Navicore Personal 2006/1

Multiple navigation modes, but some annoying niggles hold it back

Navicore Personal 2006/1 satellite navigation works on Symbian series 60 and 80 mobile phones and is aimed at those who want UK map and route information whether they are driving, walking or cycling.

The software is a little expensive, but easy to set up and pair with the Bluetooth GPS receiver, and it doesn't take too long to get the hang of the basic instructions.

It will only work as a sat nav device if you carry around the small Bluetooth GPS receiver. Otherwise, it works as a map that can show you your route, but not your location, meaning you must scroll through the map as you progress.

In pedestrian mode, Navicore will ignore one way streets, but still plan your route via roads. The result is it won't necessarily suggest the most direct route, especially in city centres with pedestrianised areas and other shortcuts.

It's still quite useful, but definitely needs improving. On maximum zoom, side road names don't always show, so it’s hard to see your location.

Unlike in drive mode, it doesn't tell you the name of the street you are on or your next street at the top and bottom of the screen, which is annoying.

Since cycle lanes aren’t shown, the only real advantage for cyclists is the software won't route you via a motorway.

Unlike the majority of sat nav devices, which use Navteq maps, Navicore has opted for the Tele Atlas alternative. For car journeys, we had mixed experiences.

It does get you to your destination, but sometimes suggested long-winded routes. When ignored, at times it struggled to recalculate.

On one journey it thought we were driving across a field rather than an access road that was laid about four years ago. It did, however, know other new roads.

On another, it wanted us to do a U-turn to within metres of reaching our destination.

Vocal instructions are clear, which is important when using a small screen fo r GPS. But sometimes it just didn't tell us which direction to take - at a major fork, for instance, it stayed silent, forcing us to look at the screen and not the road.

The inclusion of cycle and pedestrian modes is a sensible idea, but Navicore needs to work on the implementation of this sat nav system.

System requirements:
Symbian Series 60 or 80 mobile phone (not supplied)
Bluetooth GPS receiver (supplied)
Mini SD card with UK maps (supplied)