I'm with you man. I also inquired recently about the cost and was told the same thing. My previous car - Golf VI - was also HDD based navigation and they dealer would just update it for free.
I also have the Nav pro and you're right - our features here in Oz are very limited - no connected drive, apps etc. That being said I was aware of the limited functionality when I bought the car.
The newer models do have some connected drive functionality:
http://www.bmw.com.au/com/en/newvehi...spec-guide.pdf
I've decided to wait it out until I change cars next year.