Navi

Anyone got the Becker Traffic Pro radio/cd/navi unit in their 8? There have been a few posts from guys in the USA over on Roadfly about this model (Harmon/Kardon in the US) and it looks good, but I wanted to know what it's like for Europe. Are the map coverages decent? Detail? You can get a red display...is that close in colour to the dials on the dash? Can it control the standard 6-CD changer from the 8 (rebadged Pioneer?) or will I lose that?

My local dealer here in Germany is offering it (tho badged as a BMW model) for 1500 Euros installed, which seems like a good deal.

Hi Sniff,

I have been looking at Sat Nav and considering a portable Magellan unit. But I do like the Becker 7825. Its the about the closest looking OEM unit to suit the 8. Some aftermarket units wreck the appearance of the middle console.

I also was wondering about CD unit being compat. and was going to call my local dealer and ask the techies:
http://www.soundlabsgroup.com.au/automotive/bmw.htm
http://www.soundlabsgroup.com.au/becker/becker_oem.htm

Is this model you were looking at:
http://caraudiosecurity.com/catalog/product_info.php+manufacturers_id+14+products_id+1262

Although I really want a Road Angel GPS unit as well!

Ian

Interesting reading guys.. Wouldn't it be great if these things could have the GPS fixed camera updatable database built in.

Phil

Sniff...interesting about the OEM wiring bus option. I'll definitely investigate that here as well.

Phil...yes would be perfect if the Becker unit had the fixed and average mobile camera database too.

Nigel...are you saying Raod Angels are illegal in some areas of Europe? Radar & Lasar detectors here are illegal but GPS units like Road Angel are not. Our cops use a Queensland made device called a Stalcar RDD which detects radar detectors so that market here died overnight once they started using them.

Interesting too see in the UK gatso are being torched by the locals!
http://www.speedcam.co.uk/index2.htm

And I thought aussies has no respect for the law! Makes me proud to be in the commonwealth.

Ian

Great idea about combining the GPS navi with something like a Road Angel database. It would be easy too, as the navi systems already do Point of Interest (stuff like petrol stations, hotels, restaurants etc) and the traffic cams would just be another POI. I would think it's just a question of licensing...maybe someone should write to whoever makes Road Angel and suggest it?!

Sniff

Just a thought about having the database in your in car system......how are you going to update it ?

You'd either need a jolly long lead, a detachable memory cassette of some kind, or to be able to update via cd.

Aussie

I have to admit that the frogs are generaly nice, I spend quite a lot of time over there.

Its work not social, but the people are great.

As always its the press and governments.

The food isnt bad either.......once you can actually get them to cook it lol

I promise you, some of the steaks they serve up a good vet would get going again

No worries...all intersting stuff!

Nigel, you could just update the Angel database by getting a new CD-ROM, just like you do now with the navi systems. You don't update the receiver, just buy a more up-to-date mapping CD.

Funny to read what you guys think about French and French food. Here in Bavaria it's just the opposite...all you can get is pork and potatoes! The Bavarian idea of a vegetarian dish is a ham omelette!

Mind you, they also 'force' you to drink beer with every meal too, so it's not all bad!

We also work closely with the French (part of the company is based in Nice) and I have to say that they put the British 'old-school tie' system to shame. If you haven't been to the right school in France, you're nobody.

In my company we currently have 37 different nationalities. As you can imagine that makes for a very interesting few weeks when the footy World Cup is on!

LOL, I can always be forced to drink beer..

I watched the last World Cup in the jungle and had plenty of froggy baiting material after their first game against Senegal. The Gabonese Africans were celebrating in the villages. A very memorable p***-up.

We are all going to be in trouble when Duncan gets back from Gaydon lol

There has never been so much posting in the 8 series techical forum, but not much of it is technical lol.

Good to see a "skippy" joining in the frog bashing though !

On the point of updating the road angel, I do it every week, just plug it into the net, the info changes so much as cameras come and go in roadworks, and people update thier own units whilst driving and coming across even more of these dam cameras.

As you need to update so often I think it would have to be net based, anything else would get messy and inconvenient.

Aussie, are your lot getting as carried away as ours?

The (S)camera partnership in Worcester installed a gatso camera on a road with no accident record. (My wife can remember one fatality, on the opposite side of the road when she was 16, the old dear is in her 40's now, and has lived here all her life)

They operated it for 2 days a week for a month, and raised £48,000 (they assure us its not about money though), the speed limit is 30, and according to the local paper not one offence was above 40 !!!