None. I've found routes to be so horribly inefficient/wrong that they're useless.
Which GPS you got for the Car?
- Thread starter mikey12
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Magellan Roadmate 6000T and Garmin Nuvi 200.
I like the Roadmate a little better, but I've had it for a couple of years and the maps are out of date. The cost for a new map CD was not much less than an entirely new Garmin, so I bought the Nuvi. It's easier to pack the Nuvi in my luggage for trips where I have to fly somewhere and then drive locally since it's smaller -- the Roadmate is huge, almost the size of an 8-track cartridge.
As pointed out already, even with up-to-date maps, the gadgets aren't always your best bet. I've had mine route me in very illogical ways, and have been misdirected several times. Like any technology, it's only as good as the brain operating it....
I like the Roadmate a little better, but I've had it for a couple of years and the maps are out of date. The cost for a new map CD was not much less than an entirely new Garmin, so I bought the Nuvi. It's easier to pack the Nuvi in my luggage for trips where I have to fly somewhere and then drive locally since it's smaller -- the Roadmate is huge, almost the size of an 8-track cartridge.
As pointed out already, even with up-to-date maps, the gadgets aren't always your best bet. I've had mine route me in very illogical ways, and have been misdirected several times. Like any technology, it's only as good as the brain operating it....
TomTom One, 3rd Edition. I love it BUT I wish the mount were a little more sturdy. Also after 1 year of use the power/USB connection has gotten dodgy...probably from the suction mount failing so much and allowing it to fall.
I disagree about the map vs. GPS issue. I LOVE paper maps AND computerized mapping. I have wonderful GIS software (Arc GIS 9.x) on my work computer and one of tha main things I do with it is print out paper maps that I laminate and take to the field with me.
Back to GPS, I really had high hopes for Dash Express. But it seems they are withdrawing from hardware. Does anyone have a model with realtime weather (ie XM weather)? The only one I can find is a bulky older style Garmin and the handheld Bushnell Onyx. I'd LOVE that in a small car-oriented gps.
I disagree about the map vs. GPS issue. I LOVE paper maps AND computerized mapping. I have wonderful GIS software (Arc GIS 9.x) on my work computer and one of tha main things I do with it is print out paper maps that I laminate and take to the field with me.
Back to GPS, I really had high hopes for Dash Express. But it seems they are withdrawing from hardware. Does anyone have a model with realtime weather (ie XM weather)? The only one I can find is a bulky older style Garmin and the handheld Bushnell Onyx. I'd LOVE that in a small car-oriented gps.
LG 720N. Not too bad for it's intended use, just wish it had "lane-assist". But I'm moving up to a commercial solution as that little LG has gotten my bus into some very tight places and nearly made it a convertible once.
As a bus operator, let me fill you folks in on the secret to using one of these in big cities where the signal is sporadic:
READ THE NEXT STREET AND TURN IN THE DIRECTION IT TELLS YOU TO DO.
Even if your GPS is recalculating, look for that FIRST street it told you to turn on. Otherwise you'll be chasing your tail all day as it keeps losing and re-gaining it's signal.
And yes, as a bus driver, I do carry a foldable laminated map of the downtown areas of big metropolitans. Sometimes a trip plan-and-execution mode is better suited, but I fully understand driving is high-pressure for some folks, especially in big city cores, so I expect lots of people can't use that method. That's fine, just put your turn signal on, slow-down, and I'll let you in.
As a bus operator, let me fill you folks in on the secret to using one of these in big cities where the signal is sporadic:
READ THE NEXT STREET AND TURN IN THE DIRECTION IT TELLS YOU TO DO.
Even if your GPS is recalculating, look for that FIRST street it told you to turn on. Otherwise you'll be chasing your tail all day as it keeps losing and re-gaining it's signal.
And yes, as a bus driver, I do carry a foldable laminated map of the downtown areas of big metropolitans. Sometimes a trip plan-and-execution mode is better suited, but I fully understand driving is high-pressure for some folks, especially in big city cores, so I expect lots of people can't use that method. That's fine, just put your turn signal on, slow-down, and I'll let you in.
I picked up a Garmin Nuvi 750 on Black Friday. Threw in an 8GB SDHC card and played around with my Garmin MapSource software to load in topo maps and the like. I like the voice navigation which helps keep the eyes on the road and off the 4.3" widescreen
Originally Posted By: mikey12
Subject pretty much says it all...
Verizon wireless...10.00 a month.
Subject pretty much says it all...
Verizon wireless...10.00 a month.
Junk service.
Sorry, I just don't feel that paying a monthly fee to have a micro screen display is "right". GPS is intended to be "free", not some telecom pay-per-usage system.
On that note, check out the phone I'm looking at buying in January:
http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_e90-1857.php
Built-in free-to-air GPS makes it almost feel like something out of Q's lab.
Sorry, I just don't feel that paying a monthly fee to have a micro screen display is "right". GPS is intended to be "free", not some telecom pay-per-usage system.
On that note, check out the phone I'm looking at buying in January:
http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_e90-1857.php
Built-in free-to-air GPS makes it almost feel like something out of Q's lab.
I haven't used the "TeleNav" service from ATT wireless on my Blackjack II but I have used the free Google and MS live search GPS programs. I don't know if it's the quality of the GPS in the phone or the quality of the program but acquisition time has made the use of GPS on my phone quite unacceptable. I was under the impression that they used the same chip (or at least a variation on it) but I can't reconcile the rapid, sometimes instant acquisition time I get from my TomTom with the 3-5 minutes or more it takes to get a lock with my phone.
Part of the problem of smaller phones is weak processors - it has to run an OS, keep a signal going so it knows where you are, and run the GPS software itself. By nature, the dedicated GPS can overcome this with the same (or often weaker) processor by being a dedicated, one-operation system.
"I'm lost, my GPS is down and I can't read a map!"
"I'm buying gas but can't figure out my gas mileage because I can't do long division and my trip computer doesn't work!"
"I'm in debt, BIGTIME, and my car loan is upside down!"
HELP!
p.s. I couldn't program my VCR, either!
"I'm buying gas but can't figure out my gas mileage because I can't do long division and my trip computer doesn't work!"
"I'm in debt, BIGTIME, and my car loan is upside down!"
HELP!
p.s. I couldn't program my VCR, either!
Originally Posted By: Norm Olt
"I'm lost, my GPS is down and I can't read a map!"
"I'm buying gas but can't figure out my gas mileage because I can't do long division and my trip computer doesn't work!"
"I'm in debt, BIGTIME, and my car loan is upside down!"
HELP!
p.s. I couldn't program my VCR, either!
On a somewhat related note, I witnessed the following on the People-Mover at O'Hare airport a couple of weeks ago....3 young adults talking about their drive down from Wisconsin and just livid about a 911 operator's attitude when they called for help. What did they need help with? Apparently they left the house without checking the gas gauge, and were somewere north of the airport when they realized that that the gauge was sitting on "E" with the low-fuel light on, and they had passed the oasis where they could have stopped for gas. Not being familiar with the area, they called 911 on their cells to ask directions to the nearest gas station. Couldn't figure out why the operator was bent out of shape at their call.
I wish I was making this up, but I'm not.....
"I'm lost, my GPS is down and I can't read a map!"
"I'm buying gas but can't figure out my gas mileage because I can't do long division and my trip computer doesn't work!"
"I'm in debt, BIGTIME, and my car loan is upside down!"
HELP!
p.s. I couldn't program my VCR, either!
On a somewhat related note, I witnessed the following on the People-Mover at O'Hare airport a couple of weeks ago....3 young adults talking about their drive down from Wisconsin and just livid about a 911 operator's attitude when they called for help. What did they need help with? Apparently they left the house without checking the gas gauge, and were somewere north of the airport when they realized that that the gauge was sitting on "E" with the low-fuel light on, and they had passed the oasis where they could have stopped for gas. Not being familiar with the area, they called 911 on their cells to ask directions to the nearest gas station. Couldn't figure out why the operator was bent out of shape at their call.
I wish I was making this up, but I'm not.....
Magellan 1430 (I think?).
I alwasy told myself I would never buy one. I can read a map/atlas for $4.95. Costco had a great deal, and I bought it. It does come in handy quite often. However, it is just another thing to worry about people stealing. Before I leave my vehicle, I remove all hints of it (windshield bracket, power cord, etc.).
I alwasy told myself I would never buy one. I can read a map/atlas for $4.95. Costco had a great deal, and I bought it. It does come in handy quite often. However, it is just another thing to worry about people stealing. Before I leave my vehicle, I remove all hints of it (windshield bracket, power cord, etc.).
Yeah, that's the same way one of my brothers is. We all got TomToms for Christmas from my parents last year. My oldest brother and I are both road warriors and always have ours up and on. My other brother works at LSU and barely ever leaves campus. He never uses his b/c he's quite sure that if he ever left it in his car, he'd have a nice broken window eventually.
I've been to the other side of the world and back, navigating via paper maps & directional sense. No more.
I now have a TomTom 720.
Wife & I used it for a trip last summer. I set it up to use the British Female voice (Bear right, and take the motorway.) It does a lot of things that are useful, and does them instantly.
I keep maps in the glovebox, but to find a specific site and directions to it in less than five seconds is a real treat.
Just another tool to have in the arsenal.
I now have a TomTom 720.
Wife & I used it for a trip last summer. I set it up to use the British Female voice (Bear right, and take the motorway.) It does a lot of things that are useful, and does them instantly.
I keep maps in the glovebox, but to find a specific site and directions to it in less than five seconds is a real treat.
Just another tool to have in the arsenal.
Exactly, one more tool to aid in navigation. I still have 3 different atlases in my car and 4-5 folding paper maps. They are still great for the big picture and getting your bearings.
Speaking of which, if any of you live in a state covered by the "Roads of" series of atlases, I HIGHLY recommend them. They shame that silly DeLorme atlas.
http://www.mapsco.com/Search-Mapsco-Products.aspx?CategoryID=15
Speaking of which, if any of you live in a state covered by the "Roads of" series of atlases, I HIGHLY recommend them. They shame that silly DeLorme atlas.
http://www.mapsco.com/Search-Mapsco-Products.aspx?CategoryID=15
Originally Posted By: firemachine69
Junk service.
Sorry, I just don't feel that paying a monthly fee to have a micro screen display is "right". GPS is intended to be "free", not some telecom pay-per-usage system.
On that note, check out the phone I'm looking at buying in January:
http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_e90-1857.php
Built-in free-to-air GPS makes it almost feel like something out of Q's lab.
Your GPS isnt free service...what do you think when you buy the unit. All your doing is paying up front.
Junk service.
Sorry, I just don't feel that paying a monthly fee to have a micro screen display is "right". GPS is intended to be "free", not some telecom pay-per-usage system.
On that note, check out the phone I'm looking at buying in January:
http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_e90-1857.php
Built-in free-to-air GPS makes it almost feel like something out of Q's lab.
Your GPS isnt free service...what do you think when you buy the unit. All your doing is paying up front.
Just saw what you wrote in the quote. On that same note, it's like the leasing v.s. purchasing debate. I like to own my property (as much as my country allows me
), not infinitely "borrowing".
Of course, YMMV.
Of course, YMMV.
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