38Thumper Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Gentlemen, I am ready to pull the trigger and purchase the new 130BT and I have read a few times that the maps are horrible! I really like the unit but I have never used the GPS portion. Can everyone shed some light on this? I am contemplating the Kenwood also. Thanks Quote Link to post Share on other sites
scharnhorst Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Gentlemen, I am ready to pull the trigger and purchase the new 130BT and I have read a few times that the maps are horrible! I really like the unit but I have never used the GPS portion. Can everyone shed some light on this? I am contemplating the Kenwood also. Thanks tons of information out there so I would read more... basically their are not a lot of streets which are labeled on the map unless you zoom in a lot. routing is sometimes hit or miss I would say its not terribly accurate, normally my car is about 3-4 car lengths ahead of where it shows on the map Summary but this unit if your more interested in the interface, but if gps is your main selling point kenwood probably better Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rfromet Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 I just installed the z130bt last week. I really don't think the maps are that bad. It's gotten me everywhere I needed to go accurately...I have no complaints with the navi EXCEPT... If you don't do the bypass - you can't input or edit anything while driving. You have to stop and put the parking brake on. EXTREMELY annoying... Rick Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Emil Suave Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 I have a z110BT upgraded to the z120bt. One thing I have loved about the unit is that you are able to actually upgrade the unit, even though it has been $200, but that is the standard that one would pay for Map upgrades. However. the sticking point of the unit for me has unfortunately always been the navigation system. Personally, I would agree with scharnhorst on the point that the streets and PQIs are not very well handled as well as it could be. Mostly, I want to see what cross streets I am passing, or that I have crossed into a different town or city. The interface just shows streets with no names. More than once have I been frustrated on the address entry, which is not predictive at all, and more often than not, you have to be very exact when looking for an address. A lot of times, if you do not enter that a street is "W" or "E" you will not find your address. It is disappointing that you cannot see the exact address that you have entered previously when looking up your previous searches in the history, unless there is a function that I have not come across. With PQIs, you can only tell it to show a handful, when I see no reason why it should not show everything. I really miss using the iGO interface, which, when you enter an address, you can click on a button which shows you other PQIs nearby. I have no issues with the routing, though, and once you are able to get through the quirky entry, it takes you where you want to go. Bypassing the system for me has been quite necessary, but don't take my advice and break the law if it is as such where you live, and possibly dangerous for your driving. Note, that this is just my personal opinion, and pray that others give their own experiences as well, good or bad. I hope that it helps you to make your choice. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
KawaKLX Posted May 4, 2011 Report Share Posted May 4, 2011 I agree with the above posts. If you are looking for a “high quality†gps unit, the Pioneer Z series is probably not the right choice. If you've had the chance to play around with other really good gps units, your going to find this one to be a bit lacking in comparison. There are numerous posts on the forum that talk about $100 hand-held units that are far better in functionality and accuracy and I would consider it to be the weakest part of these units. There are a lot of really cool features and reasons to buy the Z110/120/130 but the gps portion of the unit is not one of them. That said, overall, I think these units are still some of the best out there. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
EUPHOR1C Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 I put off buying the Z120 for the same reason you are with the Z130. I was worried the nav would suck as some suggest. I am glad I finally bought it about 5 months ago. The nav on this thing is great, defintely a great UI and much better than my wife's OEM Honda Nav. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
38Thumper Posted May 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 16, 2011 Thanks for the insite! I just purchased the Z130 the other day so now im getting all of my pieces together. I have heard lots of good and some bad. I cannot stand the delay that the Kenwood has so I opted for the Pioneer. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Foques Posted June 3, 2011 Report Share Posted June 3, 2011 out of curiosity, how does it compare to the z1 nav? I was completely satisfied with the z1 nav performance.. but had to trade the car with it inside.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Emil Suave Posted June 6, 2011 Report Share Posted June 6, 2011 @38Thumper: So how do you like it so far? What is your opinion on how the maps are? @Foques: Sorry, I personally cannot answer that question, as I have never used a Z1. Hopefully someone else can answer that for you, who has more experience. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Circuit Breaker Posted June 7, 2011 Report Share Posted June 7, 2011 Hello to all - I just purchased the Z130BT to replace my Kenwood DNX-5140. I've only had the unit in the truck now for four days but here's my take on the subject. The UI for all Kenwood navigation systems are pretty much the same, with some minor differences between models. I found it to be rather boring. The graphics look outdated and I think they could use more colors. The UI on Pioneer navigation systems are excellent in my opinion and look much better than anything Kenwood has. That said, Kenwood is better when it comes to the navigation system itself and I believe that has everything to do with the fact that they use Garmin/Navteq maps. I've been reading up on Tele-Atlas and one thing confuses me - Tele-Atlas is now a subsidiary of TomTom. Sony navigation systems use TomTom and their maps look infinitely better than what Pioneer has. As I was doing my research I came across the Sony XNV-770BT. Had this unit been available at the store where I purchased my Z130BT, I might have gone with the Sony...it's hard to say. The Z130BT comes with an HD tuner, while the XNV-770BT is only HD Ready. If Pioneer had the same mapping system that the XNV-770BT has I'd be a very happy camper. Which leads me to a question, one that may need to be asked of Pioneer: Since they use Tele-Atlas maps and Tele-Atlas is owned by TomTom - wouldn't it be possible to load the Z130BT with the same GPS operating system that the Sony uses? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
38Thumper Posted June 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2011 Well i installed my Z130BT and I have to say the maps are not as bad as people say. So far its pretty good, I need to test it more to come to a real conclusion. There are MANY other things I need to understand. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Foques Posted June 8, 2011 Report Share Posted June 8, 2011 ^ I'm with you, Thumper. for the first time, my GPS doesn't think that I live in the middle of a field.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Circuit Breaker Posted June 8, 2011 Report Share Posted June 8, 2011 After spending more time with mine, it's not a bad system. I think my biggest dislike is that the display usually shows me being 200 to 300 ft behind where I actually am. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Emil Suave Posted June 15, 2011 Report Share Posted June 15, 2011 It is real great that you guys love the unit. Congratulations on your purchase! As I mentioned before, I really love my Z110BT, and would not give it up for anything else in the world, as it has so many outstanding features: lovely interface, and did I say that it can be UPGRADED??? I am sure the discussions on the GPS feature of the unit makes it sounds worse that it actually is, given that I have had a Garmin, a Navigon and an iGO before I got my AVIC z110BT, and it definitely does not stand up to any one of them. I guess the issue is that one has paid so much for the unit, and given its other impressive features, one tends to expects the same. I can live with it, frustrating as it is. I do like being able to view the complete address in my history, or to see all the street names and cities I am driving through and not have only 10 PQI icon representations on my screen. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Thumper88 Posted June 15, 2011 Report Share Posted June 15, 2011 The Nav is okay...not amazing. If you miss a turn, it will tell you to turn down a certain straight...you may think it is rerouting you. Nope, it wants you turn around and go back to that turn! haha Even if the road you're trying to go to is straight ahead. In that sense, it is terrible. It'll have you going in circles. It's not efficient at all...the routes are usually not that great (roundabout ways). The POI are great...very up to date. It will get you to where you want to go, just not efficiently. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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