What are the pros/cons of getting a Fit with a navi?

Is it worth the extra cost .vs getting a good navi at a store for $150-$200?

What is it good for other than being a GPS?

thanks

 

esc is only on the navi so thats another factor

 

I just bought a Fit with navigation, so here's my opinion. You get the following benefits with navi (aside from the navigation):
1. Voice control -- sort of gimmicky, but kind of cool. You can say things like "Radio 102.1 FM" and it'll tune to that station.
2. Steering wheel audio controls -- you can change volume/stations/modes.
3. Stability control (VSA)
4. It will reduce the volume of whatever's playing when giving a navigation command.

As a navigation system, it's decent but not spectacular. It speaks street names. The directions are about as good as any other navigation unit I've used. It has the advantage of using a separate GPS antenna, so it'll likely have better GPS reception than a portable navigation device. It also has additional sensors (speed and direction) so it can keep tracking when you lose GPS reception (some of the higher end portable devices have this though).

Now for the bad:
The graphics don't look as nice as the recent Garmin units. It's expensive to update (about $180 for a map upgrade). It doesn't have bluetooth. It presents a disclaimer EVERY TIME you start the car, which you have to hit OK to, or wait for it to time out. The screen is also in the dash, so you have to look down to read the screen. There's only one voice (which sounds pretty good, but if you don't like it, you can't change it).

Personally, I think if you don't care about any of the other features (VSA, steering wheel controls, voice control), you're better off just getting a portable device. My main reason for getting the navigation system was VSA, not the navigation itself. If I could have gotten VSA without the navigation system, I would have...