooth audio" so if your car
supports that, you can hear your iPod/audio/phone through the car
speakers but not the Garmin app (as far as I can tell).

Bottom line - if you don't mind 1.5 GB of maps and lack of
'pedistrian' support. USA is significantly better and more functional
than Streetpilot. And if you have an iPhone, USA can very well
substitute for a NUVI.


On Sun, 23 Oct 2011 11:41:42 -0700 (PDT), PeterM <(E-Mail Removed)>
wrote:

>On Oct 8, 8:36*pm, PeterM <pmhir...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Will the Garmin App for the iPhone 4Gs support the Siri voice
>> interface?
>> That would be very useful.
>
>Has anyone had experience with the Garmin app for the iPhone and found
>it useful? What are the issues with it?

In article <(E-Mail Removed)>,
Joel B <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

> I have a suction cup RAM-MOUNT with two
> joints. I suction to the little window in front of the driver window
> and position the iPhone so it is to the left and slightly behind the
> steering wheel directly in front of the A/C vent.

I've been looking for such a mount for years. I haven't found one with
a small enough suction cup that fits that window. What model Ram-Mount
do you have?

Joel B wrote:
> I have been a longtime Garmin user - more than 15 years - and I have
> gone through many units including 2 NUVIs (one of them being the high
> end 3790t). A few months ago I purchased the original Garmin app for
> my iPhone and then purchased the other when the first updated and did
> not have the features I wanted. These two apps are now called "Street
> Pilot Onboard USA" and "Street Pilot OnDemand US& Canada". I can use
> either and have them both installed but I much prefer the Onboard.
>
> These apps are pretty much the same interface and functionality of the
> NUVIs. They even have the same problems and issues since I would
> guess they share code (such as the inability to understand the
> difference between multilane highways and the parallel service roads).
>
> I much prefer to have a single device in my car than two and what I
> discovered after a month or so, that there was very little value added
> to either of my NUVIs. So I gave them both to my daughter in Atlanta.
>
> I do not use the extra services for traffic and gas prices as I have
> two free apps "BeatTheTraffic" and "GasBuddy" that do an excellent job
> (I am willing to currently give up the traffic based routing). I also
> use "RadarActive" for red light cameras and speed traps - though
> Onboard includes red light cameras (On Demand does not).
>
> An interestingly, in July I purchased a 2011 Toyota Prius 4 with a
> navigation system. And I rarely use the Toyota navigation system for
> a couple of reasons: (1) Toyota "mothers you" by disabling most of the
> navigation features when the car is moving and (2) the Garmin
> interface is much simpler and easier to use.
>
> Here is what you need to understand when using an iPhone instead of a
> Garmin unit (especially if the iPhone is in an Otterbox case) - the
> Garmin units are designed to operate in cars and at high temperatures.
> When you put an iPhone in direct sunlight on the dash (even if it is
> not hot outside), the unit will heat up and will turn off the
> backlight display to cool off long before it shuts down, making
> reading any app nearly impossible. What I have found that works
> nearly 100% of the time is I have a suction cup RAM-MOUNT with two
> joints. I suction to the little window in front of the driver window
> and position the iPhone so it is to the left and slightly behind the
> steering wheel directly in front of the A/C vent. In addition, direct
> sunlight rarely comes to that location. Since I have done that, I
> have not seen any overheating issues.
>
> Happy to discuss further such as the bug the apps have. I am not
> exactly sure what is going on with Bluetooth or if it is something
> specific to the Prius implementation. With BT on my phone turned on,
> the Garmin app will not voice prompt at all. If BT is off, you get
> voice prompts through the phone. However, if BT is on AND you are
> playing audio through the car speakers using the iPhone as a BT Audio
> device, then you get Audio& Voice prompts through the car speaker.
>
> Joel
>
> ======================
>


Are there any cases that won't cause the heating issue? Also, which
Otterbox did you use - the Defender is "heavy duty" and may not allow
for good heat disappation.

Thanks,
Harvey

On Mon, 24 Oct 2011 20:02:36 -0400, Elmo P. Shagnasty wrote:

>In article <(E-Mail Removed)>,

> Joel B <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>> I have a suction cup RAM-MOUNT with two
>> joints. I suction to the little window in front of the driver window
>> and position the iPhone so it is to the left and slightly behind the
>> steering wheel directly in front of the A/C vent.

>I've been looking for such a mount for years. I haven't found one with
>a small enough suction cup that fits that window. What model Ram-Mount
>do you have?

By the way, I've been using ventilation grid mounts in several
cars for a while now and find them far superior to any suction
cup mount in a car.

You have to be careful to find the right one that fits both your
car's vents and your smartphone, but most actually worked well
for me.

The positive side effect is that the phone gets cooled very
effectively when you switch on the ventilation.

Hans-Georg

On Oct 24, 3:47*pm, Joel B <as...@forit.com> wrote:
> I have been a longtime Garmin user - more than 15 years - and I have
> gone through many units including 2 NUVIs (one of them being the high
> end 3790t). *A few months ago I purchased the original Garmin app for
> my iPhone and then purchased the other when the first updated and did
> not have the features I wanted. *These two apps are now called "Street
> Pilot Onboard USA" and "Street Pilot OnDemand US & Canada". *I can use
> either and have them both installed but I much prefer the Onboard.
>
> These apps are pretty much the same interface and functionality of the
> NUVIs. *They even have the same problems and issues since I would
> guess they share code (such as the inability to understand the
> difference between multilane highways and the parallel service roads).
>
> I much prefer to have a single device in my car than two and what I
> discovered after a month or so, that there was very little value added
> to either of my NUVIs. *So I gave them both to my daughter in Atlanta.
>
> I do not use the extra services for traffic and gas prices as I have
> two free apps "BeatTheTraffic" and "GasBuddy" that do an excellent job
> (I am willing to currently give up the traffic based routing). *I also
> use "RadarActive" for red light cameras and speed traps - though
> Onboard includes red light cameras (On Demand does not).
>
> An interestingly, in July I purchased a 2011 Toyota Prius 4 with a
> navigation system. *And I rarely use the Toyota navigation system for
> a couple of reasons: (1) Toyota "mothers you" by disabling most of the
> navigation features when the car is moving and (2) the Garmin
> interface is much simpler and easier to use.
>
> Here is what you need to understand when using an iPhone instead of a
> Garmin unit (especially if the iPhone is in an Otterbox case) - the
> Garmin units are designed to operate in cars and at high temperatures.
> When you put an iPhone in direct sunlight on the dash (even if it is
> not hot outside), the unit will heat up and will turn off the
> backlight display to cool off long before it shuts down, making
> reading any app nearly impossible. *What I have found that works
> nearly 100% of the time is I have a suction cup RAM-MOUNT with two
> joints. *I suction to the little window in front of the driver window
> and position the iPhone so it is to the left and slightly behind the
> steering wheel directly in front of the A/C vent. *In addition, direct
> sunlight rarely comes to that location. *Since I have done that, I
> have not seen any overheating issues.
>
> Happy to discuss further such as the bug the apps have. I am not
> exactly sure what is going on with Bluetooth or if it is something
> specific to the Prius implementation. *With BT on my phone turned on,
> the Garmin app will not voice prompt at all. *If BT is off, you get
> voice prompts through the phone. *However, if BT is on AND you are
> playing audio through the car speakers using the iPhone as a BT Audio
> device, then you get Audio & Voice prompts through the car speaker.
>
> Joel
>
> ======================
>
> Below was the review I posted in iTunes for "onboard" on 9/6/11:
>
> I have owned Garmin devices since the GPS 45 in the early 90s and have
> recently owned two NUVIs including the 3790t. I have given both NUVIs
> to my duaghter & son in law in Atlanta (I'm in Houston). I have had an
> iPhone4 since last summer and in April bought the Streepilot app. It
> had functionality but it was missing some of the stuff I was used to
> from the high end NUVI. I bought it at the time for $34.99 - it is a
> bit higher now. This is the app that uses maps online and I only once
> couldn't get maps when I was in a very rural area of NE Texas. My
> issue with this app was always lack of functionality I was used to.
> They updated this app to version 7 on 8/31 and I was very disappointed
> with the lack of functional improvement though they made one change I
> needed (3D view when not on an active route). Turns out they have
> different apps as well and one was on sale labor day weekend for $10
> off ($19.99) so I purchased "USA". This is the one they call "Onboard"
> as the maps download to the iPhone (after 2 or 3 hours using about 1.5
> GB which I didn't mind as I have a 32 GB iPhone4). I have to say this
> one has impressed me much more and has nearly all the functionality
> that was missing in the "Streetpilot" app (which costs more).
>
> There are some things I would still like to see improved but this app
> is functional enough not only for me not to require an addition NUVI
> in my car but it's even better IMHO than my Prius navigation system
> (which will disable most of the functionality when the car is moving).
> If you have an iPhone, I would recommend it's worth getting this
> weekend to try for $20. Don't worry yet about the traffic & gas.
> Traffic is the same miserable traffic on the NUVI (Naviteq). That is
> another $20/yr and if you think it is accurate it will aid in the
> active routing. I still use "BeatTheTraffic" which has a free and very
> cheap version. And Gasbuddy is also free.
>
> Here are some things to consider
>
> 1. I currently can not get the voice prompts if I have my iPhone 4
> bluetooth feature turned on and it connects in my car. *As soon as I
> turn bluetooth off the prompts come back. *In my mind this is a 'bug'
> and not a feature. *Garmin needs to get its apps working with
> bluetooth turned on or it disables quite a bit of functionality I have
> come to expect when using my iPhone 4 in a car with bluetooth support.
> Garmin tech support does not consider this a bug and suggests it's an
> Appple issue to fix (which I personally disagree with). *Apple has
> provided APIs (programming interfaces) to support bluetooth and it's
> up to the programmers at Garmin to take advantage of that. *At a
> minimum Garmin should make it's tech support people aware of this
> limitation and should describe it on iTunes so potential customers are
> aware of it before they purchase.
> 2. The "favorites' data is not shared between garmin apps, nor
> migratible. In fact there is no way to upload / download them either
> via mapsource so if you install or reinstall you will lose your data.
> This data is NOT backed up during a standard iPhone sync with iTunes
> (as far as I can tell).
> 3. iPhone4's like to overheat quickly on the dash - especially in
> Otterbox's. When then happens, the backlight will turn off and you
> won't be able to see the app. NUVI's have never had that problem in my
> cars (higher operating temps). So I put my iPhone in a RAM-MOUNT
> suctioned to the little window in the front left and the position it
> over my A/C vent to the left of the steering wheel. Have never had an
> issue.
> 4. Garmin knows nothing about "bluetooth audio" so if your car
> supports that, you can hear your iPod/audio/phone through the car
> speakers but not the Garmin app (as far as I can tell).
>
> Bottom line - if you don't mind 1.5 GB of maps and lack of
> 'pedistrian' support. USA is significantly better and more functional
> than Streetpilot. And if you have an iPhone, USA can very well
> substitute for a NUVI.
>
> On Sun, 23 Oct 2011 11:41:42 -0700 (PDT), PeterM <pmhir...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> >On Oct 8, 8:36*pm, PeterM <pmhir...@gmail.com> wrote:
> >> Will the Garmin App for the iPhone 4Gs support the Siri voice
> >> interface?
> >> That would be very useful.
>
> >Has anyone had experience with the Garmin app for the iPhone and found
> >it useful? What are the issues with it?

Thanks Joel for the detail note on your use of the iPhone Garmin App.
You have a Prius with blue tooth and that will make the app work
through the radio. I do not have a car with a blue tooth interface. I
presume one could hear the commands from the iPhone with the volume
turned up? I am hard of hearing so I am not sure it would be loud
enough for me.

Another question: Can one move the waypoints from Mapsource to the
iPhone Garmin App? Perhaps using dropbox? Then one would have to enter
all the waypoints again.

Peter Hirsch