Bud

I have used satnavs for years and have learned a thing or two. I have also seen some "interesting" bits of country and roads that I would not have otherwise seen.

Like all computerised systems (and in the end a satnav is a specialised computer program and hardware)they are not intelligent in any sense of the word. If you give it a destination it will take you on what it has been programmed to see as the fastest or shortest route, depending on what you have set. It will literally lead you up the garden path, if that is in the map, or over a mountain goat track. It will take you through the middle of a city where it thinks you can travel at 50 km/h because it has not been programmed that the average speeds on those roads is actually 5 km/h. These days most satnavs have map update services and even live traffic avoidance systems for a subscription fee but these still rely on accurate inputs.

What I am saying, in my usual long winded way, is that they are a tool that you have to use intelligently. If it tries to turn you up a narrow lane when you are on a major road that you know leads to your destination or one of your waypoints you need to ignore it and continue on. It will eventually recalculate the route for you, sometimes after several attempts to return you to its chosen route. This applies particularly to such things as ring roads to avoid city centres. I have even had the strange experience of having the satnav take me off the motorway across the roundabout and back onto the motorway because it was fractionally a shorter distance than following the motorway.

Having said all that I would not be without one. I find they are invaluable when you are in unfamiliar territory. The best option is a good navigator with a map in the passenger seat plus a satnav.

Peter

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