milosz

I got the Infiniti nav update for 2017 and installed it on my 2013 G37x sedan, which had the 2013 system in it.



These updates are too expensive, but I'm a sucker for gadgets and spent $100 for the update. Here's what I found:

The discs took about 90 minutes to install themselves on the system. If you are going to do this update, make sure you have some gas in the tank - it takes a while. No way around that.

Don't buy someone else's USED nav update. Each disc set is individually keyed to a single nav system's serial number. Someone else's set of nav update discs isn't going to load on your system, at least until someone takes the trouble to hack the security. Which has not been done as far as I know.

I guess there were a lot of map / street updates. I can't vouch for that. After the update, the system was ignorant of the direction of some one-way streets in Chicago's downtown, but I think these one-ways were recently changed due to construction on Canal street etc. These nav systems - unless they are cloud based like Google's system- can never be 100% up-to-date, so I am not very upset about that.

In addtion to map data updates, the system itself underwent changes. The main thing I noticed was the way the hands-free phone dialing changed. In the past it was like a three-step voice menu to dial an entry from my address book, with the new system it is now as short as one step but usually two steps (unless you have multiple entries for the same guy.) This process is a good improvement, one which I welcome.

Voice recognition seems to work a little better.

The look on the screen seems about the same.

Supposedly there's more graphics of landmarks and buildings, but I haven't used that 3D map mode so I don't know about that.

"Improved Lane Guidance" is touted. There is now some guidance about staying in certain lanes on freeways. So, for example, if you are on a big 6-lane expressway and three lanes split left ahead and the three lanes you want split right, the system tells you to stay in certain lanes. I don't think the GPS is accurate enough for the thing to KNOW which lane you are in, but it will tell you ahead of time which lanes are the ones you want when there is a situation where it matters.

Overall it is a useful upgrade, if only for the improved phone dialing interface. Useful, yes. Worth $99? Um, maybe.

In general I find the G37's Nav / infotainment system to be quite easy to use, and I think the navigation system is one of THE easiest to use of any system out there.

SUB REVIEW: XM Traffic Info

I do not commute or drive much at all - only about 3,000 miles a year- so the utility of having full XM radio was really minimal for me. 320 kb/sec MP3 tunes from a 160 GB iPod or a DVD-rom along with local AM and FM radio is enough for me. So, after my 90-day trial of XM I dropped the service. But I kept the XM Traffic Info. (I live in Chicago, one of the areas covered by XM Traffic)

However, I am not well pleased with XM traffic info. I would rate it's utility as marginal. It is not very granular at all - it only shows traffic on main highways. Google's maps and navigation system can show traffic density on LOCAL streets. But this is not Google Maps, alas. XM traffic is cheap, but you don't really get much info about traffic, although it did save me half an hour one day by routing me away from a gridlocked I-90 and onto surface streets, so at least it knew that I-90 was a hopeless mess and bade me avoid it.

When I had the 90 day trial of full-boat XM, I also had the Weather Info service. I did not like this. XM pipes all the local weather alerts from National Weather Service into the radio- which is OK for tornado warnings but I got sick of constantly being told that there were dangerous winds out on Lake Michigan. It's not really usefull to hear all the Marine Squall warnings when you are driving on the Kennedy Expressway..... XM should use a little intelligence when they filter the NWS warnings, like, ditch all the marine warnings.

KungFooFireman

Thanks so much for that review. I've been on the fence about getting the update. It's not that I really need it I guess since I use my phone anyway for GPS, but it would be good to update the system. Plus, I do love gadgets and updates but you're right though, it's too expensive.

CoolBreeze

@milosz– thank you for the review. I have been on the fence for updating mine.

Speaking of Chicago, my older map version got me to the doorstep of a place in downtown Chicago, with no problems with one way streets.

My current version also did not recognize an address in Pittsburgh, which has been around for quite a while. This also happened in a couple of other towns. I had to revert to maps on my phone. My version also tells me to get off of the interstate onto two lane country roads going through small towns, even though my setting is for quickest route.

Reviews from the 2105 map update indicated that the Zagat restaurant reviews were no longer offered. Is this still the case with this 2107 update?

milosz

2105 / 2107 ?? Your G37 must have that TIME TRAVEL option....

HAHAHA

I dunno about the Zagat restaurant stuff. I've never used the nav system to "browse" for things like restaurants, I didn't even know it had that kind of ability. I'll have to check!

RE: Downtown Chicago error this system made - I was eastbound on Jackson following directions the system was giving me to reach a restaurant* in Chinatown; the system told me to turn right and proceed southbound on Canal street. Canal street is one way NORTH bound at Jackson. The nav system showed it as two-way at that intersection. There had been construction there recently and I think the change of Canal st. to one way northbound was recent, so I guess the maps were done before that change.

*MING HIN restaurant, if you're ever in Chicago, worth checking out. Best dim sum I've found. Serves till 2 AM 2168 S Archer Ave, Chicago, IL 60616

Landshark

update is too expensive, and i wouldn't trust its guidance anyway.

i use the Waze app on my phone, because at this time of year, EVERY F*%#ING ROAD IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION.

jacket18

@milosz, thanks for the review!

So, you mention changes to the phone system as well. Does this update also update the audio/nav system software in addition to the maps? I've been having some problems with bluetooth audio connectivity/control with my phone, and there are some ITBs that suggest reprogramming the software might fix that problem. If I could fix those problems AND get updated maps for $149, that might be worth it. Do you know if the map update actually does update the audio software?

I'm wondering if a) there is a way to check what version I am currently running, and b) what version, if any, is installed by this year's map update.

Thanks!

milosz

I do not know if the update changes the audio system at all. I haven't seen any difference in the screens or operation of USB / FM / AM / CD / DVD / Satellite / Bluetooth audio.

I rather doubt there would be any changes to the bluetooth sub-system. Bluetooth capabilities are likely 'baked in' to whatever bluetooth hardware Nissan selected for the infotainment setup, seems unlikely that the map update would update that bluetooth firmware.

Bluetooth in general can be a quite a confusing piece of technology, there's a dizzying array of standards and hardware / software implementations.

There are some software tools you can use to try and diagnose Bluetooth issues, if you have an Android tablet you might have a look at Medieval Bluetooth Diagnostic Tool Download https://forum.xda-developers.com/sho....php?t=1547280 etc Have a look at https://www.bluetooth.com/ as well, to familiarize yourself with some of the standards and protocols that may (or may not) be involved.

In general, what we have in our cars is a situation where there are two bluetooth devices - the car and the phone- that must negotiate data connections, and since bluetooth standards evolve over time the two devices have to try to figure out he best set of standard protocols common to each. It would be handy to know which standards each side of that 'conversation' has at their disposal - but this is not so easy to determine.

You can probably get information from your phone's manufacturer as to what flavors of bluetooth it supports. Have a look at https://www.soundguys.com/understand...-codecs-15352/ this gives you an idea of the various audio capabilities that have been defined for bluetooth devices- at first, bluetooth was just envisioned as a wireless way to connect a headset to a telephone, and so the audio fidelity provided by those early standards was pretty bad. As time went on, there was a demand for better handling of music so faster bitrates, stereo capability, better coding, and so on was added; things like AptX came along etc etc Obviously, though, a technology released in 2017 is unlikely to be found in a car sold in 2009.... trying to figure out what the bluetooth capabilities of the Infiniti system are would be a start, then see what versions of audio and data capabilities your phone has and at some point you might see where the problem lies.... of course it's always possible you car's bluetooth system is broken in some way, either hardware or software.

ALL THAT SAID- there is one thing - it's possible that just reloading the system software into your car's AUDIO / NAV could fix a glitch or corruption that sprang up in your car. Not so much that some new version would improve capability but just reloading the default software might clear things up.

NOTES: AFAIK the software isn't available separately to consumers, the only thing I know of is the map upgrade which also reloads the operating software. Maybe the dealer has a set of disks to update the software only without adding new maps, I don't know.

Please be aware that the map upgrades each come with a security feature built in, when you buy the disks you have to give Infiniti the serial code from your Nav system, the set of DVDs they send you will only work with your Nav system. Someone else's update DVD discs from eBay will not load into your Nav system as the discs are coded to a specific individual serial number which each Nav system carries.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

@milosz Why lots of gas while performing the update? You had the car idling for 90 minutes? When not just use a battery charger? Can't imagine the system drawing more than a few amps (5-10) while on but not running.

milosz

Sure. A battery charger would work fine, I'm sure. If you have one AND if your car is located near an AC outlet. I suppose if you had a quarter-mile long extension cord, that would work too.... point is, not everyone has electric outlets near to their car's parking space.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

I can sympathize with your issue. However, idling the car for an hour and a half isn't recommended either.

Another thought that comes to mind with respect to glitches. Buried somewhere in the settings is a reset option. I would assume this resets all settings back to factory defaults. This should fix any corruption as well, unless the actual system software itself is corrupted. There's a thread on here from some time ago where a forum member replaced the hard drive in the nav unit with something else (ssd or larger drive, can't remember). Considering the software is on a mechanical drive, it's very possible for it to go corrupt too.

antirice

iTrader: (2)

I did the upgrade back in 2015 and imo it's not worth it. I rarely use the Nav nowadays. Much more convenient and quicker just to use google map on your phone.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

I still use my garmin on long road trips to plot out the trip. It's possible to use the same mapdata on the pc as on the gps. Plot the route, stops, poi's etc, then upload to the gps to guide you. The garmin is set to autozoom depending on speed, the car nav I keep slightly zoomed out for a better overview.

Traffic is missing from this but that's ok. My trips usually involve remote and rural highways & county roads. I suppose the only real issue I have with the car nav is it's rebooting when guiding to a very distant destination and playing mp3s.

sev1980

yes, the map pack includes an extra DVD that updates the software. After two solid days of research, im about 95% sure that the update should address those ITB's you mention.
It actually updates the system software to a version newer than what is mentioned in those ITB's.

I bought the update *cringe* and will be performing the upgrade when I get the DVD's. I'll keep you posted.

sev1980

The DVD is not actually "coded" to your car. The nav itself wont load the map disc unless you feed it the right code, which IS tied to your nav's serial number.


Basically, the unlock mechanism is in the nav unit itself, not on the DVD. If someone was willing to invest the time, I'm sure they could figure out the algorithm and generate unlock codes at will.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

^^So when you go to load these disks, the unit first prompts for some sort of unlock or activation code? When does it prompt you? With the first disk or subsequent disks?