Updated, exceptionally detailed road maps. Sophisticated trip-planning tools. The rise of inexpensive netbooks gives this program a new market.
Cons
Slow satellite location lock. Spotty POI database. Dated interface. No 3D navigation view, road speed limits, or highway lane assist. Voice prompts occasionally go haywire. Some reception issues with GPS receiver.
Bottom Line
Microsoft Streets & Trips 2011 continues to be a useful route-planning product for detail-oriented campers, RVers, and outdoor enthusiasts, but it's too archaic and difficult to use for everyone else.
Microsoft may have ditched 1990s-era baggage in its product lineup like Encarta and Money, but Streets & Trips is still alive and well. It even has a bit of a cult following, thanks to its detailed map data and sophisticated route-planning tools. The latest version for 2011 ($69.95 direct) includes significant map updates and more points of interest—1.9 million in all. But the underlying program is exactly the same as before. It's fine for RV owners and long family trips in the minivan, but it's no stand-in for a standalone GPS.
Installation and GPS Locator Setup Installation is simple, and takes a few minutes from DVD; there's also a 60-day free trial that you can download from Microsoft's Web site. The brief manual helped with installing the software, but made no mention of the GPS Locator dongle. I just plugged it in; Windows 7 found it and installed the driver successfully. Fire up the program for the first time, and you'll see a map of the United States taking up most of the screen. The left pane shows whatever mode you've selected from the colorful row of top icons. You can also bring up multiple panes on the right side, such as separate ones for the map view and the list of upcoming directions.
Microsoft Streets & Trips is a program that allows you to explore the open road, generate maps and directions and find interesting stops along the way. Similar choice › Streets and trips download.
To turn on the real-time GPS feature, you must activate the GPS pane, click Configure GPS, and, bizarrely, choose the correct communication port. There was only one option, COM3, so I chose that. Then I clicked on Start/Stop GPS tracking; that sent the locator searching for satellites, with a real-time status update in the bottom left hand corner of the screen. Unfortunately, this process usually took several minutes before it locked onto my location. That compares poorly with current model PNDs that can lock on within seconds. As the review period wore on, I learned to plug the GPS Locator in, boot up the app, and let it sort out the satellite situation while I got ready to leave the house.
New Features, User Interface, and Points of Interest The big story with the 2011 edition is the updated Navteq map data. A Microsoft spokesperson said that improved map data was the number one most requested feature from customers. In addition, the new version includes 1.9 million points of interest, free on-going construction updates, and 88,000 additional miles of navigable roads. The interface looked identical to the last version I tested. Setting up a multi-segment route is simple, and can be done several different ways: either by bringing up the routing pane, or by right-clicking on various map locations and choosing Add to Route. Clicking the Optimize Route button will then sort them out for the most efficient and shortest trip.
However, the POI database still needs plenty of work. For starters, you need to type search queries in the exact syntax the program expects, such as 'Staples, Acton, MA.' A simple query like 'UPS' brought up UPS shipping centers in other states, even though I restricted the search to within 10 miles of my house. The database didn't have the official UPS Store I've been going to for years. It also missed the nearby cleaners and liquor store. In fact, entire shopping centers containing rows of individual stores were missing. I've never seen this many misses in a POI database test before.
The POI search also had trouble staying focused on my location. For example, I'd run a search query; inexplicably, the first 10 results would be miles away from my position. This happened randomly during the test; re-centering the map didn't help. On the plus side, typing in actual street addresses worked fine. I suppose you could Google POIs for their street addresses, assuming you're still at home and have an Internet connection, and not already on the road with the family. But Microsoft still has plenty of work to do here.
Map Details, Routing, and Navigation Performance Streets & Trips 2011 isn't great for finding points of interest, but it's a map geek's dream. You can bring up all manner of information on interstates, secondary roads, parks, boundaries, and other data types. You can break searches down into subcategories, such as one-way streets and restricted tunnels, or 'railroad tracks' and 'railroad tunnels.' The national park database can tell you which ones have campgrounds, hiking trails, canoe launches, and boat rental, among other things. This is useful stuff.
Microsoft Streets & Trips 2011 with GPS Locator
Bottom Line: Microsoft Streets & Trips 2011 continues to be a useful route-planning product for detail-oriented campers, RVers, and outdoor enthusiasts, but it's too archaic and difficult to use for everyone else.
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