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Sedans BMW 3-Series iDrive and the 3-Series
46 messages, Last post on Sep 26, 2009 at 9:00 PM
You are in the BMW 3-Series Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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I am just about to pull the trigger on a 330i . . . . I had decided I didn't want Navigation early on in my E90 selection process, largely based on negative reviews in the press of the iDrive system. Now that the dealer has located a car with the odd set of options I want (and NOT Navi) , I am suddenly thinking I should consider Navi, as I frequently travel to unfamiliar places, sometimes over long distances, for work. I'm going to LEASE - probably for 3 years, maybe even for 2 years - so it isn't as if I'll have it for the next 10 years if I don't like it. And I am quite comfortable with computers, and love doing all kinds of stuff with them. The questions are, I guess, for those who have Navigation or who studied up on it carefully before deciding against it: Is it difficult to use, cumbersome, and irritating? Or is it helpful, amazing even, and you can't imagine doing without it? What are the pros and cons, as you see them? If you had it to do over, would you get Navi? Let me know what you think. Thanks, as always, for any input, Jim
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Replying to: buynewbimmer (Dec 18, 2005 9:00 pm) Good Luck, DL |
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Replying to: buynewbimmer (Dec 18, 2005 9:00 pm) For my money, having the ability to upload/download from a portable GPS to/from a PC gives me just what I want, and I can use the thing in a rental, on the airplane getting there, and in my next car. I have hundreds of waypoints marked, and have no interest in trying to load them into a $2000 dedicated system. Plus which, all these things work a little bit differently, and it takes a long time to get familiar with all the features & how to get them to work efficiently. I used to drive professionally and have had occasion to drive well over a million miles at this point, 95% with only paper maps & my memory to work from. No real problems, but navigating single-handed in unfamiliar territory (especially the UK, driving on the left) becomes 100% stress-free with a GPS. I don't go beyond my daily commute without mine. Even if you've been someplace before, there's entertainment value in knowing how far it is to the next item of interest and/or exactly when you're going to get there. FWIW. |
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Replying to: buynewbimmer (Dec 18, 2005 9:00 pm) Will I get it for my next car? You betcha! Do I put any trust in what magazine writers say about the system being too complex? No way! We have to wonder how good they are with computers, maybe they complaint about an iPOD since it has fancy menus  . Good luck with your purchase. |
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Replying to: buynewbimmer (Dec 18, 2005 9:00 pm) 
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Replying to: buynewbimmer (Dec 18, 2005 9:00 pm) With regards to the more recent bad press for iDrive, I have two theories. 1) The magazine reviewers didn't even try to use the newest version of iDrive and just based their negative comments on reviews from 2002 or 2003 7-Series. 2) They are 95 years old and have never used a computer before. Seriously, if you have ever used a computer with a mouse, then you can learn the entire iDrive system in a couple minutes. It's really pretty straight-forward now (although I admit that in 2002/2003, it was not particularly user-friendly). |
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Replying to: buynewbimmer (Dec 18, 2005 9:00 pm) Basically honda/acura products are simpler to use but they also have fewer options. BMW with Navi is intutive but advanced. I may takes may be couple of days to get used to it, but i am not sure why people would call it dreaded. It has lot of features and once you get used to it, it does have better options and features then honda navi has to offer. Screen is also wider in BMW and additional smaller window makes it easier to work on other options. If you can use computer, you can use it. People start learning using everything Navi has to offer and then can get irritated in the first couple of days. It is similar to people test drive the cars for one day and then start making negavtive comments. I have 325i for the last 4 months and i am still learning new feature, but that doesn't mean that i cannot put in an address and perform simple options. I cannot says about the previous generations of Navi's but in new 3 series it is very good and must have. SIT |
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Replying to: buynewbimmer (Dec 18, 2005 9:00 pm)
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Replying to: corvette (Dec 19, 2005 11:03 am) When the price can be embedded and not push the car over an acceptable threshold, I'd bet that resistance will lessen... one (minor) reason I'm hangin' on to my 2003 e39SP
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Replying to: lovemyclk (Dec 19, 2005 2:23 pm) The current crop of built-in NAV units bundle in so much more functionality than the older units or the portable units, some easily duplicated with conventional controls, some not. Case in point, on the E90 the NAV system can also be used to control your Bluetooth phone, it can be used to program DRLs, auto-locking, seat memory, radio station presets, climate control and other such preferences. True, most of these can be setup up by either you or your dealer on non-NAV cars, but with the NAV, you can set a certain feature, decide if you like it, and then change it if you don't. Advantage built-in NAV. Then again, some folks might like their NAV unit to do double or even triple duty. Units like the Garmin GPSMAP 396, with its $2,695 retail price are expensive, however, you can use it in your airplane and take advantage of its full Jeppesen NavData database for General Aviation, XM Weather Satellite (for NEXRAD radar), and many other GA facilities. This unit can also be used with MapSource City Select and MapSource BlueChart for driving and boating respectively. Advantage portable. Then there is the whole question of whether NAV is wanted/needed at all. For me personally, until I get that plane, I've no need for NAV. That having been said, my wife can occasionally get herself lost on the way to work, not to mention heading to a soccer field in a neighboring town to watch our son play. For her, $2,000 or even $2,700 is cheap given how often it would be used. Best Regards, Shipo
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