Tips on Buying a Portable Navigation Device

I am thinking about buying a GPS-enabled navigation device. I would greatly appreciate Forum member's advice, recommendations, brands, must-have features, and great places to purchase. THANKS!

[2000SoCalBoxsterS]

I have the Magellan Roadmate 700. It is basically the same unit you get if you've ever rented a car from Hertz and had the Hertz Neverlost in the car. It's great. Portables are great. You can obviously take them with you in whatever car you happen to be driving. Better than those $2,000 built in NAV systems.

Now-a-days I believe they all have voice guidance which is key. You don't want to have to constantly be looking at the map screen.

[FrayAdjacent]

If you want to go with a dedicated unit, check out buygpsnow.com. They have many GPS nav systems available. Find what's in your price range, then read some reviews.

I'd probably go with something that has maps on a removable SD (or other) memory card, and that allows you to update maps online (preferably without paying for a subscription).

One common problem with almost every GPS unit/system/software I found is that most map sources are out-of-date in some areas. It's just a fact of life given construction and the like. So whatever you get, don't be upset or surprised if you ever come to an area that isn't on your maps!


Personally, I went with a PDA and Bluetooth GPS receiver. Buygpsnow has bundle deals if you go this route, usually with the receiver and a software package. My plan was/is to wire up the GPS receiver in my storage bin behind the seats and just leave it there. The site had a great mounting device for the PDA I bought (Dell Axim X51), which powers it, and has an auxiliary plugin for the GPS receiver.

I use the PDA for several other things... it comes in handy when I'm traveling (I use my cell phone as a modem for it), as a portable music player, as a system for copying pictures from my camera's memory, and a vehicle information database. I found a neat little piece of software called 'Vehicle Manager' that tracks maintenance and fuel usage, and can give you quick stats on your economy, cost of ownership and cost per 100 miles. There's a desktop version that can be synced with it, too.

For the software, I went with Infogation's Odyssey Mobile. It's a good navigation software that runs great on the PDA and was easy to set up. Maps are divided by state (some whole states, some large states are split, and some small ones grouped together), and are easily added and removed. This software is VERY easy to locate addresses with, and it has a HUGE POI database that is relatively easy to search through. A couple drawbacks, though: It doesn't allow waypoints, and the voice prompts do not speak street names. Infogation is working on improving it, though.


Anyway, I hope I've helped a little bit!

[Jonesy08054]

I got a TomTom G0510 last year. I think that it's a great unit. The thing that did it for me was after going into Best Buy or Circuit City and just mess around with one in the store. Whichever one you think is easiest to use and the easiest to read/understand for you is the one you should go with. Each brand will have it's little things that are special to only that brand. for instance, mine is blue tooth capable with my phone. I've never used that feature, but it's there. I'd recommend the TomTom, but then I've never had much experience with the others. The TomTom just made sense when i was messing around with it.

[NickCats]

Bill,

Check out the September 2006 issue of the Chicago Scene :

http://www.pca-chicago.org/?getpage=9

There is a good article on Page 32 regarding GPS units.


I received the Garmin StreetPilot i5 for Christmas and have been very pleased :

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=164&pID=362

Hope this helps...

Nick

[Frank Patrick]

question- do you use an external antena?

[FrayAdjacent]

Originally Posted by Frank Patrick

question- do you use an external antena?

Newer SiRF III chipsets are sensitive enough to generally not need an external antenna.

[ChrisZang]

I have a Garmin c510 mounted at my windscreen.
The internal GPS antenna is so strong that the unit actually works in my garage (wood shingle roof), so no external antenna needed.
The Garmin c510 has real time FM traffic alerts (and calculates your actual arrival times based on delays)

[ddb]

I've had my Garmin NUVI 350 for about a year and love it. It is a little larger than a deck of cards. There's a NUVI 360 available that can be synced with a Bluetooth phone and a NUVI 660 that has a larger screen and the ability to transmit the audible directions via a RF signal to specific radio stations, I believe.

It is tough if not impossible to hear the audible directions with the top down, but that isn't a major problem once you are familiar with the display. I can use it just fine by looking at the display without any audio, and sometimes choose to just listen to the audible directions and not use the display when the top is up or in my other vehicle.

From what I've read, the NavTech maps on the Garmins, and other brands, are better in the US and the TeleAtlas maps on the TomTom models are better for Europe.

My NUVI 350 will operate for about 2 hours on battery power. For most uses this is sufficient for me so I don't have to drag around the power port cord. It can also be charged via AC power.

The small size makes it easy to throw in a carry-on bag during air travel.

I bought mine from walmart.com who had the best prices a year or so ago. I actually found some better prices at other online stores, but I wasn't familiar with them and felt more comfortable buying from a larger, known store.

Hope this helps.

ddb

[der Geist]

I bought a Nav Cam from Sam's Club and it performed so poorly I took it back and asked for a refund. I got a Nuvi 360 and couldn't be happier. Amazon had the best price out of everyone and I got free overnight shipping on top of it. I just got back from a 2 day trip in and around Chicago and the unit performed flawlessly. The bluetooth is cool except I wouldn't recommend trying to talk through the speaker phone on the NUVI even with the top up or hardtop. The microphone is a play toy. It is cool how you can see your call history and phone book on the NUVI's screen and dial through it. You can also dial any of the points of interest/hotels/restaraunts directly from the NUVI when you pull them up if you have a bluetooth phone. I find I don't miss as many calls now as the phone rings through the NUVI which is much louder. As I understand it you can download map updates directly from Garmin's web site along with different vehicles to put on screen. I usually use the little blue sports car. On the days where I have "Road Rage" I'll opt for the tank though. Oh yeah-you can add your own "points of interest" as well. Should be handy for adding in all the school zones, light and speed cameras that are seeming to pop up everywhere lately. I even saw a speed camera on the Dan Ryan Expressway today. WTF!! Since when can you ever go over the speed limit in the Dan Ryan? 4AM??? (maybe)

[larryshomework]

I have the Magellan Roadmate 2200. $299 at Costco - i was going to get a Nuvi 660 (Garmin) but couldn't pass up the Costco deal. 4 plus hours on battery power.

Works pretty well. I think they all have quirks. GPSMagazine (online) has indepth reviews of all the popular models - it's worth a look.

[Perfectlap]

Before buying any gadget I got to cnet.com to see the product reviews.

[airboxster]

Originally Posted by 2000SoCalBoxsterS

I have the Magellan Roadmate 700. It is basically the same unit you get if you've ever rented a car from Hertz and had the Hertz Neverlost in the car. It's great. Portables are great. You can obviously take them with you in whatever car you happen to be driving. Better than those $2,000 built in NAV systems.

Now-a-days I believe they all have voice guidance which is key. You don't want to have to constantly be looking at the map screen.

I also have owned the Magellan 700 for two years. I've used in throughout Europe and North America and it has been excellent. We move it around between four family cars. The only problem was the base broke once but it was replaced under warranty. Also the first year the unit did not provide an option for an alternative route when there was a detour required. It would just keep advising to make a legal U turn as soon as possible to continue on the same route. This years model has a software fix that allows you to ask for an alternate route immediately when you are stuck. Great voice commands and directions.

[SaltyDog]

A few things that may make a difference, depending on how/where you drive, I have gone from an old Garmin GPS 38 with no basemap, through using a GPSMAP III and an Ique 3600 as dash mounted, as well as using a full laptop on a mount in the pickup truck with a bluetooth/usb GPS. (and way to many gps systems on the boat)

Audible prompts are very helpful in reminding you to turn/exit, and announcing the street name is good in urban areas where you want to look at the road and traffic, not the screen.

Map updates, PC integration for route downloading is a good thing, but you will also want to see if you can use it one handed while shifting..

screen size that shows a decent image of the map allows you to figure out what street you want to turn right on in 100 yrds.

Some have the Bluetooth integration with your phone, and an audio output so that you can wire the prompts into your radio and have a suitable gateway such as the denison potentially mute the audio for the prompts/telephone.

I just got my Garmin Navi 680 today. Love it! Awesome!

[Soetekouw]

There are so many portable GPS units out there, and they are basically all good.
Things to look for:

1. How does it mount in the car.
2. Does it have voice prompts. (most, if not all, have these now)
3. Does it have Re-routing capabilities.
4. Is the Software upgradable through manufacturer on-line site.
5. Does it have a good size screen.
6. How easy is the menu to use.
7. Manufacturer reputation. (Garmin, Magellan, Tom-Tom).

I have the Garmin 2720 (I think it has been replaced with a newer model). Since most manufacturers have some/most of the things I look for in a GPS, my deciding factor was how the GPS mounted in my car and other cars. The Garmin 2720 can be mounted with included suction cups to the windshield (as most GPSs are mounted), BUT it also comes with a bean bag mount that sits on your dash. This is such a convenient mounting system. I can put it anywhere on my dash - it is rock solid and doesn't move - I put the bean bag and the GPS under the seat when I am done with it. When I go on business trips, I take the GPS and bean bag mount with me and use it in rental cars.

I bought mine on e-bay (new). A few years ago, they went for $1000. Got it for $700. Can now be bought for $300-$400. Other places that sell GPSs are Best Buys and Circuit City (of course you'll be paying retail/tax) and at numerous on-line sites. Google a search.

A couple of features I don't like about this model (although these aren't deal breakers to me):

1. It has an external speaker (speaker is part of the power cord).
2. It does not have an internal battery.

Best purchase I made. I don't get lost anymore.

[sonvolt10]

A very good GPS review/ranking site:

http://gpsmagazine.com