As well as producing conventional satellite-navigation devices for use in cars, Route 66 also makes a range of software products that can be used to add navigation to mobile phones or Pocket PCs.
The new Mini attempts to combine both elements, combining a GPS satellite navigation unit with software that allows the user to download extras such as maps and travel guides from the Route 66 website, which can be installed on the device. It’s a nice idea, but the software side of things has a few problems.
The device itself works perfectly well. Before using it for the first time it needs to be charged for a few hours, but it comes with an in-car charger as well as a USB cable for PC connection, so it can be charged in the car or indoors.
Once that’s done you just turn it on and let it locate your position (preferably using it outdoors or in your car, as like most similar devices it can’t pick up locations very well if it is indoors).
Using the device is easy, as the 3.5in touch-sensitive screen can be used to select features with a tap of a finger, and it is a quick process to type the destination address into the unit by using the on-screen keyboard. The standard navigation features (postcode search, generation of directions) are all quite straightforward to use and work very well - it even had the Computeractive office listed in its database of places of interest.
Unfortunately we struggled a bit with the software side of things. We couldn’t install the Route 66 Sync software - required to download the extra features - on our notebook PC at all. We were able to install it on a separate desktop PC, but the software couldn’t properly connect to the Mini when we plugged it in. Only on the third attempt were we able to get the software to install and run properly.
To be fair, the Mini works perfectly well as an in-car GPS navigation system, but it’s a shame that the additional software proved so temperamental. For £30 a version is available with European maps.
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