psp gps

[noobish hat]

so is there not likely to be a separate umd for uk maps?

[JB@XL]

Can anyone confirm if you can hear the voice directions as the psp seems to be too quiet to use with the car running and the road noise.

[Darwock]

Voice directions? Which software are you talking about?

Unless you know explicitly that a title is designed for in-car use I wouldn't buy it for that purpose - the fastest refresh rate in the the software I use is 10 seconds - perfect for walking pace but in a car that just won't cut it.. also I don't know of any packages that use voice directions (not to say there aren't any mind).

Also in the case of minna no chizu it plots the directions according to pedestrian routes, so if you used it in a car you'd end up trying to drive through a shopping mall 'Blues Brothers' style.

Just a word of warning.

[JB@XL]

I assume that the UK maps pack from the psn store will contain voice instructions.

[r3z]

Am i right in thinking that buying a gps receiver from Japan and adding the UK map from the store to memory card is all that's required for an in-car system.

Pretty sure you will need the UMD in order to download/use additional map packs from PSN as the packs won't include the main software/navigation engine/etc.

Unless you know explicitly that a title is designed for in-car use I wouldn't buy it for that purpose - the fastest refresh rate in the the software I use is 10 seconds - perfect for walking pace but in a car that just won't cut it.. also I don't know of any packages that use voice directions (not to say there aren't any mind).

The Go!Explore series is particularly for car-nav so has voice direction, and I assume updates much quicker - on Minna no Chizu 3 you can set GPS update to 1 second.. it also increases the longest route you can search from 3km to 10km making it a bit more flexible for longer walks/biking but for proper car-navigation in Japan there is another series called Maplus (also Maplus 2) which has entertaining voice directions (can download celebrity/anime character voice packs).. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHHKT_ZPTPE

[JB@XL]

Looking for a suitable car mount/stand for the psp and found the following two.

http://www.renchi.com/renchi/PSP_PSP_Slim_Lite_Accessories_PSP_Car_Stand_Adaptor_Set_Hori.htm

http://global.yesasia.com/en/ImageGallery.aspx/section-games/code-j/version-all/pid-1005113994/#selection

I would prefer one that's window mounted as i will be using in several vehicles although the hori i presume would need to be screwed/stuck to the dash.

Do Sony sell the official mounts in Japan as a single item or is it bundled with the receiver / umd.

[r3z]

I haven't seen any bundles with a car mount and I don't think there are any official ones available, only 3rd party ones like the ones you've found.

[r3z]

Is the GPS now out in the UK? Looking on Amazon it seems to be past the release date but they state 1-3 weeks for delivery.

Over the last couple of days I have been playing about a bit with the homebrew software called MapThis! which allows you to use the GPS receiver with your own maps as I'm going over to China for a couple of weeks soon. You can pull the maps for wherever you need off of Google Maps/MS Virtual Earth and other sites using PC software called Global Map Download Tool (maps are also compatible with iPhone it appears). It also has options to download POI/routing info for North America, but for anywhere else you'd need to input it yourself it seems. For my Chinese maps they are only about 5-25MB for each city which is pretty compact as well.

Although it doesn't offer some of the key benefits of proper software, from just trying out the few maps I've made I would highly recommend it in general as a very useful portable map viewer even if you don't use the GPS function, but it is great to be able to make use of the GPS receiver in places which aren't covered by official software too.

btw - I have also found that it locks on to the GPS signal much quicker (and better in poorer reception areas) than with Minna no Chizu, and it also gives you information about which satellites it can see/the ones it is using which is also handy.

[huxley]

Is the GPS now out in the UK?
Dont think so - have a look in the sales area......
The software is up on the PSN though.

[r3z]

Came back from China the other day.. unfortunately had a big problem with my MapThis! maps in that for some reason they the GPS data for them was apparently about 0.5km out from the actual position!! I've read it's something to do with the data used on the Chinese map site which the map download software uses so I guess it can be fixed.. at least the GPS was useful on a few occasions as a compass so I could get my bearings.

Since my previous post I have also been using the Maplus 2 car navigation software for making my way to various places around Saitama and Tokyo by bike and it is very useful to have the PSP sat in the basket (don't laugh ) giving out instructions while cycling around. The maps are a bit more bland and with a lot less detail regarding buildings/etc than Minna no Chizu as it is targeted at the road navigation - meaning it is harder to just scan around quickly on the map looking for your destination - but there are comprehensive options to search by address/POI/facilities as long as you know where you want to go. You can buy more detailed maps for the areas you need for about a few pounds/prefecture however (as well as the additional voices mentioned before and other addon data).

The navigation function itself is top notch.. loads of routing options, and there are cool functions like a split screen when coming up to a junction which gives a second more detailed view/list directions to make it clearer. Also the gradient of the route can be displayed at the bottom of the screen which is handy to check out - it apparently can work out routes which try and avoid high gradients if you are using a bike/walking too.

Minna no Chizu is still preferable for general use - if they added in the voice navigation it would probably do the job for cycling and I wouldn't have a use for Maplus (most people have car-nav anyway so I think it probably can't have that much appeal in general here). However MnC3 is supposedly the "ketteiban" which would suggest there aren't any plans for a MnC4..