I'm a real estate agent and right now I own a Magellin portable GPS which works well, but I'm looking for something built.

I'm thinking of either the Avic-D2 or the Avic-Z1 but am not sure which would work best for my needs.

The absolute most important thing to me (besides accurate navigation) is a quick start up time. Since I sell real estate, I usually show 5-10 houses a day to my customers. I want to be able to show a house, jump back in my car, start it up, and quickly have my nav system ready to show me the way to the next house. My Magellin takes about 10 seconds to start up, show me the map and lock in the sattelites.

How long does the Avic-D2 or Avic-Z1 startup take?

I don't care about iPod connection (I own a Zune) and I don't care about watching DVD movies. I just need quick accurate navigation. Which unit would you recommend?

And what about Eclipse or Kenwood systems? Does anyone have experience with these units?

Thanks and Happy New Years to everyone.

Vman

I just installed the Z1 in my brothers trailblazer. He is also a real estate agent. The unit takes 10-20 sec to start up but is fantastic after that. The thing he really likes about it is the bluetooth. Since your type is always on the road and phone, the bluetooth integration with your cell phone is awesome. The clarity of it is great too.. you can't even tell that your on speaker phone. Its like adding On-Star in your car with no monthly fee!(other than your cell phone fee). My recommendation would be the Z1 just for the bluetooth option.

Good Luck!

I'm a real estate agent and right now I own a Magellin portable GPS which works well, but I'm looking for something built.

 

I'm thinking of either the Avic-D2 or the Avic-Z1 but am not sure which would work best for my needs.

 

The absolute most important thing to me (besides accurate navigation) is a quick start up time. Since I sell real estate, I usually show 5-10 houses a day to my customers. I want to be able to show a house, jump back in my car, start it up, and quickly have my nav system ready to show me the way to the next house. My Magellin takes about 10 seconds to start up, show me the map and lock in the sattelites.

 

How long does the Avic-D2 or Avic-Z1 startup take?

 

I don't care about iPod connection (I own a Zune) and I don't care about watching DVD movies. I just need quick accurate navigation. Which unit would you recommend?

 

And what about Eclipse or Kenwood systems? Does anyone have experience with these units?

 

Thanks and Happy New Years to everyone.

 

Vman

If the most important thing is start-up, then go with an Eclipse. It doesn't have all of the bells and whistles of the Z1 - but it doesn't sound like that's what you're looking for. The Z1 with Bluetooth IS handy - especially for a real-estate agent like yourself - but their are bugs that still need to be worked out - mainly the horrific "echo" that plagues most owners except for a select few.

If you can wait fot the Z2 update, it may be worth it...

The D2 starts up in a few seconds, much faster than a Z1. If you're into bluetooth, you might wait and see what the startup time is on the D3

The Z1 with Bluetooth IS handy - especially for a real-estate agent like yourself - but their are bugs that still need to be worked out - mainly the horrific "echo" that plagues most owners except for a select few.

I thought that with the updated software it was the other way around, most people are now happy with the bluetooth speakerphone and only a select few are still having issues.

That being said, if startup is the only concern, then the Z1 is not for you. If you want features, the Z1 has the most I would say. Voice control and text to speech for reading the names of the streets, etc... It uses 20 gigs for nav data, which is more than any other nav system I know of. Most use a dual layer DVD which is 9 at most. So is there more stuff? I don't know, some might argue now that they just took the extra space and stored stuff sloppily on the hard drive, but I would bet that there is more stuff stored there. Also with the hard drive, there is more upgrade-ability... just download the update, burn it and stick in the CD. Seems nice to me.

The startup time for both units is really not an issue. But since you're an agent, you'll find the "Today's Plan" feature quite handy. You can input all your address visits for that day, then the nav will sort them out by distance or order of being entered then guide you to all your showings.

Thanks for all the great information. I really appreciate it.

I took a look at some of the info on the web about the AVIC-D3 and it sounds like it might be worth the wait. One site said the street price would be in the $1300 range.

I do like the Trip Planner option and I hope the D3 has it included too. What I do now is enter all the addresses in my Magellan and when I'm ready to show each house, I just look up the addresses and hit "Route". It does have a trip planner but it's too confusing to use.

I've been reading about Eclipse and it seems like they are losing ground with their products. They are not keeping up with the features of Pioneer but costs a lot more.

Keep the comments coming. They really help.

Vman

BTW, anyone buying or selling a house in Pittsburgh.....let me know

it sounds like from your first post you already know which one to go with. start up time being inportant, the d2 would likely be your best choice. You dont care about ipod, so either unit would be for you.. less expensive is the d2. You dont care about dvd's, so go with the less expensive unit that doesnt play them, again, the d2. The navi maps and such are the same so go again, with the d2 for its price. Like you mentioned in your first post it really sounds like you know the answers so go with what you know.

The d3 pricing is a little bit off in the future right now, and has a few features you said you dont even want, like dvd player. so you might want to just take that unit out of the running all together.

Something else to consider regarding the D3. I'm not sure if it has a motorized tilt feature. It might just be flat. It depends on the vehicle, but if your radio sits low in the vehicle, the tilt feature is quite handy.

D3 will be $1100 retai. Distributors already have the 07 price sheets

that is nice to know whtcrxghst

Thanks Tillithz.

I was leaning towards the D2 but wasn't sure about the startup time. That's why I created the post.

The D3 is supposed to have bluetooth which would hopefully work with my Treo 700 phone. If the D3 is actually priced at $1100 as whtcrxghst says, it looks like the D3 will be better for me than the D2....especially since the D2 isn't going for all that much cheaper.

Vman

maybe now, the d2 is not much cheaper, but reliable folks have found it for nearly $600 or so. being almost half the price. thats considerable, but if the d3 is what your looking for, go for that.

Hey Vman,

I own a real estate appraisal firm and appraise in 22 counties throughout NW Ohio, so I too drive a lot. Sometimes I cover over 300 miles in one day appraising 5-6 houses. I find the Z1 to be highly adequate.

Don't let startup time dictate your decision. Haven't you heard that good things come to those who wait? Plan your day ahead and leave the car running in the driveway between appointments. Your rich, you can afford the gas right? The Z1 has sooooo many more features than the D2 and D3 and I guarantee that you'll utilize many of them, including Bluetooth, Sat Radio and Rearview Camera, which you can use to view yourself backing up over the dog that the listing owner forgot to tie-up that morning

Good luck with your decision.

Go Buckeyes!