GPS vs Smartphone: Which is better?
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- čas přidán 7. 06. 2024
- These days, everyone just uses their smartphone for GPS navigation. GPS is also present in most cars.
In the olden days, we had dedicated GPS gizmos for navigating. You can still grab a GPS-only device these days - and for fewer bucks than you might think.
But is it worth it to have a dedicated GPS?
It turns that yes, it is... For quite a few reasons, not the least of which is simple privacy.
Mentioned in the vid:
- Garmin Drive 51 LMT-S on Amazon.fr: amzn.to/2S7U1rQ
- Garmin Drive 50 LM USA on Amazon.com: amzn.to/2TSrrN4
- Garmin nuvi 40 LM (USED) on Amazon.com:
www.amazon.com/Garmin-4-3-Inc...
More techie tips: scottiestech.info - Věda a technologie
Dude...hands down you are one of the best/informative tech CZcamsrs. Keep it up.
This was better than I could ever imagine.
just discovered your channel today, great work my man keep it up!
Thank you Scottie for the presentations you are wonderful. Love'n it! what you do, and what you produce on your videos, They are informative and practical, Big Thank you.
Yes I only use my GPS in my car, I too approve of the getting to point A to point B simplicity of it all. And can just update the maps, much better for Country road travel, As I also know how to read the paper maps. It can be a joy to pick them up at the Information centers as you travel, and get to know the local produce as you go from state to state... Thanks Scottie.
I was skeptical until he said "Yoda Voice." Now I'm all in. thanks man
That yoda impression was pretty good. LOL
The biggest advantage to my Garmin GPS is privacy. No one is tracking me, knows where I am, and no one like Google or Samsung is listening to every word I say. Its also a completely self enclosed system - other than when I am updating the maps (its free). No monthly fees, no roaming fees, no endless ads, no pop-up notices other than those pertaining to navigation, and no "user account" required ..... its off the grid ! Beautiful!
Exactly!!
Lol unless you're leaving your phone at home google knows exactly where you are... go to maps and look at time line will show you where you have been driving
@@JONO3679 My cellphone is not a smart phone. It can only do actual telephone calls and text. That's it! And it only cost me $10 a month.
Very informative and helpful. Thanks Scottie
Thank you! Great info, you answered questions I didn't know I had.
Thanks Scotty exactly what I’m looking for✌🏻!!
Nice video, thank you! I like your easy way of talking.
Love that Slovenia mug. Enlightening video bro thanks for that!
As always your great, maybe you could also make the voice impressions. You had me convinced. Keep up the good work, you always keep your cool........
I used downloadable maps with a smartphone when I drove tractor trailer. Because some places there was no cell signal so I could use it with data turned off.
My Garmin Nuvi 1390 is about 20 years old now and it still works like a charm. I got it as a refurbished item ans was worried it might not last long. This thing has been amazing and never let me down. First and only one I have ever bought.
I have a Garmin nuvi from 2008. When I bought it, you had to pay for updates. Can I update it for free now? It’s never been updated. I just bought the Garmin drivesmart 55. I would like to update my old one and pass it on to someone if I can do it for free.
I had a gorrilla case and used it as a gps on my motorbike in vietnam, it came off at 80km/h hit the ground and a car ran over it and the gorilla case protected it, not a problem
Excellent video. I have a Garmin, which sounds like the same as Scottie referred to and it is great. Updating the maps for the built in car gps is a rip off, so I am happy to still have Garmin. Good info as usual.
I used to often use my phone as GPS but it was way to glitchy to reliably work...specially over long trips. I eventually got the Garmin DriveAssist 51 NA since not only was it a GPS but also a dashcam and other features specially when combined with the phone via bluetooth. I am now wondering how to get the yoda voice as I never knew you had so many options when it came to voice options.
Great explanation of how the Garmin works. Thanks!
I agree with most of what you say except for Google maps, you can download full maps prior to a journey and not rely on mobile data, you can turn mobile data off which I do.
This is what I do all the time. Especially in the mountains.
Or you can be on 1x and it will work properly
What happens if you have no cellular network and you go off route? Can you download all the map data for lets say the usa?
Las time I have used it, it did not support navigation offline, just maps... Did that change?
Nemanja Nedeljković It’s in settings
Thank you so much, awesome video, just the info I wanted to learn and was also entertained :) well done!
I have a Garmin GPS that works great. How ever, I tried various GPS apps for my Apple iPad Air. One thing I noticed is that on the app version when you miss a turn on the route you were instructed to take, the app does not recalculate a new route fast enough like the Garmin. If you miss a turn on the the Garmin, in a few seconds Garmin will automatically give you a new route. Hence a dedicated GPS unit like the Garmin is far better than the assited app.
This is a great channel. Thanks for the info.
there's still something i like about that old school feeling of the gps
I've lost track of how many times I've dropped my Garmin. Still works Great!
I know, they're unbelievably durable!
You don’t need a data connection all the time. You can use offline maps on phones these days.
Hey Scottie, you look like you're already lost in a jungle in that shirt! Keep up the good work!
This helped me immensely! Thank you!
This is the best description of the problem. All the points I have in my mind are there in this video.
I hate GPS units because of the wires. I hate Smart phone maps because of loss of connectivity at times and the lag when updating the location of the car on the map, which makes it harder to estimate the distance before the next turn.
You know how to solve this issue though? it is surprisingly simple. Just put some better batteries in GPS units, something that would last for the whole trip. This way I wont have to keep it connected all the time and wont have to see wires every where I look in the car.
Another solution would be for car manufacturers to work with GPS systems manufacturers, they should put a 12 Volt outlet where the dashboard meets the windshield.
I agree with you 100%. I just came back from the Rocky mountains and the Smoky mountains and the GPS my phone work perfectly it took me on safe routes it's just amazing the technology is out there
I have a Tomtom Go 61 and then Sygic on my smartphone as back up. Both have offline maps so i dont have the data problem. I switch on mobile data for a few mins to get the traffic as my gps is connected by bluetooth to my phone and it gets the traffic patters. I find that my dedicated gps gives me much better and shorter routes. I find that Sygic gives me longer routes for some reason, even for a short journey. for example, instead of giving me the straight road from a to b, it gives me a longer trip for some reason. For my travels my number one is always a dedicated gps. The smartphone is there as back up or for a short journey where i know the basic route but do not know the exact road i have to go to in a particular town.
Awesome, coffee Scott and Cletus
Great vid, I was thinking those pipes on the wall would look good with a bamboo theme on them.
Great video! I believe the Smartphone app Polaris can use downloaded maps , including open source. Also, Garmin has apps for smartphones. Another important feature of some dedicated Garmin GPS devices is 2 way satellite communication. Allows emergency messages to be sent with coordinates independent of Wifi or cellular networks. My Garmin handheld (60CS) has this and it also has connector for external antenna. This means I can use it inside a car or boat or indoors and still get excellent reception. Much I could say about what none of the smartphone apps or Garmin or other GPS devices have. Thinking to have a go at my own GPS and software.
Like your shirts and intelligent commentary.Take care....
Well said I like the way you explain it. thanks man
I'm on a Tracfone prepaid plan so I resisted using an app for the longest time and relied on my aging but still trusty Garmin GPSs. Waze is now my primary way to get around, especially on long drives to places I'm not familiar with. Waze can show user-made, real-time notifications like accidents, vehicles parked on the shoulder, and police speed traps. I know Garmin had/has some sort of higher-end model that had traffic updates but I never owned one so I don't know how good they were. Nonetheless, I'll stick with Waze and keep a spare GPS in my glovebox. I remember the days when we used to use physical maps or print directions on a computer and either option is so much better now.
The lack of privacy doesn't bother me much. If we have a cell phone we're being tracked regardless and cameras are everywhere now. Tracking is a double-edged sword. If I'm suspected of a crime but Waze shows that I was 100 miles away when it happened then that tracking just became my alibi in court. I understand why everyone in the comments is uneasy about tracking but it's the world we live in now and it's only going to get worse.
Trying to work out which to go with, dedicated or smartphone. Been using a dedicated Garmin for many years, but would like to use my smartphone. Can't find any details of whether a voice is available, or a rough idea of data usage. People I know who use a smartphone never have a voice on, and don't know how much the data is costing them. This subject still needs the definitive video, or please let me know if you've come across one out there.
How is it connected to the satellites if often times loses the signal? Also, satellites are supposed to be way too far away for GPS devices to connect.
I've heard that they are only using Ground Positioning Systems, which are basically towers on the surface, not satellites in the orbit. That's why we lose signal sometimes.
Scotty, A couple things to add: A smartphone without a sim card, running OsmAnd, with worldwide free maps already downloaded, and installed with SDcard or ADB, works without data services or transmitting or data hoovering. Plus if the smartphone is newer than the Garmin, it will probably recognize more satellite networks, and thus have better accuracy. Also for those who have sim cards, AGPS includes wifi hotspots.
What is *Osm* ???? could You specify please?
I much prefer using a stand alone Garmin GPS unit vs. my cell phone because at times I travel into some really rural off the beaten paths where I can drive for hours and not get any cell phone service at all, whereas my GPS will always get a navigational signal for me no matter where I'm at. By the way I just went and bought a second cheap Garmin GPS ($99) no frills unit and went to all the big tech stores (Best Buy, Staples, Cabela's, etc.) and not a single automotive GPS unit to be sold in the store anywhere as they don't seem to be selling them like they used to a decade ago as all those stores would carry them, not so much anymore. I finally found one in store in the electronics dept. at Walmart. Of course you can buy them on Amazon, but didn't have exactly what I was looking for as I didn't want to spend $400+ on a unit with all the bells and whistles as I was just looking for a simple point A to point B unit as my second GPS unit for my other car.
Thanks for your info....peace
Awesome job; mate!
Hey..did you know that you can pre download all the required maps from google and use your smartphone as a stand alone gps. No network signal or data connection needed.
HOW?
@@BraydonKlineStudios Yeah do elighten us just HOW can we do that!
@@hitone4319 On your phone, Google maps - Settings - Offline maps - Select your own maps - Download area you want... It's been there for years
I can listen to your voice for hours 😌
As for longer travels and even short travels I still prefer the car's GPS. Because there's some areas that don't have any reception and in case if you don't want to get lost, use the car's GPS.
Great video Scottie, just stumbled upon your channel . Last year I bought a car stereo with Android auto. Thought it was pretty awesome when I plugged my phone in and Google maps came up on my screen. Problem is just like you mentioned in this video , I have to keep waiting for it to download maps and directions as I go along and I don't Always have the best cell tower connection . My map screen is locked and I get a grey box that reads "waiting on GPS location" . It's very frustrating . Also, I'm tires of being spied on by big tech so I reactivated my old 3G slider phone from 2008 " Samsung SGH a737" . I just ordered a cheap GPS off Amazon for $55 with lifetime map updates included . Device has 4 star ratings and it's a 7 inch screen and comes with windshield mount. If it works for a year or 2 then I got my money's worth. It will feel good to be off the grid . Thanks again for your very informative video . I subscribed. Looking forward to more of your videos . 😎
Thanks for posting this. I began searching if these devices still exist because of the privacy and tracking issues. So fed up with not being able to live my life without an all seeing eye. Ready to go back to a dumb phone ☎️ as well.
I now have a Garmin Drivesmart 55 MT-D, and I love it! Sure, it's got WiFi and Bluetooth and I can link to online nonsense, but I just turn that crap off. I just keep the maps up to date via a USB connection to my puter, and Bob's my uncle.
I was lost a former logging road now to-track way out in the woods no cell reception. Broke out my old Magellan GPS and it knew exactly where I was and how to get out.
The GPS for motorcycles is very expensive. On the other hand, phones have water resistant, blue-tooth and higher contrast but they get overheat shutdown under strong sunlight. One of the options that I think might work well is to get rugged phone as galaxy s7 active and use offline maps under flight mode. I just haven't try if this might work :)
Dedicated GPS all the way! Many places I go have poor or sub-3G networks and nothing loads. Also, one time I was using my smarphone for a GPS and notifications started coming down and blocking the map, even though it was in driving mode. Since it was in driving mode, it wouldn't let me get rid of the notifications.
Useless!
I agree 100% a dedicated GPS is much better, I still use a almost 10 years old GPS....old maps and so on...still works like a charm.
No internet no download maps and so on.
Do those old GPS even relay traffic information?
Exactly.
You can download temporary maps on google maps, or complete country maps using a GPS map app. It'll work without any data or cellular in flight mode.
There are a couple of GPS apps (SYGIC being one of them) that doesn't need to use a network connection as they give you the option to download the whole map. I do use Google from time to time and you can download your complete route for times when you are out of range of a phone tower which for most of Australia is normal outside of the major population centres. That's all well unless you go off the route and without a data connection to update the route just ends. Most of the time I use a TomTom Rider 450 for the bike.
I love to drive up into the mountains in North America to trout fish . Obviously my cell phone gps is crap on account of connection as you spoke of . What is a good cost efficient gps I can buy to go on my dash to see dirt “ off roads “ or hiking trails so to speak and also show the contours via rivers and streams nearby thank you
I want a dumb phone. My concern is email and navigation. This video definitely helped. Thank you!
One thing to keep in mind is that in big cities with tall buildings, a dedicated GPS is often LESS accurate than a smartphone since the smartphone can use local WiFi to help pinpoint your location. But even then, smartphone aGPS still leaves a lot to be desired. I guess that's why they're updating the GPS in newer flavors of Android. Outside big cities/tall buildings, I find the dedicated GPS to always be better.
Funny and informative. Excellent helpful video: thank you, new to the channel
Great info Scottie ,i am a delivery driver in the uk i have been using my mobile phone for the past couple of years as a sat nav ,and i find it very distracting .. after a while i have been thinking of getting a sat nav i debating to get the tom tom or the Garmin but after watching this ...im defiantly leaning towards the Garmin ...please keep up the great work ..keep safe
Although I'm in the US, I'm a truck driver as well. My last three or four units have been Garmin. My first GPS ever was a TomTom in the early 2000s. I just picked up the Garmin OTR700 7 in display trucker GPS. It was an upgrade from my dēzl760 and I can't believe the advancements in just a few years. Some of my friends purchased the Rand McNally units, but most people who tried them out, ended up with Garmin.
Aye very very interesting thank you 🐱
Their are apps for offline navigation, but I think dedicated GPS units do work better.
I have a 2014 system on a honda accord and I never learned how to use it.
It seems complicated and furthermore the map updates got me further confused...where do I start..the car was hardly used and I still love it.
The phone has its limits too...
Hi Scottie! Could you please do a video on VoIP, and what could be done to stop the scammers from phone number porting, and preventing them from tying up our netphone lines.
What is that instrument near the soldering iron? If it is an oscilloscope, it is a really compact one ..Would you care to comment on it such as price, etc. thanks Jim
It's a Rigol DS1054Z digital oscilloscope. About $375, which is WAAAY cheaper than Tektronix or anybody else, but still very good.
www.ebay.com/p/RIGOL-DS1054Z-Digital-Oscilloscope/20018201941?iid=333042413390
Hello, my experience is that a dedicated gps is the way to go. I got a secondhand tomtom for around 20 euro. Smartphone gps is handy as a second choice(might work fine if you're walking) , but while driving it looses sat connection to often at important points(like intersections etc) this may be due to interference from the other hardware in the phone and the not really dedicated/cheap/small gps antenna.
While in the dedicated gps there's enough room so you probably have a better/larger gps antenna. And in actual consumer antenna technology there is no substitute for size. Regards
i have a samsung smartphone with Sygic gps with no sim card inside and it works as a charm. never failed me
Yep I'm the second type of person too. Spin me around and I'm lost.
WAIT! Leave the cell at home, and no tracking using a dedicated GPS?
Hands down, Garmin is better than using the smartphone for GPS.
Been thrift shopping and I saw many of them laying around for about $10, passed on them until I realised that in case any of the events where smart phones useless dedicated gps may be handy so I got one recently. Also, just purchased brand new Nokia e72 on eBay about $40. Happy 2023!
Thank you for the introduction to dedicated GPS devices. However, as a user of public transit if Garmin is not as up to date as Google Maps, this would be a deal breaker. Great for trekking in Nepal though!
True. Also, in the Big City, it's often very difficult to get either to work well due to too many tall buildings, signal reflections, etc. So always a good idea to have a good old fashioned paper map!
Scottie, can you explain how the traffic conditions data is collected and is displayed in google maps or your gps?
I'm not sure how it's collected, but it's disseminated via either the internets (smartphone) or via FM radio "traffic alerts" on older GPS devices like mine. Of course, that may change with the advent of digital radio, but frankly the traffic alerts have never saved me. If I run into traffic, I just take a detour, and the GPS automatically calculates a new route. I neglected to mention this in the video to keep it short(er), but generally I don't find the traffic alert stuff to be very useful. It's better IMO to have up-to-date maps!
@@ScottiesTech I assumed with all the Google data gathering, they are tracking everyone's movements ( or maybe only when people.begin to move at speed) and as people slow through traffic, the time they take to pass through the congestion is calculated and sent back to the network to update real time traffic data on the maps. it's the only logical way they can calculate accurate times for traffic. this opens up the endless possibilities for what else they can be doing with your info. soon if you say a bad word about the ruling party in your kitchen you may be inellegabe for access to certain things in society, like plane travel for example, just like a social credit score system that is being used in china
I have one right now, OnStar rearview mirror, still brand new in the box.
It depends if you are driving a lot then I think having a dedicated GPS would be worth it. There are many places that do not have reception and you really cannot afford to get lost somewhere. It is a waste of time. A smartphone gps is good enough for most people. And it will save your phone battery as well because having your phone plugged in all the time during trips for the GPS is going to kill the life of battery much faster.
my cell phones GPS stops working when i lose reception
Why are you referring to an electronic device as "him"?
If your phone is on and connected to a cell network, then you’re being “watched over” potentially. However! If I don’t show up or return home on time and I’m not answering, I definitely want someone to be able to call the police and tell them they are concerned for my safety for that reason. Then we can do an exigent/emergency ping of the phone and get a decent location for a possible rescue. We’ve used this for elderly people with dementia who wandered off into some really weird locations several times.
Very informative, thank you!
The GPS that came with my car was replaced once and now it needs to be replaced again, very expensive. Just remember to get the lifetime updates you have to add a 8 GB memory card.
I can hear it now, "Turn Right in a quarter of a mile, Pilgram" in a John Wayne voice.
IF their are satellites 📡 why do we need cell towers & antennas?
Great channel keep it up you have a ton of good content 👍🏻
GPS satellites are usually about 20,000 km above the surface of the Earth. Satellite internet ones are about 35,000 km above the planet. A typical cell tower might be 1km away. The difference in distance means that even radio signals travelling at the speed of light take long enough (round-trip) that you end up with a high-latency connection. IOW, to send/receive data to a cell tower, you might wait 10's or 100's of milliseconds. To do the same thing via satellite often means delays of 2-3 seconds. It's also way more expensive to launch a satellite to provide any service than it is to install local towers on the ground. And maintenance in space is pretty much a no-go.
Ihave a 50 LM that I have had for about ten years. I am going to replace its internal battery. My new 2597 LMT has a lot more features but like the 50 LM it will only get me from point A to point B.
Is your 50lm upgradeable to 71LM, or even 70LM 70.3 the second version released in June last?
For traveling GPS navigator is the most reliable. But smarthpone gives you more flexability. I will travel with my smartphone and google maps, but just in case i have the Garmin prepared.
Hey. Greatly video. I have an old Garmin nuvi from 2008. Are the updates free? I just bought a new Garmin drivesmart 55. I would like to update my old one and pass it on to someone if I can do it for free.
Garmin updates are only free if you bought one that came with free lifetime map updates. You can find out easily enough by installing Garmin Express, and connecting the nuvi. If it prompts you to pay for a map update, then you know.
I’ll try that. Thanks
After I purchased sd cards my Garmin Montana 680t never failed 👍
I can navigate from trail to road seemlessly 💰
The points against the smartphone don't seem accurate. You can download offline maps on your local storage permanently, and they'll be periodically updated via wifi. As for privacy, you gave that up the moment you bought an android phone. Google account required, and if you think they're respecting your privacy settings, you're lying to yourself or you're just silly. That said, the range of maps you can download is limited, yes, so for a cross country trip, use a Garmin.
privacy is a concern for me. getting away from google. stopping to use android and moving to librem 5. researching stand alone gps units.
Thanks. I'll keep my Garmin.
Hi , I'm a new driver and I'm looking for a GPS better than my phone . I check for the Pioneer but is to expensive there is another brand that you recommended that have a 3D view what I want is that the display on the screen looks more realistic no like the gps in my phone. thanks
I'm not aware of any GPSes that are super-realistic. Usually the best you get is like the Garmin Drive series, where you can see the 3D overhead view of a cartoon-like map. Then when you reach an exit or branch in the road, it shows you a split screen with a graphical lane guidance image.
@@ScottiesTech thank you so much for your answer !
I use my GPS device on my bike (in the US) to load/follow routes/tracks, and I use my smartphone to play my music and make/receive calls. YMMV.
If you want to be tracked less, use a gps and not a smartphone
You are forgetting live traffic updates you get on your smartphone, but not on a dedicated GPS device. That makes a HUGE difference. The ONLY reason I could have a dedicated GPS, is so that I don't have to mount my phone every time I get in the car. Then again a magnetic mount makes it easy, and is around $10.
Not true, you can get traffic on a dedicated GPS by several methods, and all the best GPS units have this/these feature(s). Instead, the best of many reasons to use a dedicated GPS is that a GPS is specifically designed to aid drivers, so, of course, it can do many things toward that goal better than a general-purpose device like a smartphone.
Regarding cellular networks, anything the smartphone can do that is useful and safe while driving, a good GPS can even better do by interfacing to that same smartphone all without ever getting the smartphone out of your pocket. So, not only are dedicated GPS units better than smartphones for driving in most ways, but they are guaranteed to be as good as smartphone in any remaining ways. In short, GPS > smartphone is obtained by design.
@@carlw6247 how would you get live traffic updates without an internet connection? Also, why would you say it does a better job than a smartphone? In what way exactly? On a smartphone, you can even get satellite view..
Used my smart phone yesterday. No signal. First time I was let down
And when you need to find your way home you quickly learn you need a backup so ordered a sat nav and hopefully won't be struggling to get home again
The Garmin is reliable. So many times cell phones can not property navigate because of weak or ‘no service’ cell signals.
I figured you to be the first guy. Yet you are extremely smart and that may go with the territory. I have driven in many USA cities. Never been to Columbus Ohio and I felt like I lived their. Philly , New York Boston San Francisco No Problem. Were did I have trouble while I lived their ? Pittsburgh PA. Not build on a grid. Joke for you. Pittsburgh gets a bad rap. Yinzers. The smart folk are so polite. They can't tell you how to get from the north side to the south side. Funny I'm 53 white guy. Two guys my age from the inner city black guys can read minds. I used the point and turn method. It went like this at 5 A.M. My man how do we get to Route 1 from here ? My arm pointed down rhawn st. and I said 2 miles down rhawn and my wrist pointed right. They got it. I was going that way and with ease they were going south on Route 1 . Magic ? No. Most Philly folks say what do you mean the delaware river is east. Scott your channel is the best. I loved your friend or foe vid. Stay safe and use your Garmin without shame. Gerald Philadelphia PA
Great videos but it would help if you picked up the pace.
How do I get Rosario Dawson to read lines for me for a gps? 🤔 Lol
I have a Garmin 2010, paid 260 dollars...used 3 times...my husband died...
What should I do to update it?
Connect it and run Garmin Express software
2:27 no satellites(no such thing) just antennas
lol. Imagine using a computer/smartphone but also denying the existence of satellites.
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ZetaTalk 1: www.zetatalk.com/info/tinfx386.htm
A to z and some paper and a pen + using the brain is better than the title.
Cell phones are always going to be more accurate. Bottom line Garmin needs a connection to and connects to your cell phone to work properly
Not for places where there is no cell signal, or you haven't paid to receive it. A Garmin GPS only needs power and to see the sky. Cell phones are designed to work based a cell connection, and they normally don't work for navigation without one. Garmin GPS units work for navigation everywhere, since GPS is freely available worldwide, and the maps are stored locally on the GPS, so the GPS units are better by design.
i have a nuvi and the dam thing is always taking me off the freeway....way before i get to my destination!!!!