I purchased the 2009 maps & streets w/gps & the gps would not work. I called Microsoft & was told they would send me a newer gps that will work with windows 7. The gps unit works fine with my old 2005 version of maps & streets. Microsoft ZV3-00019 Microsoft Streets and Trips 2009 GPS Mini
First, a comment on Tom's review that his receiver did not work with W7: mine works great on my little Toshiba netbook running Windows 7 Basic. It worked before i upgraded memory to 2GB, but a bit slow. it works flawlessly on 2GB. i also tried it with (a trial version of) Streets and Trips 2010, didn't see any problem. actually i believe 2010 version uses the same receiver. So it seems Tom simply got a defective one.
As for the future version of the software, i don't see any reason why the receiver would not work. gps receivers are standardized these days.
Let's go back to the product itself. i saw some negative comments about the receiver's reception. i used in a Jeep Liberty in mountains (if it matters). i brought a long extension usb cable with me just in case i would need to hand it on the rear view mirror. it turned out to be unnecessary. i got good reception throughout the trip in the mountains in Zion, Glen and Grand Canyon National Parks.
One good thing i like it especially is that it shows the elevation. you would really appreciate it when you travel in mountains. i think only very expensive car gps's do that.
I should admit that i also have a car gps in the vehicle mostly for urban areas. i bought the software for travels on foot, like when i fly to another city for a meeting, and to Europe (there is a Europe version of the software). i don't have a 4G mobile phone and don't want to pay the monthly data fee. i will always have my netbook with me, and feel this is the best solution. It would work well as a car gps if you can somehow put it on your dashboard (i can't do it on my dashboard), or perfectly well if you have a navigator sitting in the passenger seat. if i drive by myself or in urban areas, i would like to use a car gps, directly in front of me.
it saved us once when our car gps led us to a wrong entrance of the Glen Ntl Park, which is for people who have their own boat. with the quick zooming ability and larger screen (than the 4.3" gps), we quickly found what was wrong and got back to the main entrance. it turned out our Tomtom has quite a few places all marked as Glen Park, and it's really hard to tell on that screen whether it is right. The problem is Tomtom doesn't show all the entrances together. it somehow has a distance limit. i asked for "Glen National Park", it showed me only the closest entrance. with effort, it would show more, but they are all labeled the same. i should have done more homework before hitting the road, and the homework would be on my computer, using Google maps if i have wi-fi connection, otherwise, it means this product. That is the reason i bought it before the trip.
i deduct one star because i don't like the interface too much. well, that's typical Microsoft! always gets things more complicated that they are. in this aspect, i like Google better.
Overall, the quality of the maps in this version (2009) is fairly good.
I bought this version to get the GPS dongle, for a trip across Mexico. The Mexican maps and turn-by-turn directions are unexpectedly good. (There are several "use local road for..." instructions, but when one arrives there, it's self-evident.)
The problem with this application is that the lawyers had the last vote in the interface. Because of the prompts and "I Agree...." screens this application is truly dangerous to use in the car. For example, when the laptop goes to sleep, simply waking it up will not resume the application. One must "fiddle" with the controls to re-awaken the GPS function. So one must pull over, fiddle, wait and resume travel.
It's not a bad program, and I got it for very little money, so I suppose the lesson here is one gets what one pays for.
If I had to do it over, I'd go with a Garmin (for the Mexican maps) and be done with it. For travel / route planning, this application is decent. For enroute travel, not so much....
I love this program. I use it to plan my trips to So. Calif. for snowbirding
and all the stops along the way. The price was great. I wanted to put it on
my desktop and my laptop. The 2010 version evidently does not allow you to do
that.
I purchased this product after the most recent 2010 version was out to save a buck. I was very pleased but almost didn't bother with a review since it is unlikely that stock will be available for others to purchase.
The newer GPS devices are very good and any PC or tablet is going to be less convenient in a car. Certainly, it would be reasonable to use a GPS for travel and an online service for larger desktop views. Streets and Trips does not depend on an internet connection (after installation), which can be an advantage. Planning features are at least comparable to the best on the net. I've used it when either I or my GPS or both are confused on the road. The large screen view makes it more likely that you can quickly regain a feel for the area or overall sanity.
I have copies of Microsoft Streets and Trips 2000, 2001, 2006 and 2009 for the US and Autoroute 2007 for Europe and the UK . The 2001 version seems to the most complete as far as versatility is concerned but the later versions receive updates from time to time on listings of lodgings, etc. and also receive updates from time on road conditions. The 2000 version required loading the CD each time you use it, but the later versions do not require the CD once you have initially loaded it. I have found them to be very valuable tooks both for finding local addresses as well as planning cross-country vacation trips.The only glitch I have found is trying to use Rest Areas as way points in planning trips. (We try to average at most 100 miles or two hours between Rest Stops on our trips and Rest Areas have been most convenient.) Only the 2001 version lists these by Interstate Highway and Mile Marker, but if you schedule a particular Rest Area, instead of remaining on the route as you would, it routes you around by back roads and adds mileage and time to your travel estimates. I have found a way to get around this by using the nearest interchange as a reference point for the Rest Area. On the 2001 version you can tailor your actual travel speed habits more closely than the other versions . The GPS receiver I received with my 2009 version can also be used with the 2006 version and also with Autoroute 2007, which I have found very useful in planning trips in the UK. There are probably flaws in any of the versions for the nit picker, but overall, it's another of those things that you "Don't leave home without it." :-) - Cartography - Maps - Navigation - Gps'
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