I recently had the chance to use the gps in a Hertz rental and was impressed, I'm now considering buying one for myself. I'd like to keep the cost reasonable and some of the units I've looked at are, the Garmin 2610, magellan 300 and the Garmin Quest. Does anyone have any experience with these or similar units that they could share?
GPS for the car
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Bob_Skurka
Super Member
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Tom Tom Go is the best, most user friendly of the car style units. Do a web search of product reviews, most rate the Tom Tom at or near the top. I use a Magellin Meridian Color unit in the car with their optional point-to-point street mapping software, it is pretty good but the screen is small. I chose the Magellin because I wanted a portable handheld unit that would also work in the car. While the software is good, on the Magellin it is not as good a the Tom Tom. For a deciated car unit, I would get the Tom Tom, in fact I like it better than the Lexus and Volvo units that I have used in their cars.
C|Net product reviews (editor's choice)
With any luck Murph (member: thrci) will come to your aid, he has extensive experience with Garmin units and gave me tons of information about GPS in general when I was shopping. He plays with them as a hobby and probably forgot more about them than I will ever understand, but he was incredibly helpful.
C|Net product reviews (editor's choice)
With any luck Murph (member: thrci) will come to your aid, he has extensive experience with Garmin units and gave me tons of information about GPS in general when I was shopping. He plays with them as a hobby and probably forgot more about them than I will ever understand, but he was incredibly helpful.
Henro
Elite Member
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- Kubota B2910, BX2200, KX41-2V mini EX
The only experience I have is with my laptop and Delorme software.
For the price, if you have a laptop already, the GPS software and receiver are a pretty good option and provide a good bang for the buck.
I have been impressed with the accuracy on roads that I am familar with, and also with the display when driving down roads anywhere. Mostly the display is right on. Occasionally the symbol is a bit off the displayed map, but not by much.
I don't doubt the more expensive units are better, but when it come to inches and I am in a vehicle that measures feet in length and width, I am not sure small differences make much differece at all.
If I already had a laptop, I would try some relatively cheap GPS software and hardware first, and then see if I needed more.
For the price, if you have a laptop already, the GPS software and receiver are a pretty good option and provide a good bang for the buck.
I have been impressed with the accuracy on roads that I am familar with, and also with the display when driving down roads anywhere. Mostly the display is right on. Occasionally the symbol is a bit off the displayed map, but not by much.
I don't doubt the more expensive units are better, but when it come to inches and I am in a vehicle that measures feet in length and width, I am not sure small differences make much differece at all.
If I already had a laptop, I would try some relatively cheap GPS software and hardware first, and then see if I needed more.
Like Henro, I've been using a laptop, Delorme Street Atlas and their Earthmate GPS antenna for years. Works fantastic. The antenna sits on the dash and is either hardwired to the laptop, or they have a Bluetooth version. Software and antenna is $129 in addition to the laptop. The entire country plus most Canadian roads is on the CD-rom disc; if you have a big enough hard drive, the CD can now be downloaded completely to the hard disk. They generally come out with updates every year for ~$39. Delorme
The only problem in many cars is where to put the laptop. Some years ago I bought a floor-mounted table for the laptop but it was a pain to install in some of my cars. I now have an aftermarket between-the-seats console that's a little lower than the seats, and my laptop fits there perfectly, wedged between the seats. For the motor home, I built a small computer desk fo r the dash.
It's also possible to download a portion of the Delorme mapping software to a PDA and hook the antenna to that.
The only problem in many cars is where to put the laptop. Some years ago I bought a floor-mounted table for the laptop but it was a pain to install in some of my cars. I now have an aftermarket between-the-seats console that's a little lower than the seats, and my laptop fits there perfectly, wedged between the seats. For the motor home, I built a small computer desk fo r the dash.
It's also possible to download a portion of the Delorme mapping software to a PDA and hook the antenna to that.
I have the Garmin 2610 and think it's great. I have also had the Garmin GPS V and the CoPilot. You will want to get a larger storage card to store more maps. A 2 gig card will hold the entire US.
Be aware that with this or any other auto routing GPS they routing is not always perfect but they will get you to your destination. Also, the "Feature" database is not always complete.
Jack
Be aware that with this or any other auto routing GPS they routing is not always perfect but they will get you to your destination. Also, the "Feature" database is not always complete.
Jack
WhiteRock
Silver Member
I have the Bluetooth receiver from Delorme (BlueLogger I think). It's pretty neat. You can just put it on the dash and no wires.
Also, you can configure it to log, turn it on, clip it on your belt, hat, tractor console, etc. and download it later and verify your coverage with the tractor on your property. It has a 12 channel receiver w/WAAS capability.
Also, you can configure it to log, turn it on, clip it on your belt, hat, tractor console, etc. and download it later and verify your coverage with the tractor on your property. It has a 12 channel receiver w/WAAS capability.
Thanks everyone for the input. I don't have a laptop yet but, it's on the want list. The thing I like about some of the dedicated units is the size and portability. I think I'll dedicate some of my IRS return for the purchase.
ronjhall
Super Star Member
I'll add a vote for Delorme. Bought Street map 2005 with GPS from Circuit City for $110. Loaded it on my laptop with no problems.
I have been able to plan my trip out west later this month with ease.
One complaint I have is my notebook screen does not like any sunlight on it. I have made a shield for it.
I have been able to plan my trip out west later this month with ease.
One complaint I have is my notebook screen does not like any sunlight on it. I have made a shield for it.
m1greg
Member
If you own a PDA you can get a GPS card and use a software program such as Destinator 3 to navigate. I recently bought Destinator 3 and a powered winshield mount for my PDA for use on a trip to Florida. Cost of the software was $105 and it contains all of N. America. The powered speaker / mount cost $50. The software is amazingly accurate in its direction giving. It talks you right to the door of your destination! My wife nicknamed the female voice Betty and joked that the company should have used a mans voice as so men would actually listen to the directions given. ( Huh? Did you say something honey! ) /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
Wingnut
Veteran Member
I bought a GPS unit about 16 months ago -- but for my bike, not the car. After a lot of research, I showed my wife the specs for the Garman iQue 3600 and she said that I should buy one and give her my PDA.
The iQue is a Palm unit specially built for Garmin .... 32mb of ram, and takes SD cards.
I use it on the bike, in the car and will use it in the motorhome if I actually fire it up this year.
The reason I went with the iQue is it's schizo personality .... I use it daily and constantly for its PDA functionality .... Palm 5 OS means it'll run all palm apps .... and I have it in the dock right now, synchronizing my Outlook calendar, contacts list and to-do list. When I get home, I will resynch it to my home computer so my agenda is up-to-date everywhere. Last night while we were visiting my mother-in-law at the nursing home, I managed to while away the 90 minutes by playing a game on it.
As far as the Garmin side of its personality ... it gets mounted on the bike whenever I'm going anywhere besides the standard work route. Not because I'm lost ... but because I love the tracking function .... I download the tracks to my computer and load them to a map so I have a constantly updated map showing all the roads I've ridden ... makes it easier to choose new routes.
The mapping software comes with an astounding number of searchable places - restaurants, rest areas, gas stops, etc.
The routing function is fantastic .... my favorite example is a highway interchange about 50 miles from here. When switching from I-75 to I-69 in Flint, it can be a little tricky because the ramp also leads to a local road. The voice commands say "in 300 feet exit right, keep left" since going too far right would make you exit to Miller Road. It then says "exit right, stay right" since the exit ramp immediately branches into ramps for east and west directions on I-69. This means that I've been able to ride in Chicago rush hour traffic and catch my exits without having to concentrate on the signs .... I can keep my attention on the dangerous idiots around me ...
I like it on the bike so much that I just received an order of interface cables that will allow me to inject "bitchin' betty"s voice into the bike intercom system ....
I've also purchased an external antenna so that I can use the iQue in the car or motorhome without placing the unit on the dash .... it gets pretty hot in the sun behind that glass!
The iQue is a Palm unit specially built for Garmin .... 32mb of ram, and takes SD cards.
I use it on the bike, in the car and will use it in the motorhome if I actually fire it up this year.
The reason I went with the iQue is it's schizo personality .... I use it daily and constantly for its PDA functionality .... Palm 5 OS means it'll run all palm apps .... and I have it in the dock right now, synchronizing my Outlook calendar, contacts list and to-do list. When I get home, I will resynch it to my home computer so my agenda is up-to-date everywhere. Last night while we were visiting my mother-in-law at the nursing home, I managed to while away the 90 minutes by playing a game on it.
As far as the Garmin side of its personality ... it gets mounted on the bike whenever I'm going anywhere besides the standard work route. Not because I'm lost ... but because I love the tracking function .... I download the tracks to my computer and load them to a map so I have a constantly updated map showing all the roads I've ridden ... makes it easier to choose new routes.
The mapping software comes with an astounding number of searchable places - restaurants, rest areas, gas stops, etc.
The routing function is fantastic .... my favorite example is a highway interchange about 50 miles from here. When switching from I-75 to I-69 in Flint, it can be a little tricky because the ramp also leads to a local road. The voice commands say "in 300 feet exit right, keep left" since going too far right would make you exit to Miller Road. It then says "exit right, stay right" since the exit ramp immediately branches into ramps for east and west directions on I-69. This means that I've been able to ride in Chicago rush hour traffic and catch my exits without having to concentrate on the signs .... I can keep my attention on the dangerous idiots around me ...
I like it on the bike so much that I just received an order of interface cables that will allow me to inject "bitchin' betty"s voice into the bike intercom system ....
I've also purchased an external antenna so that I can use the iQue in the car or motorhome without placing the unit on the dash .... it gets pretty hot in the sun behind that glass!