I have a 2018 Akera and have just received advice that they now have a new Maps upgrade. Looks like it will cost about $300 and will give me 2 upgrades per year of the next 3 years. For $515 I can get an Android/Apple conversion that will give me access to perpetually upgrading Google or WAZE Maps. I have an Android phone and from what I've seen, Android phones and Android connect don't get on very well, with many owners complaining about connection issues, etc. What I am after are comments from those who have familiarity with both, if you could only have one option, which one would you choose?

 

It depends on your needs and the service in your area.i have the same Mazda system in the Mazda2 I am driving this summer and the newer system and AndroidAuto in the 19 Mazda3 I typically drive.

Unless they are doing incredible roadwork and changing roads drastically, I would not think the new maps for the Mazda system are worth the money. Even with downloading new maps the Mazda maps always seems outdated to me.

AndroidAuto makes far better systems available, but do you need an upgrade enough to justify the cost? For me the answer would be no. BUT, the reason I am driving my daughter's Mazda2 is so she can use AndroidAuto for her summer internship where she is driving 100 to 300 miles in different directions 3 or 4 days a week. Google Maps or Waze are far superior systems regardless of map version if you depend on the GPS.

I can not address the reliability of the upgraded but have not heard of problems. I have no problems in my Mazda3 but have constant problems connecting by wire in my wife's Subaru.

 

Thanks for your observations. I will wait to see if anyone else has any insights before making a final decision.
I decided to ask Mazda handsfree for their observation and they said they would suggest I go for the Apple CarPlay/Android Auto feature so that I get the live traffic updates while using the app.

 

I would go with the second option. Then you have in car access to nav apps and all the other useful apps (Pandora, Sirius, Amazon Music, Spotify....) which work with AA/CP. This will last a lot longer than 3yrs and give you much more functionality. I have AA in my 21 CX-5 and immediately installed an AA/CP Pioneer head unit in my 20 Frontier when I bought it (no idea why Nissan skimped and didn't have this as standard equipment when it was in their low end Versa for '20). Love the integration of AA to keep everything handsfree.

 

I would go with option 2 (installing Apple CarPlay / Android Auto) or even better doing nothing at all (like I did). I just got a pretty good phone holder, have the phone paired through Bluetooth, and do everything on my phone like navigation (Google maps / Waze) and music streaming (Spotify).

 

I've installed Android Auto in my 2016 CX-5. No issues. Compared to Apple Carplay, AA is very reliable. Probably 90% of issues I see at work are from apple owners.

One thing to note, although you have maps (GPS) anywhere with google maps, you need cellphone reception to create & navigate to a destination. If you select a destination within mobile reception it will utilize GPS to direct you to your location if you loose mobile signal.

 

I have my old Garmin which has unlimited updates.
I put in the car when I go on adventures in unknow territories.
It still works better and faster than any of the car or phone systems I've ever seen.

 

My $.02

I too am a fan of Android Auto and would recommend it. It works very well for me. I installed a stereo in my previous vehicle and made sure the unit included wireless AA. Since I recently purchased a CX-5, I missed the wireless AA, and purchased the Motorola MA1 wireless AA adapter. I would recommend that too.. I bought a maps card for my CX-5 to have.. and while I do think it is fine, it seems pretty inferior to Google maps.

The trick with Google maps, if you are going to be in an area with no cell reception, is to download maps ahead of time.. That way you will have full map functionality offline when you are out in the sticks. I have a data lean mobile plan, so I have most of my home state downloaded to avoid data charges when out and about.

 

Thanks very much for your confirmation that AA is the better choice, and the added tips about downloadable maps. Sounds like it's the way to go

Rob.

 

My thanks go to everyone who has contributed. It seems the general consensus is very convincing - the Mazda AA conversion is the way to go. I appreciate your insights and suggestions.

Rob