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Navigon USA (for iPhone) Review

2.0
Subpar

The Bottom Line

The Navigon USA GPS app offers a decent set of features, though in-app purchases can add up, and navigation inaccuracies will frustrate.

MSRP $49.99
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Pros

  • Robust POI database.
  • Pedestrian navigation.

Cons

  • Pricey.
  • Transit directions, traffic, and other features cost extra.
  • Driving navigation issues.

Navigon has been in the navigation device business for over twenty years, but it currently focuses on the competitive mobile app sector. Its Navigon USA app for iOS is solid, but not spectacular, especially for its $49.99 cost. In addition to driving directions, Navigon also offers pedestrian and biking navigation, though each leaves something to be desired. In addition, features such as public transit navigation (Urban Guidance) and traffic alerts require in-app purchases, which further drive up the cost. Given its high price, Navigon simply can't compete with free GPS apps like Google Maps.

Interface and Points of Interest
Unlike Google Maps, MapQuestWaze, and others, you can't just jump into your car and go. After downloading Navigon, you then have to download the relevant maps before you embark on a trip. I downloaded the USA version of the app, but there is also a North American version, as well as regional U.S. versions. You can download maps by state to save room and time.

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Once you're ready to go, you can tap the menu button at the top left to navigate, where you can then choose from Address, POI, My Destinations, and Take me Home; you can save your home address, though not your work address as other apps, such as Apple Maps, Google Maps, Scout, and Waze allow you to do.

Navigon (for iPhone)Navigon (for iPhone)

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When you select POI, you can then choose POI nearby, POI in a city, POI nationwide, and several other options including Foursquare, as well as top categories such as gas stations and parking. Using the Nearby option, I searched for several well-known and lesser-known destinations. You can also drill down into categories if you don't have a specific business in mind, or just type in the search bar if you know what you're looking for.

I started out by searching for some popular destinations in my area. Several other GPS apps have been unable to locate the Harlem location of the Fairway supermarket chain, so I put Navigon to the test, and it passed with flying colors. Navigon also found a nearby non-chain grocery store, a bar/restaurant called Harlem Public that often trips up GPS devices and apps (which try to send me to the library instead), as well as the New York Botanical Garden and the historic St. George Theatre in Staten Island, among other locations.

When you select Address, you first have to choose a city, which defaults to your last search, and autofills quickly in most cases. Then you input the street or choose it from a list, and finally the number. This is easy enough, but I prefer typing the whole thing in at once as you can with Apple Maps, Google Maps, MapQuest, and Waze. But I do like that when you type in a number that could be a cross street, that option comes up.

Car Navigation
Not only did Navigon find Fairway Market Harlem in its database, it also used an accurate route that happens to be the fastest and most direct. I found this to happen less often than you'd imagine when testing other apps, so this was a good sign. 

On the way home from Fairway, however, navigation was a bit wonky. At first, I didn't get any guidance, and then I was given what I'll call "phantom directions," in which the guidance offered was impossible or dangerous. When I made the appropriate turn, though, Navigon recalculated and sent me on my way. However, some of the prompts came too late, and recalculations were slow.

Other times, the directions were roundabout. In one case, where my destination was north of my location, I was directed south to access a highway, when I was almost right next to the appropriate northbound entrance. In other cases, I was prompted to turn right or left onto a street several blocks away, or in one egregious case, make a left into a public park.

Another annoyance: I kept getting "caution" alerts with no explanation of why. At times, the alert happened as I rounded a curve in the road, but sometimes I couldn't figure out what the meaning of the caution was. A warning with no explanation is not helpful, and can be distracting.

Navigon (for iPhone)Navigon (for iPhone)

Pedestrian and Cycling Navigation
When I first started using the Navigon app, it wasn't obvious that I could access walking and cycling directions in addition to driving directions. Under Route Settings, you can choose a vehicle type: bicycle, car, motorcycle, or truck. Here you can also choose how to handle ferries: allow, avoid, or forbid; and enable pedestrian mode with or without voice prompts. What's confusing is that you turn voice guidance on and off for vehicle profiles in one place, and pedestrian voice directions in another place.

When I request walking directions from other apps, such as Google Maps, I like to view a list of all turns so I can scan it quickly and put my phone away. With Navigon, you can only view a map of the route, and unless you have voice prompts on, you have to have your eyes on your phone the whole time, which is annoying.

In addition, even when walking, I got a few random audible alerts, once while on a curve and another while halfway down a hill, both of which struck me as odd and unnecessary. I also encountered some navigation errors, including a wrong turn and a misnamed street. Since I was in a familiar area, I ignored these cues and eventually the app got back on track. In another case, the app sent me on a roundabout route, in which I would have had to walk about 20 blocks out of the way. That said, unlike Apple Maps and MapQuest, the app did know that I could get to Fort Lee by walking across the George Washington Bridge.

You Don't Get What You Pay For
While free software often has shortcomings to paid software, in the GPS app realm that is rarely the case. The $50 Navigon USA app, while showing promise, falls short in many ways, including driving and pedestrian navigation errors and distracting alerts, not to mention that traffic alerts and public transit navigation require in-app purchases. Save your money, and stick with Google Maps or Waze.

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About Molly McLaughlin

Molly K. McLaughlin is a New York-based writer and editor with more than a decade of experience covering technology. She has tested and reviewed all sorts of software, mobile apps, and gadgets. Before launching her freelance business, Molly was an editor at PC Magazine, covering consumer electronics, followed by a stint at ConsumerSearch.com, a review website. She also contributes to Lifewire.com and other online publications.

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Navigon USA (for iPhone)