Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Best Navigation App is under $5.00

TheiPhoneChick

TheiPhoneChick

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Nov 1, 2011
257
0
I am coming from an Android phone (HTC EVO 4G) and on Sprint. We have free navigation through Sprint Nav (which is basically telenav repackaged) and also Google Navigation which is awesome. These both give turn by turn voice prompts with out a subscription.

I found out that when using the iPhone, I don't have those options so I am looking for a new app that doesn't have a monthly or yearly subscription. i was going to use the Telenav app but there is a $9.99 yearly fee, I don't want to pay that when I only use once every couple of months.

Do you have any suggestions?
 
TheiPhoneChick said:
I am coming from an Android phone (HTC EVO 4G) and on Sprint. We have free navigation through Sprint Nav (which is basically telenav repackaged) and also Google Navigation which is awesome. These both give turn by turn voice prompts with out a subscription.

I found out that when using the iPhone, I don't have those options so I am looking for a new app that doesn't have a monthly or yearly subscription. i was going to use the Telenav app but there is a $9.99 yearly fee, I don't want to pay that when I only use once every couple of months.

Do you have any suggestions?
Click to expand...

Mapquest for free is as good as it gets I think. There is another one that is free but has goofy icons... Looks like a kids game I heard that is ok as well it is free also and has traffic reports on it.

I will miss google navigation on my Evo.
 
I already miss navigation on my Evo as well!

MrXiro said:
Mapquest for free is as good as it gets I think. There is another one that is free but has goofy icons... Looks like a kids game I heard that is ok as well it is free also and has traffic reports on it.

I will miss google navigation on my Evo.
Click to expand...
 
I use the TomTom app and it works great. There is no subscription as you pay everything up front and TomTom says they will provide lifetime maps upgrades to app users, so it's a good investment.

And please don't get me started on the price, it's $50 now and I paid $100 when it first came out, so yeah it's a good deal.

Alternatively you can use your Android phone in your car just for navigation?
 
Thanks for that! No the price wouldn't be a problem if I used it all the time, but once every couple of months is not enough to justify the price for me. I can't use the Android without wifi since it is no longer on my sprint account.

alphaod said:
I use the TomTom app and it works great. There is no subscription as you pay everything up front and TomTom says they will provide lifetime maps upgrades to app users, so it's a good investment.

And please don't get me started on the price, it's $50 now and I paid $100 when it first came out, so yeah it's a good deal.

Alternatively you can use your Android phone in your car just for navigation?
Click to expand...
 
Waze is a pretty good free navigation app.
It's user driven so you also get reports on where there's traffic, stalled cars on the shoulder, cops, etc. It also tells you when the reports were sent.
 
The only problem with the cheaper navigation apps are that the maps aren't saved on your phone, and they need to be streamed. This can burn through your data plan (but I guess you have unlimited data anyways). Additionally, if you are out of coverage, you won't have GPS with you.

I'd pay the $50 for an app that comes with the preloaded apps or even a "real" standalone GPS.
 
I've used CoPilot Live Directions and it's pretty good. It's a little basic unless you pay for the "Live" features, but the free version is just fine for simple navigation. Unless you really need points of interest and the like, it might be your best bet...

It's also kind of nice because if you don't use a GPS often, but do want all the features, you can pat $2 for 30 days of full access (or $15 for a year). So you only need to pay when you need to, not every month, and not $50 at once.

(FWIW, I've seen the TomTom app on sale for $30, which is a good price imo).
 
ewils19 said:
Waze is a pretty good free navigation app.
It's user driven so you also get reports on where there's traffic, stalled cars on the shoulder, cops, etc. It also tells you when the reports were sent.
Click to expand...

How effective is Waze? I've been looking into the same thing as well. Didn't get a chance to use Waze yet.

Map Quest seems like a more traditional nav app, but I hope Waze works out for me, I like it's interface a lot better.
 
I use Navfree here in the UK and it's very good. The US version is free or £0.69 for an ad free version via in-app purchase.
 
ewils19 said:
Waze is a pretty good free navigation app.
It's user driven so you also get reports on where there's traffic, stalled cars on the shoulder, cops, etc. It also tells you when the reports were sent.
Click to expand...

This! Waze is so cool, I'm amazed it's free.
 
Thanks guys! I am going to look at Waze, already downloaded it and also MapQuest and see which one works best for me. If I end up needing a super nav app i will certainly try the other paid apps suggested here.
 
Coming from Android, you will not find anything as good as Google Navigation for free. Waze is ok, but it frequently gives strange directions and doesn't look polished. I haven't tried Mapquest though...would love to hear some reviews
 
can't think of any less than $5 bucks.

I'm using NAVIGON and it's killer.

Only navigation app I ever used, and I love it.
 
buddybd said:
How effective is Waze? I've been looking into the same thing as well. Didn't get a chance to use Waze yet.

Map Quest seems like a more traditional nav app, but I hope Waze works out for me, I like it's interface a lot better.
Click to expand...

I used it two weekends ago on a road trip and i liked it alot. It has a great interface and I love that its userdriven so the reports are more up to date.
 
Navigon is great -- good directions, great spoken directions including street names. I usually keep it in my pocket and just stream the audio directions to my stereo over Bluetooth. For point-of-interest searches I strongly recommend using the built-in Google search rather than the included database. Google is much more comprehensive.
 
TheiPhoneChick said:
Thanks for that! No the price wouldn't be a problem if I used it all the time, but once every couple of months is not enough to justify the price for me. I can't use the Android without wifi since it is no longer on my sprint account.
Click to expand...

I use Tom Tom also and every once in a while it's on sale, I paid $39.99 (or was in $34.99, i can't remember).
 
MotionX GPS Drive. $20yr for voice turn by turn but worth it. Best I've used.
 
pdqgp said:
MotionX GPS Drive. $20yr for voice turn by turn but worth it. Best I've used.
Click to expand...

Looks like its 10 a year right now... I just don't like paying yearly subscription fees... I want to get Tom Tom. Though Navigon looks good too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back