I try so hard to find fault with our 2007 Infiniti G35 Sport, but frankly, I keep finding more things to like about it. This weekend, I was driving through Malibu looking at houses for a possible short-term rental and rather than taking hastily explained directions over the phone, I at least partly relied on the G35's map. It includes the birds-eye function, which I think is just fantastic. It's possible that many nav systems have this function, but I am disinclined toward reading a nav-system manual that's longer than the one for the car itself...
Later in the weekend I needed to find a particular gas station. Again, easy selection for the map to include gas stations, and it even highlighted the station types, so I was able to find my brand at a glance. I realize this is not a new feature. But the amazingly intuitive controls showed me how to quickly and painlessly select just that: show gas stations. Fantastic.
Doug Lloyd, Senior Copy Editor, @ 8,253 miles
jriz says:
12:38 PM, 08/13/07
Infiniti/Nissan is in fact one of the few makers who offer a bird's eye view.
ventdiver says:
12:52 PM, 08/13/07
So funny that in a post about birds-eye view, the Nav map has a street called Birdview Ave. Or was that a conscious inclusion?
xl562bx says:
07:40 AM, 08/14/07
You are right, it does have a street called Birdview Ave. The two go hand in hand. The birdview is the easiest to follow and use. I wonder if the system shows shortcuts and immediate traffic reports and detours? The control panel has too many bottons and using it at night wouldn't be nice. I still find the G35 a great alternative to the 3 Series.
funkymunky says:
01:41 PM, 08/14/07
In response to your queries, I took several photos. Mainly I wanted to show the coast and the Pacific. But yes, I ultimately chose this one because I happened to be looking for Birdview Ave. And I found the nav system very easy to use, and liked that unlike some other cars, you can still go forward and back on CD tracks while in map mode. It's a fantastic car.
langjie says:
01:56 PM, 08/14/07
but you still can't set an address while moving...i hate this safety "feature"...especially when I have a passenger who can help me enter the address
redliner says:
02:08 PM, 08/15/07
They should link it to Google Earth, so that you could be able to see a satellite view of where you are.