2020 Prius Navigation System - Worth It?

not worth it. do they have a model without it? you'd be better off investing in an i phone

 

I have had the Toyota Navigation in my two Prius autos and in my Avalon. The Prius has traffic information without subscription (the Avalon requires satellite subscription). I use it every day and really like it. Sure, it has limitations such as update cost$, but I want the convenience of the built-in app. To each their own...

 

no, updates will not be free with a lease. they are usually $250.-300.

 

I find the traffic information quite good. I often get the notification that traffic has changed and do I want to re-route. The traffic displayed on the screen is spot-on.
The routes can be less than ideal though. Testing with routes that I know it will sometimes get a little off track - but it always finds the target. What I really like is the easy ability to see 3 routes from the outset and the easy elimination of freeways on demand.

 

The thing most disappointing to me about the 11.6" nav is that the traffic data makes the roads so fat it's impossible to make anything out unless your zoomed in far enough that there are no other roads with traffic data within an inch of each other.

I didn't realize the traffic data was free. I thought it came over satellite which requires a subscription. I figured I'd lose it when that expired.

Also, I just got an OTA maps update. Did this come over the cellular built into the car or did it come through my cell phone when connected via the entune app?

 

We have it in three older Prii. One I bought new, the others used. It is a total waste. It’s always out of date here, as new roads are being built rapidly.

We never use the Nav feature. We use Apple Maps, Google Maps, WAZE, and MapQuest on our iPhones. They are always with us.


— Bill Burkholder

 

I'm not in the market right now, but when I go to the Toyota website and compare the three 2020 Prime models, I see the following under the XLE's Multimedia list:

"Premium Audio with Integrated Navigation79 — 11.6-in. touch-screen with split-screen display, AM/FM cache radio, HD Radio™,76six speakers, USB media port,94 two USB charge ports,94 advanced voice recognition,82 hands-free phone capability and music streaming91 via Bluetooth®91wireless technology, Siri®Eyes Free,88 Apple CarPlay®102 & Amazon Alexa98compatible, HD Radio™76Predictive Traffic and Doppler Weather overlay, SiriusXM®73 with 3-month All Access trial.69Connected Services103 —Safety Connect®60 with 3-year trial.90 Seetoyota.com/audio-multimedia for details.",

which is the same as I see under the Limited's, except that the Limited has the JBL speakers. It seems that Toyota has reacted to complaints that the Nav is too expensive.

 

The one thing I am impressed with on the built in nav is that voice for POIs works really well.

Speaking an address is somewhat hit and miss but saying "Find Target" or whatever always works well.

 

Google Maps (or Google's Waze). The only way to go.

 

I just use one I downloaded into my old android called offline maps. It does traffic and frequent updates for free. And a bonus is a little app I downloaded called My Car Locator... I boot it up when I park somewhere unfamiliar when I'm out of town and hit park. Then open it up again when I come out of the event/concert/whatever and hit find my car... it points to my car and tells me how far it is and shows me a satellite type view while I walk along. There are advantages to having your gps with you. It doesn't integrate with the steering wheel buttons etc, but if I'm putting in destination addresses etc I'm going to be stopped for that. My phone is mounted in a proclip centre mount and plugged into the charger. My usual use isn't for route planning so much as situational awareness and traffic. For those that want to mock me... I'm still using a Samsung Galaxy S5 Neo. Still works great.

 

We just bought a 2020 Prius Prime Limited 12/7/2020. Previously, we had a 2006 Prius - Pkg 8. Obviously, we like PRIUS! 2020 GPS is a great improvement. In 2006, the car had to come to a complete stand-still - before we could operate it! 2020 is a GREAT improvement. We are strong supporters!