Infotainment

Which multimedia system is best for music, sat-nav & connectivity?

Ford Focus

SYNC3 DAB Standard Key features: Sat-nav, connectivity

TITANIUM trim gets an eight-inch colour touchscreen with built-in sat-nav as standard to match the Focus’s Volkswagen and Vauxhall rivals. The set-up offers good graphics and a simple menu layout, while this model’s large display makes the information it shows easy to read. The screen is in a better position than the Golf’s, placed higher up on the dashboard.

The smartphone connectivity works equally well, with Apple Carplay and Android Auto integrating with your device easily and seamlessly. This tech comes fitted as standard, so there’s not necessarily any need for the built-in sat-nav, but it’s nice to have and is slick.

It’s a bright display, too, and the screen responds quickly to your inputs, so you rarely have to wait for it to load up. The home screen and menu options mean it’s easy to jump to different areas of the system as well, which makes it nicer to use.

Display Eight-inch screen includes satnav as standard on our Titanium model, and Carplay and Android Auto work seamlessly. Menus are easy to use on responsive set-up

Volkswagen Golf

Discover Navigation Standard Key features: Sat-nav, phone tech

THE standard eight-inch touchscreen system here is great, with a bright, vibrant and sharp display that responds quickly to your inputs. For touch inputs the VW is a match for the Ford. There’s lots of kit, too, with Apple Carplay and Android Auto standard as part of the brand’s Car-net system, which also offers three years’ online info for traffic, fuel prices and more.

On top of this, VW’S £495 12.3-inch Active Info Display is available. This replaces the standard dials with a configurable digital panel; neither of the Golf’s rivals offer technology as advanced as this. It’s highly customisable and means you can show the sat-nav map directly in front of you, so you don’t have to glance down to the centre of the dash when driving.

The beauty of Volkswagen’s infotainment setup is its simplicity. As with the Ford, the system’s menus are logically laid out and easy to use.

Screen Golf also has an eight-inch touchsensitive display, complete with nav, but it’s not placed as high, so you need to reach down to use Carplay or adjust the menus

Vauxhall Astra

Navi 900 Intellilink Standard Key features: Sat-nav, connectivity

OUR Astra SRI Nav’s eight-inch colour screen comes loaded with tech. As with the Golf, satellite navigation is included, but because all three cars get Carplay and Android Auto as standard, many owners might prefer to integrate their phones with the systems.

Here, the Vauxhall works well. The graphics aren’t as crisp as in either the Ford or the VW, but thankfully, the menus are laid out in a logical fashion and the touchscreen responds to inputs quickly. Only occasionally does it tend to lag; this is a rarer occurrence with the VW or Ford systems, though.

If you go for the Onstar package, the set-up’s Wifi hotspot capability and the extra safety features are a worthwhile extra; it’s just a shame the concierge package will be switched off at the end of 2020.

Vauxhall’s tech doesn’t feel as advanced as in the VW, and as with the Ford, there’s no digital dash option.

Graphics Vauxhall’s sat-nav system can’t match rivals for the crispness of its graphics, and it doesn’t feel as advanced overall. But again it has strong phone connectivity