Please please help. Ok before anyone says use the search function I already have. Ok I have a 2006 e320 with the factory command module with no nav. I was wondering what is the easiest and most cost effective method of going about getting gps without getting a handheld/portable and mounting in windshield. I have looked up the option through mb doctor who sells the kit but if i am going to spend about 1500 to 1700 to get the factory nav and then upgrade the maps, i might as well go aftermarket which i don't mind. has anyone put an aftermarket gps/navigation/dvd (i.e. pioneer,kenwood,jvc/jensen) and which model did you use. also did you retain your steering wheel controls when you did the aftermarket switch.
I also looked on crutchfield at these models (any reviews experience with these)
Jensen DVD/Navigation Package VM9412 DVD receiver NAV101 navigation system at Crutchfield.com
Kenwood DVD/Navigation Package KVT-512 in-dash DVD player KNA-G510 navigation system at Crutchfield.com
Pioneer AVIC-N4 Navigation receiver at Crutchfield.com
OK, a bit cheating, you have to search "both forums".
You can get all sorts of after market devices cheap, some are pretty good but none are integrated to the car, functionally and aesthetically.
Owners have retrofitted after market head units but you lose all integration with any other device you may have in the MOST ring (with Comand HU, you would at least have the audio amplifier and tuner at the rear AGW with speaker wires leaving from AGW).
After market devices have in some cases steering wheel button support but this is not apples to apples functionality. None support the instrument cluster menu integration.
Now that you only need the navi processor (perhaps GPS antenna), I would go the OEM route.
I know Tom-Tom is a very good navigation device, it has several features the MB OEM device does not. But you also lose several features that come with the MB OEM navi. My opinion still is that the integrated MB OEM navi is better for use in the car, even the old Comand, not to mention the new NTG 2.5 device.
If I would need a standalone device that I could use in different vehicles or something similar, I could well buy TomTom (but so far I prefer my GPS enable phone better for those cases where I don't have Comand available).
But really, bring up all the useful features Tom-Tom has if you want to convince the OP on that route. I have no problem if you do that and even if the OP decides to spend less money and buy a TomTom.
So I'll be the first to 'fess up to the fact that I have both. My SLK is COMAND+NAV, and it works. My C 200 has an Audio 10 HU, so I opted for the TomTom.
The COMAND in my SLK is obviously not the NTG release, which I've heard really good things about as well. I also don't know how cheaply you can get the NAVI add-on for a COMAND, I've heard $1000 thrown around, but not sure..
The high points on the TomTom - IMHO - are as follows :
1] Touch Screen + Voice Control. I don't have lingatronic, so I can't comment on the MB version, but the touch screen is awesome! Voice control is good, but not stellar.
2] Navigation device first, everything else second. This is a pretty key point - whilst there are other really nice functions built in (Bluetooth phone integration, iPod Integration, on board storage), the navigation interface is quick, simple, and incredibly straight forward.
3] Superb routing, and routing options - side by side, the latest generation of TomTom kicks my COMAND's arse in picking the best of complicated routes. (Houston, Tx is a great test of a nav device!).
4] Map Updates are "free" for the first year.
5] Corrections from TomTom are free, and you can choose to use "User" supplied map corrections as well. (for London this is pretty awesome..)
6] Tons of POI's supplied by third parties (for cash) and from individuals (Open Source ) for free. Even one for Starbucks if you want to find 'em or avoid 'em...
7] Safety Camera Subscription. This one has paid for my TomTom hands down. I don't speed in general, but there are a couple of times where I'd have been done without it - 38 in a 30 type of deals.
8] Free O/S and routing engine upgrades. This is a pretty neat feature, and I've see a few really cool routing and bug fixes released.
9] "Integrates" with AUX-IN. This allows you to play music or your iPod through the TomTom, and have it piped into your car audio system - mutes music to read instructions. Nice, and was a purchase consideration for me, but I've honestly rarely used it.
10] Portability - it's nice to be able to swap it between cars. I travel to the states frequently so end up in rentals a lot. Keep in mind that if you do this like I do - Europe and the States, you will end up having to buy additional maps.
11] Add on features like the Speed Cameras - weather, traffic, etc. Tons of "user customizable" bits and bobs - lots free, some you pay for.
12] Not really a selling point, but it runs Linux
13] Traffic Routing - if you buy the Traffic service, routing takes traffic into account. I tried this in Houston, and was not impressed enough to buy it - but that's mainly because I don't spend that much time there, and I know my way around pretty well for my "common" routes.
Obviously I like my TomTom. It's a cheaper solution by far - although I would recommend at least the 5xx series. I think that the 3D navigation display is better than what I get with the COMAND, and it's a heck of a lot easier for me use it.
It's really a matter of personal choice - I agree that the COMAND navigation in the SLK is very usable, and I've not used the TomTom at all in it. I did not really look for navi on the SLK, but I wanted COMAND so I'd have iPod integration - navi was just a nice bonus.
Oh, and yeah, I've used TomTom 6 on a GPS enabled Windows Mobile phone. It's nice, but just about rendered the phone useless - they also tend to lag behind what they are doing on the dedicated devices. Biggest problem I had was that the volume was crap (function of the phone..), and it was impossible to use without a power cord - it ate the battery (again, a fault of the phone).
I guess my advice would be to try a TomTom and see if you like it - in the states it's trivial to return it if you don't. If you do decide to go the OEM route, try and get the latest set of maps you can as part of the deal, and if it does not come with a mapset, keep in mind that's about $200usd last time I looked. If you have a friend with a MB and COMAND navigation, get 'em to let you play with it a bit before you take the plunge.
My personal opinion was the Germans do great cars, the Dutch have the Navi down! They may be catching up in the latest generation, the guys with '09 SLK's are raving about the new COMAND.
I don't know how to reply in order not to be seen as opposing TomTom but since a lot of this is dependent on personal preferences, I'll comment on a few of the advantages you mention:
1) My understanding is that voice control is only fully supporting navigation on later MB models. But on touch screen, I would hate anything like that in my car, I don't like the finger tips on the display and touch screen is always poor when you want to control the device "blindly". It has advantages but I prefer Comand (perhaps not fair but I'm mainly thinking about the W221 Comand).
2) Are DVD based devices slow? I would not notice if my NTG3 navi got quicker.
3) I could agree on this one but the routing is SW on the DVD and not a device capability, MB obviously has intentionally selected a "safer option". This usually means it puts more emphasis for main roads than the one familiar with the area would do. But should the navi device optimise the route for those unfamiliar with the roads or those who drive them daily?
4) Integrated navigation is invested with the intention to be used more than one year. Anyway this is a cost issue and I don't think one would have an MB if cost was the main argument between models. MB OEM navigation would always be way more costly than almost any other option. Still so many retrofit the full Comand APS on a cars that come with basic radio HU.
5) The map data corrections are nice but not for ordinary users, I can understand Linux fans. Corrections elsewhere is a negative argument, you don't want to get free corrections because you don't want to see bug fixes needed (there are cases where the MB navi needed updates, then you get a free update DVD which takes care of the fix).
6) POI data is pretty limited on MB devices. But even if those were complete, I would use other means to find POI data, mainly anything that needs to be up-to-date I'll find from with my phone. I could use my phone navigation too but this is where I stop with the phone when I'm in my car. Nothing is better than the on-line internet POI support (be it your navigation application, google or browser etc.).
7) Have you seen any OEM car navigator supporting real safety camera data (location, direction of travel and speed limit + warning distance)? You cannot expect that from a brand that emphasizes safety. Also you are mostly losing that advantage since the speed camera technology is changing from instant speed to instant plus average speed measurements.
8) How is this different from 5?
9) Comand would also have AUX in, audio muted while navi instructions are given, does this make TomTom different from Comand (I agree this is a useful feature). I still prefer MP3 from DVD/memory card or HD (on NTG 2.5 and higher). If you wish, the iPod interface also pauses your player while you are on the phone or so.
10) You mean it is easy to steal from the car Honestly portability is good to some extent but again when I would need portability I want better portability than a standalone navi device, that is my cell phone that I carry anyway.
11) this pretty much repeats with 7. And I don't like blinking Christmas lights in my car (neither at home), if you enjoy those, don't by an MB and don't by Comand.
12) Still the best argument to me on your list (don't want to go to the details, I'm not a Linux fan but I'm not saying this as if other arguments did not have any value).
13) You don't have to buy TMC with Comand, it is included in MAP data.
As you say, Dutch do great navigation devices, luckily MB is using their experience too. The navigation route calculations are provided by Teleatlas on several Comand models, I've understood MB going back from Navteq to Teleatlas on models like W211 too. The HW is not from the Netherlands but neither is the TomTom HW (depends how you see it I guess).
Anyway your list is quite good for a reminder on points to be considered when making his/her own evaluation.
Diesel, I respect your opinion a lot. But the MOST Comand Nav is close to useless. Not only do you have to enter everything in the car, the car doesn't give you any record after the trip. Some people may go on a 1000 miles trip blindly following the Nav. I certainly would not.
For the trip I took up to Oregon last weekend from California, I entered destinations as way points, longitude and latitude coordinates for sightseeing spots, routes I wanted to take. First entered in software then downloaded into a Garmin GPS. Some of these stops are not in the map database at all but GPS coordinates are published on the web.
With Comand Nav, everything had to be entered in the car. Once you get home, the car can't cough up a bit of data.
Even while in town, with a passenger waiting, it took seemingly forever to locate a particular restaurant correctly. By that time the usefulness of the Nav is gone.
Here is a portion of last weekend's trip. The purple line is a planned route on the way up to Oregon. The yellow line is an actual track on the way back. The second file is an altitude plot of the track down the mountain.
So the Comand Nav is nothing more than a marketing curiosity in order to extract value from the consumer. Certainly not a useful navigation tool.
In the U.S., a low end Garmin C3xx is available from MB dealers as an after market add on. It would be better if they just use Garmins as the main offering.
As I said, it's really a matter of personal preference - I think my TomTom is better at navigation and routing than the COMAND in my SLK. I agree that as far as I know, no car maker supports "Safety Camera" type of warning - living in the UK, this is a valuable option to me.
I guess my argument is that the cost of retrofitting a MB with the older generation navi kits is too high for me personally. I wish I could say that the money I saved with the TomTom was what I used for the SLK, but that's sadly not the case.
I looked at the two files you uploaded, what do you do with that data? I can understand the value of the altitude data if you were on a timed run up Pikes Peak, but for everyday use? Or is it just the geek factor of "I can, so I will!" (Which I've done several times with other things.)
The drawbacks I see with the old MB Nav is that they don't incorporate traffic data, and as you mentioned trips have to be planned out on them. I understand the newer ones allow you to set up a trip on your PC and then send it to the car.
Another issue is the low placement of the screen in some models. I see that the newer models are resolving that by moving the screen to the top of the dash.
I wouldn't object to an aftermarket HU with nav, but I'd lose my integrated phone, and controls for that, and my iPod, from the steering wheel. (Please correct me if I'm wrong, and no I'm not interested in doing those functions on a touch screen nav display.)
Ok before anyone says use the search function I already have. Ok I have a 2006 e320 with the factory command module with no nav. I was wondering what is the easiest and most cost effective method of going about getting gps without getting a handheld/portable and mounting in windshield. I have looked up the option through mb doctor who sells the kit but if i am going to spend about 1500 to 1700 to get the factory nav and then upgrade the maps, i might as well go aftermarket which i don't mind. has anyone put an aftermarket gps/navigation/dvd (i.e. pioneer,kenwood,jvc/jensen) and which model did you use. also did you retain your steering wheel controls when you did the aftermarket switch.
) for free. Even one for Starbucks if you want to find 'em or avoid 'em...
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