Just wondering if the Columbus system is worth am £800 premium over the standard satnav? And what extra features it brings?

Its nice but id say not. Other than a flashier display and 3d mapping I'd doubt muchly its navigation functionality is really any better than the Amundsens, for me the only reason id part with 800 quid is if it had a better navigation module with live traffic or something like, which it doesnt.

However....if you want to download a load of music to the car jukebox style with Gracenote music database (pointless given the Amundsen can support a massive SD card full of tunes anyway), be able to play FLAC files, want 5.1 surround with the Canton sound system (again optional) or be able to play DVD's then its necessary as the Amundsen cant do any of those things.

You get 3D mapping on the Amundsen, I think the navigation is better though, more detail, more street names itch directions rather than "turn next left" it will say "turn next left into Maple Drive" etc. whether the bigger, clearer display combined with better music capability is worth the extra £800 over the Amundsen is up to the individual I guess...for me the Amundsen is fine. If I had money to burn them I guess I would have specced the Columbus...

Edited 15 December, 201312 yr by Timoctav

Why not just save £1100 and buy a top of the range Garmin or TomTom, with traffic & free upgrades and use the £1100 on fuel &/or other necessities. 

Why not just save £1100 and buy a top of the range Garmin or TomTom, with traffic & free upgrades and use the £1100 on fuel &/or other necessities.

With Elegance spec, where Amundsen is standard so it is "only" £800 extra. Personally on my last car I got fed up with wires and leads everywhere together with tell tale sucker marks on the windscreen, so was pleased to have integrated sat nav. You get three years of free upgrades anyway, with either system.

Video.

Admundsen, despite claims in the manual I downloaded doesn't play video at all.

Columbus every time for me. Better mapping, much nicer screen (not just size but quality/resolution). Nice for DVDs and better audio quality as a head unit - sounds brilliant with canton IMO. Plus the benefits of having all of your mp3's, FLAC files etc on hand without swapping between memory cards.

As you know I use a nav mat or you can always use an Osomount 360/Montar mount which "sticks" via a very strong suction grip and use the navigation system on your smartphone and have the bluetooth functionality as well.

 

Not sure about the 3 years free map upgrades.....

 

When you go on the navigation website you can download the latest maps for free at any time so will be much longer than 3 years.  I would estimate 7-10 years by which time the systems are no longer supported.

 

But is Columbus worth £800 more... no.... maybe £400 is a more reasonable price.

Edited 15 December, 201312 yr by Sheldon.Cooper

@

 

But is Columbus worth £800 more... no.... maybe £400 is a more reasonable price.

Agreed, at £400 I would have probably gone for it.

As you know I use a nav mat or you can always use an Osomount 360/Montar mount which "sticks" via a very strong suction grip and use the navigation system on your smartphone and have the bluetooth functionality as well.

 

these look good...I have just ordered one of those online... As I use my smartphone as a satnav

Just make sure you clean the place where you want it to stick with a little natural cleaner such as white wine vinegar and clean cloth and let it dry and then apply.

 

It holds my SGS 3 or 4 quite nicely and as they both act as a Sat Nav, phone & juke box it's the almost perfect solution.

For me it was the bigger screen (and no wide bezel round the outside to remind me of what I didn't buy) and the music choices.  I like to have a nice lot of music that is fairly static, and a place for podcasts that I change frequently.  The Amundsen seems to have 2 SD card slots, but when one of them must be used for the SatNav, it doesn't work for me.  Music on the 12GB jukebox and podcasts on an SD card works perfectly for me.  But each to their own...

Video.

Admundsen, despite claims in the manual I downloaded doesn't play video at all.

 

   Brochure shows only Columbus able to play video files, Page 44

But it will play movies from an iPod I you spec mitsumi.

But it will play movies from an iPod I you spec mitsumi.

Can you please explain how?

these look good...I have just ordered one of those online... As I use my smartphone as a satnav

Do you mind giving us a review and some installed pics on this mount please. I looked it up on YouTube last night and it looks really good. I got a dilemma. Do I cancel the Amundsen save the money and use that mount with my HTC one running copilot. I would also get a power cable hard wired in.

£800 for a bigger screen is too much. Okay it plays video, but I doubt you'd play many DVDs or videos on it. (who uses DVDs now anyway?). It looks much better though.

 

I went with Amundsen which is brilliant anyway. Especially playing music via bluetooth on my iphone. It remembers where it left off and re-connects and plays instantly when the bluetooth connects which I think is awesome (which it didn't do on my older style Columbus).

Its 1350 quid on a vRS if my memory serves me correctly...an obscene amount of cash.....until you realise the Pro Media nav option on a 1 series is nearly 2k! The pro nav on a new BM is debateably superior though, does live traffic for starters

Define 'LIVE' traffic - do you mean the data is the TomTom data?

As the Columbus does have RDS-TMC traffic data, which TomTom now supplies data to anyway ..........

 

Admittedly, it doesn't update as often as TomTom LIVE traffic does

The latest gen BMW Pro Nav (NBT or Next Big Thing as its referred to) has a built in HSPA modem to access BMW's services, they also provide live traffic updates via this connectivity too.

TMC is a bit pants, by the time it announces a traffic problem youre either stuck in it yourself or it cleared hours ago....thats my experience of it anyway.