Doug Raeburn
10-10-2007, 04:00 PM
<img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-00.gif" /> <br /><br /><b>Product Category:</b> Pocket PC Navigation Software<br /><b>Manufacturer:</b> <a href="http://www.inavcorp.com/"><b>iNav Corporation</b></a><br /><b>Where to Buy:</b> <a href="http://www.semsons.com/igv4noamforp.html"><b>Semsons & Co., Inc.</b></a><br /><b>Price:</b> $119.99 USD; currently on sale for $99.99 USD.<br /><br /><b>Pros:</b><br /><li>Fast routing;<br /><li>Good quality routes;<br /><li>Text-to-speech instructions include street names.<br /><br /><b>Cons:</b><br /><li>Limited control over volume;<br /><li>Effect of drastically different voices used for instructions is jarring;<br /><li>"Clunky" sound effect as alarm for turns.<br /><br /><b>Summary:</b><br />The programs that turn your Pocket PC into a navigation system have kept up with the dedicated navigation units in just about every way except one: the ability to include street names in the voice instructions. Now that iGuidance 4 includes that feature, have we achieved parity again? Let's take a look...<br /> <!> <PAGEBREAK> <br />It seems that I've become the "semi-official" navigation software reviewer here at Pocket PC Thoughts. I won't say that I've seen them all… after all, I did cut Jon Westfall some slack recently and let him review DeLorme Street Atlas :wink: . But I have seen a good number of the software packages for North America, each having some features and functionality of its own. So what's left to look for? Well, iNav's iGuidance version 4 brings text-to-speech to the table. In other words, instead of merely saying "Turn right in ˝ mile", it says "Turn right in ˝ mile onto Capital Drive" or whatever road you're turning onto. So is this the new killer feature for navigation software? Let's take a look.<br /><br /><span><b>Installation</b></span><br />The iGuidance installation is a bit "old school" compared to some of the other programs that I've tested recently. I've gotten used to receiving an SD card, inserting it into my Pocket PC and having it install itself, with no activation required. iGuidance comes on a single DVD and you install the program from your desktop computer. Unlike other installs of this type, however, there's no actual desktop application for installing maps. All of the maps are installed to a single SD card, which you must provide. The size of the maps is 1.3 GB, so you'll need at least a nearly empty 2 GB card. The slightly unusual thing about this part of the install, however, is that it's not automated at all. You're required to find a folder on the installation DVD and manually copy it to the SD card. Not difficult, but a bit more involved than most installs.<br /><br />With an active Internet connection, you can activate the program directly through the application. It requires that you enter the license code that came with your software. When successful, the software will be activated with no further input. You can also activate using a self-serve web page, via e-mail or via telephone. The latter 3 options will provide you with an unlocking code that you must enter into the software.<br /><br /><span><b>Creating Routes</b></span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-01.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-01.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 1: The Set Destination menu. You can click on any image that contains a magnifying glass to see a larger version.</i><br /><br />iGuidance displays your current position when it first starts up (assuming that your GPS has acquired enough satellites). From that screen, you can tap the Set Destination button (the checkered flag icon) to display the menu shown in Figure 1. The options for routing are comparable to those available in most of its competitors.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-02.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-02.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 2: Entering the city name.</i><br /><br />Tapping the Address button takes you to a screen that allows you to change the current state. After you change or accept the state, the screen in Figure 2 is displayed. Begin entering the city name and the program filters the displayed choices based on your input. When the desired city is displayed and highlighted, tap on OK.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-03.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-03.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 3: Entering the street name.</i><br /><br />You can then enter the street name. The list will again be filtered as you make your entry, and the streets displayed are limited to those in the chosen city. Again, tap on OK when the desired street is highlighted.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-04.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-04.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 4: Entering the house number.</i><br /><br />The program then displays the valid range of house numbers. Enter the desired house number and tap on OK. The program will display the entire address and will calculate a route. Intersections work much the same way… you enter the first street name and then the program displays a list of streets that intersect with it. You can choose directly from that list, or enter the street name to filter as described above.<br /> <PAGEBREAK> <br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-05.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-05.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 5: Points of Interest main menu.</i><br /><br />Points of Interest (POIs) are well represented in iGuidance. The first set of screens display some broad categories for the POIs. For this example, I tapped on Recreation & Sports.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-06.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-06.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 6: The Recreation and Sports submenu.</i><br /><br />The chosen submenu is displayed. From here, I selected Sports Complex.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-07.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-07.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 7: Options for POIs.</i><br /><br />The next screen shows a number of options of how to display POIs and also allows you to change the state.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-08.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-08.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 8: Entering the POI name.</i><br /><br />Based on the selected options, a list of POIs is displayed. You can scroll through the list or filter as before. I chose Miller Park, home of the "always formidable" Milwaukee Brewers. Obviously, I'm joking… on the day that I'm writing this, they dropped out of contention for the playoffs the day before.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-09.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-09.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 9: Details on the selected POI.</i><br /><br />Finally, iGuidance displays the details for the chosen POI and allows you to navigate to it, add it to Favorites or display it on the map.<br /><br />Other options for setting destinations include recent destinations and city center, which takes you to a city when you have no specific addresses or POIs to enter. Direct entry of coordinates is another option that makes iGuidance a useful tool for geo-caching.<br /><br />Another common routing option, Contacts, is available in iGuidance. However, when I tried to use it, I got an error message about a bad or missing file. I'll try to research the error and report what I find.<br /> <PAGEBREAK> <br /><span><b>Setup Options</b></span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-10.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-10.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 10: The Main menu.</i><br /><br />All setup options can be accessed through the Main menu as displayed in Figure 10.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-11.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-11.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 11: The Route Options menu.</i><br /><br />Figure 11 shows the Route options. Some of these options are more robust than in some competitors. All of them have Quickest and Shortest options, but there were times when I would have appreciated the Major and Local options when using other programs. Ferries and Toll Roads are other common options, but the Carpool and Turns options are unique to iGuidance among programs I've used.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-12.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-12.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 12: The Display Options menu.</i><br /><br />A comprehensive set of Display options is also available. In addition to the common Day/Night and Orientation options, you can change the color scheme for the maps and select a level of standard zoom for 3D screens.<br /><br />Rather than supporting complete itineraries, like OnCourse Navigator 6 and TomTom Navigator 6, iGuidance provides Stopovers, which are single intermediate destinations between your start and end points. You could use this to navigate to a hotel, restaurant or tourist attraction.<br /><br />Another interesting feature is called Fog Driving. When driving in foggy weather, you can use iGuidance to alert you to an upcoming intersection that you may not be able to see until you're right on top of it. Sounds like this could be a very effective safety feature.<br /> <PAGEBREAK> <br /><span><b>Moving Right Along</b></span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-13.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-13.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 13: The map view while cruising on a highway.</i><br /><br />A 2D map is shown in Figure 13. Your vehicle is the green arrow in the circle and the route is dark blue. The green line at the top of the screen shows your next instruction. Just below and to the left, a graphic displaying the nature of the instruction is shown, with the distance to the maneuver just to the right.<br /><br />The map screen is set to show the direction you're heading as up (as opposed to always showing north up). Because of this setting, the red arrow to the top right points toward north. Plus and Minus buttons for zooming the display are toward the middle of the screen.<br /><br />Just above the purple bar toward the bottom, you'll see the Menu button, the map scale and the Mute button. The purple bar itself displays the road on which you're currently travelling. The boxes at the bottom of the screen show, from left to right, time of arrival, remaining travel time, distance to destination and current speed.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-14.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-14.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 14: Instructions to take an exit ramp.</i><br /><br />Figure 14 shows the display when a turn is reached. The blue box just under the green bar shows the actual turn, along with the distance to the turn. In this case, there's another turn immediately after this one, since I was exiting from an interstate-type highway onto a two way highway. That second turn is shown in the smaller purple box connected down to the right from the first turn graphic. Again, the distance to that turn is shown.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-15.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-15.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 15: Taking a right turn after the exit.</i><br /><br />The detail for the second turn is shown in Figure 15.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-16.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-16.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 16: Taking the exit ramp in 3D.</i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-17.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-17.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 17: The right turn in 3D.</i><br /><br />The same turn as shown in Figure 14 is shown in Figure 16, but this time with a 3D map. Figure 17 shows the 3D version of Figure 15.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-18.jpg"><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/raeburn-sept07-iGuidance-18.gif" /></a><br /><i>Figure 18: The night display.</i><br /><br />The night display with a 2D map is shown in Figure 18.<br /> <PAGEBREAK> <br /><span><b>Travelling with iGuidance</b></span><br />I found iGuidance to be responsive and informative. Routes are calculated quickly... routes from about 100 miles to 500 miles took just a few seconds. Recalculation is nearly instantaneous. The chosen routes seem to make sense and are of good quality.<br /><br />There are 2 specific features that my favorite nav programs provide. I always look for those features in any new nav program that I review. So how did iGuidance do on the 2 point plan?<br /><br />Advance warning: The best nav programs give you plenty of warning when turns are coming up. This is especially important at highway speeds, so that you have enough time to get in the proper lane. The best programs give you 1 1/2 to 2 miles of advance warning when traveling at 65 mph. A few give you a mile or less. iGuidance is one of the good ones... warnings come at about 2 miles in advance at highway speeds. Of course, the warning distance at lower speeds is appropriately shorter. <br /><br />Volume control: All nav programs provide some means of controlling volume independently of system volume. Since you frequently need a higher volume for navigation to compensate for road and wind noise in a car, volume control within the nav program can spare you from having to fool with adjusting the volume every time you use the nav program, and then again every time you stop using it.<br /><br />The best nav programs allow completely independent volume control within the program. The system setting has no bearing on the nav program setting and presents no restrictions. A much less useful version of this is what I call "semi-independent" volume control. Programs with this feature can change volume within the program independently, but the maximum volume is limited to the current system setting. The reason that this is much less useful is that you usually need higher volume with a nav program than with other uses of a Pocket PC, and if the maximum volume is limited by current system volume, you often must change the system volume anyway to make the nav program loud enough. Then when you're done with the nav program, you have to lower the system volume again.<br /><br />Unfortunately, iGuidance seems to take the "semi-independent" route. This is something that I suggest they fix in a subsequent release.<br /><br /><span><b>Text-to-Speech Voice Prompts</b></span><br />As stated earlier, one of iGuidance's most touted features is its ability to include the names of streets in its voice instructions. So how well does this feature work?<br /><br />Actually, pretty well, albeit with a few rough edges. I was impressed with the generally accurate pronunciations of street names. And it does make navigation somewhat easier, in that you don't have to look at the screen to see the name of the street for the next instruction.<br /><br />A couple of rough spots in the implementation are indications that some further refinement is needed. First, the voice that does the stock phrases is very different from the voice that delivers the street names. The "stock phrase" voice is one of those soothing type computer voices that you hear in science fiction movies and TV. The "street name" voice is loud and strident, with the kind of voice and delivery that you'd expect from a truck stop waitress… you know, like in movies when the waitress yells "Adam and Eve on a raft - wreck 'em!" So the instructions would go something like this (italics = soothing stock phrase voice, bold italics = strident street name voice): <i>In ˝ mile, please exit to the right onto <b>WI-83</b></i>. You have to hear it to appreciate just how strange it sounds to have these 2 dramatically different voices giving you "tag team" instructions.<br /><br />The second rough spot is the alarm that sounds when you're to execute a turn. Instead of a bell (such as OnCourse Navigator and Pharos use), the sound effect sounds strangely like a pipe being struck by a pipe wrench. It's best described as a clunk, and it rarely failed to evoke giggles in anyone who heard it. I searched through the menus and documentation to find if the sound could be changed, but I wasn't able to find the means by which to do it.<br /><br /><span><b>Conclusions</b></span><br />Overall, I would say that iGuidance is on a par with my other current favorite nav programs (OnCourse Navigator 6 and TomTom Navigator 6). It matches the others in most features and offers the text-to-speech capability that the other two lack. The lack of a fully independent volume control is a bit of a disappointment, and while the text-to-voice works well in general, it would benefit from a bit more polish. But if you're looking for a top performing nav program with all of the most critical features and more, iGuidance is well worthy of your consideration.<br /><br /><i>Doug Raeburn is a data architect specializing in data warehouse design. He lives in Pewaukee, Wisconsin, USA.</i>