OT- anyone here own or recommend a GPS unit?

[Jon Cole]

OT- anyone here own or recommend a GPS unit? I plan on buying one, what features should I look for?

I did Google it, but I just get ads.

[crazyjim]

Garmin from Wal-Mart about $110. Not all the bells & whistles but it works.

[elan]

I have a Garmin also, got it as a gift. I love it.

[crazyjim]

Thought a model would help - Garmin Nuvi 200.

[Foxer]

I have a GPS that came with my Infinity and that convinced me these ARE worth it. I got my wife a Garmin nuvi 700 series a couple years ago. I thought Garmin had a good interface and was very useable. My Infiniti has voice activation which I highly recommend .. this wasn't available in aftermarket units at the time I bought one. You defiantly want to stop to use it with out having voice commands. Most of the models just increase as features are added.. not all are necessary. 95% of the time we use it as a GPS .. where's the next turn! All the other is mostly fluff. The other 5% is usually used finding somewhere to eat in a strange city. The traffic Info feature we don't use as it has a yearly fee.

I'd try to use various ones, Like Tom-Tom and Magellean, in addition to Garmin to see what feels "right" to you when entering addresses and such. Menu's vary all over the place like any software .. some make no sense at all.

Edited August 6, 2010 by Foxer

[MikeMc]

I have a Garmin Nuvi from last year, all maps are current.

I work out in rural areas and I love this sucker!!!

When I used it on a trip up to Philly I let it lead.....WRONG MOVE!!!! although I did see both the Pentigon and the White House...it led me thru downtown DC!!!

I figgured it out too late......but If you know where you want to go you can tell it what route.

The more expensive ones have different voices.....its your money!!

[Aaronw]

How do you intend to use it? If you just want driving directions many cell phones now include that and will cost you far less than even a cheap GPS, and it is a phone. My wife has an LG NV and has used this feature frequently when we are in an area we don't know well.

If you are looking at something for hiking, that you can load local topo maps into I like the Garman's, I have a CsX at work which is very good, it is fairly easy to operate, and works well even under heavy tree cover, but it costs about $450, I've also used the Garmin E-Trex which seems to work well, and is fairly simple to operate, also much smaller and cheaper (I think it is around $150).

The Nuvi and Tom Tom devices are nice for using in a car since they will also show you gas stations, motels etc, but I don't think they give you the same options as those aimed at the outdoor recreation market.

[Dennis]

I have the Garman 255w nuvi and did the upgrade and have had no trouble finding where I want to go.

[VVhiplash]

We use a Garmin 260W. Love it.

[SoCalCarCulture]

I use the one built into my phone - always works great and it's real time satellite based, so it never needs updates and has real time traffic!

[Greg Cullinan]

I have a Tom-Tom,it's an older model.I've had it for about 4 years and use it 5 days a week,paid about $200.

I'm a roofing salesman and I hit about 7-12 stops a day.

Even though I know my way around I use my tom-tom religiously ,

I don't use any traffic or store finders(if I have them) do the smart phone.(which also has google maps)

Last August I bought my daughter a Tom-Tom with all the bells and whistles for about $275(she still gets lost )

and at Xmas I bought my dad a similar one to my daughters for $100,also a Tom-Tom.

The thing I like is you pick your city and state,which will be the last one you searched which is good for using daily and locally.Then you start typing the street name and it will give you streets that match the letters your typing so at most 3 letters and you have your street.

Good luck and let us know what you get

[RodneyBad]

We use a Garmin 260W. Love it.

ditto.

one for me and one for the g/f.

She gets lost easily

[Jon Cole]

Well ain't this just cherry! I find the GPS I want @ Staples yesterday for $169.99... go back today to show the wife (it will be a gift from her); and today the price is $219.99! So they can go pound sand!

Does anyone use the "realtime traffic" feature? Thanks!

[LDO]

I have a Garmin 205W. It sometimes tells me to make turns that just make no sense. I'm a plumber and I drive all over Central Texas (mostly Austin). I've become better at navigating from memory. Most of the time I drive to the area of town I need then let GPS guide me to the house. I just wait until I'm in the right area to punch the "Go" button, that way I don't have to listen to it tell me to make detours or u-turns that make no sense. These are minor complaints, though. The crazy turns don't happen that often. It's still a great tool, and faster for me than a Mapsco. One extremely minor annoyance is that it sometimes tells me to stop several houses away from my actual destination. Also not a big deal; I just need to read the house numbers.

Edited August 8, 2010 by LDO

[Flymeister]

In my opinion what you should be looking for is :

1) Size of screen - Trying to see something on a small screen whilst driving is not fun..or safe

2) Key features - Lots of cheaper makes have great features that just don't work

3) Prices of maps/updates and extra services

user feedback is always helpfull (as with all above) - Also,go to the manufacturers sites and see what they have to offer. Two major names are Garmin and TomTOm as far as I'm aware - Don't know if you guys get Road Angel in the USA.

[Jon Cole]

OT is right..way OT. If you want to know about a 1:1 GPS unit, why are you taking up space here? This is a big, wide, wonderful Internet with plenty of other places to find the answers. We come here looking at all topics to see how they'll help our modeling knowledge, and this has no value at all.

Grrr. Aarrgh. Rrrr.

Skip-

Let me point some things out to you.

1. I am NOT going to join any other forum just to ask one question, much less take more time to find it than I have already invested.

2. As I previously stated, I did attempt to find the answer by other means. I did a Google search.

3. As Aaron stated, if this is such a burden to you, then why did you even take the time to respond?

4. The post is clearly labeled "OT". That pretty much sums it up.

[Harry P.]

My 2¢... a little OT never hurt anybody.

Skip... don't know if you'll see this, but technically you're right... this is definitely OT.

But what makes this forum different from the other one is that we are "family"... and sometimes an off topic subject will appear. Jon marked his post as OT, he did a google search first, he didn't find what he was looking for, so he asked us here if we had any suggestions. No problem with that as far as I can see.

I'm sure you'll agree.

[Jeff Johnston]

Jon I paid 149 for my Tom Tom at Wal-Mart and I really like it. My Dad bought a refurb Magellan on line (Amazon I think) for 99 and its pretty nice too. I have had the Tom tom take me to the wrong place once but I was close. They might be a little cheaper now (mine is a couple years old now) and I am very happy with it.

JJ

[Daniel Peterson]

I have a Garmin Nuvi and it has been a joy to use. Our company has a field technician who swears by his.

Maybe if we point out they can be used to help us get to hobby shops and model contests, some of the folks irritated by this question being posted would lighten up.

It's silliness like the reaction to Jon's question being posted that encourages people to participate less on this or any other forum. This is the first I've visited here in weeks and the first thread I read makes me wonder why I bothered.

Geez, guys...lighten up.

[Jon Cole]

Thank you to everyone who helped me out with this one. My wife just placed the order for my GPS... it will be my b-day gift.

A special thank you for the support. You folks understand that we are a community as well as a hobby board. I knew you people would give me the answers I needed, as we have such a good cross section of "everyday people"... and that's a good thing!

Now I'm gonna go open up that model kit I bought yesterday. That's my present to me!