Navigation - Apple/Android vs Navigation vs OnStar

[Abbott Martin]

I like the information Waze provides but I hate the cartoonish graphics and the "car on side of the road, is it still there?" messages get annoying. I realize the interactive part is why you get notice of hazards and police presence but it can get to be pretty distracting all by itself. I imagine all that can be turned off in a setting somewhere but I've moved onto other map programs. For my Honda Element where I don't have a GPS but the a.m. Kenwood head unit has carplay I use the TomTom app. Nice graphics with downloadable maps, traffic updates and red light camera locations noted.

I have my alerts set to only display police, pot holes, objects on road, accidents, and traffic jams.
It’s worth taking 2 minutes to gain countless hours of help. In some regions Google Maps was offering the Waze features in some areas but not sure what happened with that.

 

[visitor]

The Buick Navigation app I believe is on a SD Card, is that right? If so why would you use it if the card becomes out of date?

I am also wondering how do we update the nav database on the SD card.

Does the GM SD card # 84530371 include updated map data from # 84364481 ?

The map SD card is inserted next to the two USB ports under the center armrest. I was told this afternoon by Buick that the latest SD card for Maps is the one with part number
Navigation SD Card # 8436 4481

When you google this part it comes up as a Cadillac Nav card but was assured by Buick customer service (not the dealer) that this is the latest available for any GM car (even though the card has 2017 data).

I removed the card and opened in my desktop to reveal the attached files. The date of Nov 16 2018 is the date the salesman brought the card to my home. Apparently, the vehicle tags the card so that it will not work in another vehicle (thus the mystery that the cards are VIN specific...can't take my card and use in a different vehicle).

I've been looking at the files (see LeeH's attachment) on our # 84364481 card, mainly to create a backup card so i can safely store the original, and it appears the VIN-binding feature that permanently binds the card to the VIN of the first vehicle may be a hidden file (named ADCKJZ_DRACDS_VANELET_ERUTANGIS_DENALI.SIN.sys on ours) written to the card by the vehicle at some point.

I'm wondering what files would be included/missing on a brand new card from GM 🤔
Would that *.sys file just be completely non-existent on a new card and is that the only difference between a used card and a new one?

I'm currently running off a copy i made from which the *.sys file has been deleted and will see how the vehicle deals with that new (32GB, FAT32) card, but i believe it takes a few starts before the vehicle binds the card to the VIN. It did not write any data to the card on the initial run, as far as i could tell, but there may be more going on than i realize here.

❓💾❓

 

[visitor]

I'm wondering what files would be included/missing on a brand new card from GM 🤔
Would that *.sys file just be completely non-existent on a new card and is that the only difference between a used card and a new one?

I'm currently running off a copy i made from which the *.sys file has been deleted and will see how the vehicle deals with that new (32GB, FAT32) card, but i believe it takes a few starts before the vehicle binds the card to the VIN. It did not write any data to the card on the initial run, as far as i could tell, but there may be more going on than i realize here.

❓💾❓

Without pretending to know exactly what's going on, at some point the system added an error reporting file to TelenavMapData\vinData\ DIR of the SD card and the Navi system stopped accepting the card.

 

[visitor]

Looks like i'll have to learn the Android OS to figure this out. Whatever "initializing" is done by the vehicle's system is apparently not readable in Windows.

 

[autocomman]

I'm also curious how the maps get updated. But I will say from using Google maps and the built-in nav at the same time it's interesting what they do differently. And I can't say that one is better than the other. Sometimes a nav has a more direct route, sometimes Google has more direct route. I can tell you that the nav and the car is taking traffic into effect a lot of times as it will sometimes route me ways that I know are less congested. Also there is a selection in the nav settings for faster or more efficient routing if I remember correctly. I will say the both Google maps and the built-in nav have taken me ways that don't make any sense, so they both have that in common.

I also wonder if it's possible that the SD card gets updated occasionally with downloads. I doubt this is the case but that would be a nice thing. As far as OnStar, I had it for 3 months when I bought the car. Having the live traffic on the nav screen was definitely nice. And it's stupid that it's not there without the OnStar subscription. But I wasn't going to pay for that crap, and I don't miss any of those features other than maybe the did I lock my car? Oh I can do it from my phone feature, or the remote start from the phone. There are occasions where id like to have the car start up and cool off or heat up without having to be close enough to actually push the button on the remote. Otherwise eh.

Since the whole infotainment system is Android based, I'd be curious as to how related it is to Google and how it uses its traffic patterns. If they come from a Waze variant or something. And why the f they can't get a GD Android coder who can code the system to not be freaking buggy. But that's another thread for another time, and there's already a bunch of them on here like that haha

 

[visitor]

i did get an updated new card, but made a raw data copy via Windows(including boot sector) before letting the car do it's formatting.

I then realized there was more going on than Windows could handle, so missed the opportunity to copy the relevant data from a virgin card, since i know nothing about reading/copying/formatting in Android

 

[ascii42]

I'm also curious how the maps get updated. But I will say from using Google maps and the built-in nav at the same time it's interesting what they do differently. And I can't say that one is better than the other. Sometimes a nav has a more direct route, sometimes Google has more direct route. I can tell you that the nav and the car is taking traffic into effect a lot of times as it will sometimes route me ways that I know are less congested. Also there is a selection in the nav settings for faster or more efficient routing if I remember correctly. I will say the both Google maps and the built-in nav have taken me ways that don't make any sense, so they both have that in common.

I also wonder if it's possible that the SD card gets updated occasionally with downloads. I doubt this is the case but that would be a nice thing. As far as OnStar, I had it for 3 months when I bought the car. Having the live traffic on the nav screen was definitely nice. And it's stupid that it's not there without the OnStar subscription. But I wasn't going to pay for that crap, and I don't miss any of those features other than maybe the did I lock my car? Oh I can do it from my phone feature, or the remote start from the phone. There are occasions where id like to have the car start up and cool off or heat up without having to be close enough to actually push the button on the remote. Otherwise eh.

Since the whole infotainment system is Android based, I'd be curious as to how related it is to Google and how it uses its traffic patterns. If they come from a Waze variant or something. And why the f they can't get a GD Android coder who can code the system to not be freaking buggy. But that's another thread for another time, and there's already a bunch of them on here like that haha

From the manual:
Over-the-Air-Vehicle Map Updates If equipped, the infotainment system can receive map updates over the air. Map updates occur within a 161 km (100 mi) radius around the home address on file. This boundary will adjust over time based on driving patterns. The vehicle uses a Cloud-connected service to receive the date and downloads it to the system’s onboard SD card, if equipped. A data plan or compatible mobile device hotspot is required. The SD card is required for navigation system function. When a map update is available, a prompt will appear on the infotainment display. Once the update is accepted, it will download and run in the background without interruption any infotainment functions. The download will carry over ignition cycles, stopping and starting where it left off. The updates can be set to download automatically

So it's supposed to update within a hundred mile radius of your home address. I have not seen any evidence of this happening, however.