mschuyler

It comes on a thumb drive. Just plug it in. Car must be running during the update which takes about 45 minutes.

It sure does. Plus, Waze via Android Auto is a subset of stand-alone Waze and not as comprehensive. I've tried using it with mixed results. In the Big City there are so many people using Waze that the screen is cluttered with "reports." And in the country there are so few people on Waze that it has no benefit compared to a regular Nav unit. It's probably best in a suburban environment. Oh, and cops know about Waze, so your chances of a valid report are about 50/50. It can warn you of congestion, but that assumes you have a choice. You don't always, which is why there is congestion in the first place. I have found that when it says there is congestion I can look out the window to verify it. In other words, it's too late. I've also noticed my phone gets very hot when using Waze, even when I intentionally move it so it has some air flow. I don't know for sure, but it seems to use an unusual amount of CPU power. You absolutely have to keep it plugged in or it will run down the battery.

defaria

I disagree. For one, out of all the options, pretty much by definition, at least one needs to be the best.

There's your problem! You're using an iPhone!

Seriously though - I've been using AA for a few years now. I use the Google ecosystem. The integration between the Google ecosystem and AA with Google Maps is amazing. Owing to the fact that I keep a pretty tight calendar, 90% of the time when I get in the car and fire her up connecting AA there's a card right there saying "Are you going to this event?" to which I tap and I'm off to the races under navigation. Meantime I can listen to all my music off the phone, my podcasts or things like TuneIn while I navigate to my next event. No unique issues here.

The only brain dead verbal interface I know of is the factory nav. I took 20 minutes trying to get it to understand that I wanted to go to the local DMV. It couldn't handle the task! Whipped out Google and said "OK Google, navigate to the DMV" and it got it on the first try. Similarly just about any time I ask Google to say find a nearby restaurant or shop it finds it and with a tap of a button it's added as a stop. Tired after going out night - I merely say "Hey Google, let's go home" and wham I got directions. Get a call - I can easily answer it. Text message, I can easily dictate a respond and I can easily send my friend my real time location so they know exactly when I arrive.

Perhaps iCarPlay or iMaps or iWhatever... Siri can't handle such things much like the HomePod is just an expensive speaker with little smarts. But in my world Google handles it just fine.

I think you're problem is the iEcosystem. See -
OK though Apple's finally getting better but still loses -

walleyejack

^^^^^^ hahah. these guys are funny. great real life testing. i m an avid Droid user, and like how it works.
thanks for posting this Defaria.

jimmbbo

The instructions are to insert the USB update thumb drive into the car's USB port with the engine running and it does its magic automatically in under an hour... they advise the car can be driven (nav will be inoperative) and warn not to turn the car off till the update is complete. Other CF threads have some workarounds for the "engine must be running" requirement, but mine updated in about a half hour of cruising on a pleasant day,

vdavenp802

Z51 is NOT a model, okay.
You have a base C7.
BTW all navi systems are NOT model specific, so on NAVI update for all.

fnbrowning

Every user experience is different, and I'm posting so readers of this thread are not turned off by such a negative and yet uninformative post.

FWIW, in my case, the Nav in my 2016 is surprisingly accurate. For instance, I taken 2 trips to satellite offices my company owns in Illinois, and Minneapolis MN. Previously, in a rental car w/o Nav, during a Minneapolis trip, I used Google Maps, which made several errors, like insisting I make a 180 turn and proceed along what I knew was the wrong direction, and another time, Google thought I was on another road than what I was traveling.

Last year, I took my 2016 Corvette on a longer trip, to visit the same offices in IL, MN, and proceeding on a road trop to ND, SD, NB back to MO. At NO TIME was the Nav wrong, and my confidence level with the Vette nav is very high after the trip.

As noted elsewhere, Waze is battery death, and Google maps can be FUBAR at times. iPhone users have reported multiple GPS navigation issues in the past year. As in all cases, YMMV and there will be people who rely on Android or Apple without issue. Fine! But I think it is disingenuous to dismiss the fine Corvette NAV out of hand.

I am happy to have found this thread >2016 C7 Navigation Map Update< and I will be updating to the Next Generation Infotainment 2.5 System Map Update - V.2018 as soon as possible.

Kracka

I installed the v2017 map update in my 2014 and am very happy with how it functions, and ties in with both weather and traffic while on roadtrips. The gas stations w/prices, rest areas, and food along the route are all handy too.

Kracka

Looks like it's already available, and on sale: http://gmnavdisc.navigation.com/prod...l_0000RVAQo4fD

defaria

It's not that the factory nav is wrong it's that using it is way harder than it should be. Getting directions by using the voice control is an exercise in frustration. It sucks eggs so badly it isn't really funny. The fact that you have to tell it the city and state is ridiculous. You have GPS! You don't already know what state and city I'm in?!? Holy crap!

The sending of a navigation to your car is also horrible. Last I checked 1) you can only send one destination (not a multi stop route or several routes) and 2) IIRC it only worked on the OnStar phone app. Typing directions into a phone is a PITA! And do you really need to say "When it's safe to do so complete your selection on the screen" each and every time I managed to get the voice recognition to recognize what I actually said? Then it stops and gives you a Go and a Call button. Exactly how many times do I call? And can't you default to a Go button with say a 10 second countdown timer?!?

With AA not only is the voice recognition superb the integration into the Google eco system is spectacular! All I need to do is visit a place on Google Maps on my laptop or desktop where I have a big screen and full keyboard (I'm a touch typist) Or lets say I'm shopping for something and wanna go and check it out in person - I can easily copy and paste the address into Google Maps. I could then send as many individual addresses to my phone which will show up as notifications on my AA screen. I could plan out a multi stop route on GM on my laptop and send that to my phone. Or, don't send it to my phone. The last few Google Maps searches you've done, be it on your phone, laptop or work computer, they will popup in AA when you get in your car anyway. And whenever you are away from Home or Work there'll be a card for that. So when I leave home I can always get back because a Home card will be there. Or I can say "OK Google, let's go home" and wham I'm under way...

I even have it set up such that I say "Hey Google, Good morning" to my Google Home and it will alert me if my commute will be longer because of an accident or some such! Then it will proceed to tell me today's top stories...

Also upcoming events in your Google Calendar that have addresses will pop up as cards after you connect AA to your car - one tap and your off to the races!

Google Maps running on AA in your car will pop up and tell you if there's a traffic jam and offer to re-route you. And, recently moving from San Diego -> Phoenix an driving back and forth a few weekends I was nicely surprised when crossing the border AA popped up and said "Welcome to Arizona/California" depending on direction.

I can say "OK Google" then mention a business or POI like "Chinese Restaurants" or "Gasoline" or "McDonalds" and I will get a list of nearby ones not only nearby but on my route if I'm under guidance and I always am. And with Google Assistant recently added I can do "OK Google, what's the weather at <my destination>" and it'll tell me.

Try that stuff with the factory nav... Then remind me how much you're paying for that service and how quickly updates happen...

I have yet to see Google Maps steer me wrong a single time in the almost 2 years I've been using it. Not sure what you are doing wrong.

When under AA you're plugged in so battery life is a non-issue. And I've never seen Google Maps be FUBAR.

When the factory nav can do the kinds of things I've listed above which are super useful then give me a call. Oh and it's pretty darn ugly of a UI too. And klunky. Bottom line - sure it gets you there. In my experience every nav gets you there. That's not the issue. The issue for me at least is how easy is it to use. The factory nav falls flat on it's face, that is until you are under navigation, then it's OK with an ugly UI.

Boozman

Cell phones are ok as long as you have a signal.

defaria

Google Maps has the ability to download maps for offline usage so you don't need a signal. I guess if you're going cross country you might not have downloaded the map beforehand but you could always do so when you get a signal for the next days ride.

And cell phones are not just OK for navigation - they are way better than the factory nav.

LT1 Z51

Here we go, every time someone asks about a navigation upgrade all the "use your phone" yahoo's crawl out of the woodwork.

Honestly to answer the OPs question, with the new USB based system, updates are not cheap, and they rarely are discounted. I wouldn't upgrade more than every 4-5 years as the changes made are not significant.

I'm actually of the opinion, by the way all you phone people, that the UI on phone navigation is terrible. So it's great you have updated maps, but you have a terrible interface which you actually have to use. I'd rather take a better UI (including HUD integration) and have the maps be a little outdated. I check the roads on my phone before I go anyway, so the car navigation is mostly as reminder (and a good checker of how much time you have left).

Kracka

The $20 off plus free shipping currently has me tempted. I typically only upgrade every 2-3 years, but maybe I'll get click-happy today $139 really isn't terrible, especially with how much new construction is going on around my neighborhood, and the DFW Metroplex as a whole. At least my entire neighborhood was included on the v2017 update

blue max

We were recently in a new neighborhood in Florida the only nav system out of three available that had the newer address was WAZE. Really like it but we also use the in car system because it has the turns etc on the heads up and on the center of the speedometer area. The WAZE does not move to the center screen thru Car Play.
We have the waze on the phone and the other in most cases on the car nav system Its all really covered nicely in most all cases

defaria

Waze is not supported on Car Play, that's true. But Waze is a Google company. Waze sucks anyway

monicatomokc

Here's a FWIW:

On November 30, 2017, I purchased a used 2016 Yukon Denali (manufactured in 2015), so I thought I'd update my Nav since the newest update (v2018) was just released that month. So I went to the GM NAVDISC website, placed my order and received it about a week later. We were heading up to Wichita for the weekend and since it was going to take the good part of an hour to load, this was the perfect time to do it. So it loaded fine, confirmed per instructions, and that was that. Next day we plugged in a destination that, come to find out, has been closed for almost a year!! Okay, strike one. Couple weeks later, back home, we were in a different part of town and I wanted to get the quickest route to Trader Joe's that has been open just about a year and it wasn't in the POI database... Strike two!!

So, I decided to take the USB stick that had the Nav update came on and plugged it into my computer to see if I could look at some of the files. So looking at all the file dates got interesting. Of course I saw a date that corresponded to 2 days after I ordered the update and presumed that was the file with my VIN, which it was. Now the interesting piece of all this was that all the other file dates were January 2017 and May 2017.

My point here is that even though you think you are getting thee latest information, you're not. Especially when it's identified as "2018" you're barely getting what was current in 2017 and as I found out, some 2016 change/additions didn't make the v2018 edition!!

Bottom line... Don't waste your money on these so-called updates if you can use your Apple CarPlay or Android Auto maps/POI information for the most current information.

Kent1999

Not going to argue the data age on those nav files, as it has been beat to death in other threads.

However, file dates may not tell the whole story. I did a quick examination of the files on my last USB upgrade stick, and found more than 1 file contained my VIN in plain text (no telling how many other files had a hashed version of it). So from my experience, just because a file date isn't what you expect, doesn't guarantee that the file hasn't been modified.

defaria

What could possibly be the purpose of hashing a VIN number when other files have it in the clear? Makes no sense.

From my experience with every file system I've ever dealt with, file modfication timestamp is guaranteed to represent the date and time the file was last modified. So unless somebody specifically changed the file modification time stamp with something akin to touch(1), you can reliably ascertain the last time a file was modified. After all, that's what it's there for.

blkvet6

I agree, the nav in mine (2016 Z51 3LT) works very well also. I also like that it's integrated, including with the HU display, and counts down in feet coming up on your next turn. Really helpful when not familiar with the area. My 2¢.

white90conv

I have found the roads are usually good enough on older navigation maps. However, the points of interest change a lot so you may not find the gas station on the system. I don't intend to upgrade my system and think I can live with what I have for several years.