I'd say Bolero, with TomTom mounted via a proper Brodit mount and bracket, plus a USB charge cable hardwired in.

That's why I'll be doing again anyway :yes:

I don't see why manufacturers keep trying to re-invent the wheel with in-car solutions. Why not just make use of TomTom/Garmin internals for the nav? Like Renault are starting to do. At least then you're not paying more for the in-car solution, but actually getting less in the way of features

yes thinking about bolero and keeping my tom tom, but again it's the price of the bluetooth module that fits under the seat that is putting me off, £350, is a absolute joke, when i can buy decent aftermarket unit with bluetooth.

the main thing i want is blutooth built in for my fone, if ,wotever unit that is, has satnav as well, then all well and good, but it is not important as i already have a sat nav.

i have been looking on ebay at the chinese columbus clones and they are a good price, but do they require a seperate bluetooth module ? this is a american unit with bluetooth, which looks quite good, peoples opions on this would be helpful, http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SKODA-DVD-GPS-PLAYER-OCTAVIA-FABIA-PRAKTIK-ROOMSTER-/360287616547?pt=UK_Audio_TV_Electronics_In_Car_Entertainment_GPS_In_Car_Audio_Players_PP

Edited 16 August, 201015 yr by studmuffin

The product you link to is, I'm sure, Chinese. I have a Chinese clone (a Timelesslong) and it works fine. I use iGO8 and it has BT built-in. If you do decide to buy one of the Chinese units then PLEASE buy directly from the Chinese factory. It will be a fair bit cheaper than eBay (even aloowing for shipping) and potentially a lot less hassle.

Can you not stick with the Bolero and add a Parrot BT kit and then use you TomTom?

The product you link to is, I'm sure, Chinese. I have a Chinese clone (a Timelesslong) and it works fine. I use iGO8 and it has BT built-in. If you do decide to buy one of the Chinese units then PLEASE buy directly from the Chinese factory. It will be a fair bit cheaper than eBay (even aloowing for shipping) and potentially a lot less hassle.

Can you not stick with the Bolero and add a Parrot BT kit and then use you TomTom?

i dont really want a parrot bt kit on my dash, if i could get a bolero clone with built in bt, then all well and good, if it has sat nav, then that is an added bonus, what i dont want to do is, pay for the seprate bluetooth module { i have a pioneer fh-bt80 in my vrs, but would like a touchscreen unit with built in bluetooth}

I know the issue with OEM Blutooth; wish I'd kept my module from the last Octy now! I got all the bits for a lot less than £350, but won't be able to repeat that again

I've just ordered a Bury CC 9060 kit. Yes, it's another screen to mount (will pop it on a dashmount just by the centre vents but it has quite a bit more functionality than the OEM kit - have a Google - oh, and miles cheaper :yes:

That's all very cool and that, but not exactly 'easier than TomTom'! Unless you're carrying a laptop with you and a 3g card

I presume you actually plan where you are going before you actually go, in which case the SD destination route (no pun intended) is, IMHO, easier than punching the postcode into a TomTom :yes:

I presume you actually plan where you are going before you actually go, in which case the SD destination route (no pun intended) is, IMHO, easier than punching the postcode into a TomTom :yes:

There are many times in the past where a new destination has cropped up due to various reasons on a journey or day out. Trust me, your solution though interesting is of no use to me, and I bet a lot of other readers on this thread.

I presume you actually plan where you are going before you actually go, in which case the SD destination route (no pun intended) is, IMHO, easier than punching the postcode into a TomTom :yes:

And when your diary changes once you're away from the office it's a lot easier to punch in the new postcode than stop, fire up the laptop, connect to the Internet and add the destination to an SD card...

Although I plan my routes before I leave, there have been several occasions that my plans have been changed by the office once I've already started my journey...

I have an Elegance on order, and I specified Columbus and factory-fitted bluetooth.

I went through the pros and cons of Columbus v TomTom and, on paper, it is hard to justify the expense of the Columbus. But, I am getting the car (and the Columbus) VAT free. As I am saving so much money, I reckoned I could afford to splash out on the Columbus. It is built-in, no wires or ugly mounts, has a 30 Mb hard drive music system (therefore no IPOD and wires draped around), and is fully integrated with the maxi dot display, both for nav and for music.

Expensive but, in this VAT free climate, worth it in my opinion.

Ouch - it's bad enough comparing it at retrofit prices, let alone the factory cost

What did it cost VAT Free then?

If you use your MFD3/Columbus with the SD destinations function you don't need to worry about the lack of 7-digit postcode functions

Use this website

http://www.vw.com/vwhype/navcompanion/en/us/

Put your destination postcode in, and then save the result onto an SD card. When you open up the navigation function on the Columbus click on the SD destinations option, and it will come up with a list of the destinations you've saved - much easier than a TomTom

Hopelessly long-winded

the dill

Hopelessly long-winded

Quite the opposite as it happens

In fact I went through my new National Trust handbook the other night and downloaded about a dozen destinations in less than 10 minutes - a piece of p*ss, to use the vernacular

OTOH, when I wanted similar functionality I just loaded a full NT POI file into TomTom though - all properties/houses in one file. Found, downloaded and transferred in perhaps 2-3 minutes total?

I downloaded the entire Good Beer Guide in electronic form to my Garmin, perhaps several thousand pubs in a POI file. I've even set my unit to automatically alert when I'm withing a certain distance of one. Great when on holiday in the Lakes for example

Wouldn't fancy doing all that manual, in fact, I wouldn't even bother!

This is my issue about car manufacturers re-inventing the wheel that I mentioned earlier, or in many cases not inventing anything at all! If a £100 TomTom/Garmin is easier to use, and allows user customisation such as the loading of POI files, does that not tell them something, compared with an in-car option costing anywhere between £1000-£3000?

As an integrated, cableless unit providing satnav, DVD, 20gb hard drive, SD card, large touch screen etc, I still wouldn't be without my MFD3, and no-one will convince me otherwise :no:

I've recently been looking at one of these which looks great in use but is a £1500-£2000 option. However, not only does it suffer from the same deficiencies as the Columbus, it can only do TMC as opposed to HD traffic as well as not having the ability to load NT (or next year English Heritage) locations Bryan.

This is my issue about car manufacturers re-inventing the wheel that I mentioned earlier, or in many cases not inventing anything at all! If a £100 TomTom/Garmin is easier to use, and allows user customisation such as the loading of POI files, does that not tell them something, compared with an in-car option costing anywhere between £1000-£3000?

I suspect the OE upgrade in-car units like Columbus are tremendously profitable (perhaps even more so than the car itself!) and they have great showroom appeal. As said before, I have used a number of these in-car units and paid through the nose for a Columbus and also the so-called Profi system in my 5-series. Never again. Car manufacturers really need to up their game with their ICE ranges. The Skoda ICE in general is of poor audio quality and upgrade units are a bonkers price. I note that they've recently signed a deal with the Koreans (LG I think?) for supply of ICE in the future, so hopefully things will improve.

The Skoda ICE in general is of poor audio quality and upgrade units are a bonkers price

Price may be high, but there's little wrong with the sound quality of the MFD3 :no: