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Posts Tagged ‘automotive gps units’
Okay, here I am, staring at the New Year just around the corner (actually only hours away right now!) and realizing that I got so caught up in baking cookies and all the fun of Christmas, I was forgetting to blog. Had some great ideas, too! Well, today I did a product comparison for a customer, so I thought I would share it with all who may be interested.
Let’s look at the Magellan Maestro 4700 versus Magellan Roadmate 1470 automotive GPS. Both are pretty nice little automotive GPS units with quite a few similarities, but a few differences. First, both have AAA Tour Book/Assistance, Live Traffic Service, SayWhere Speaks Street Names, Points of Interest (although the 4700 accepts many more POIs than the 1470), both have 4.7-inch Touch Screen, rechargeable battery with approximately 3-hour life off the charger, and Pre-Loaded Maps of US, Canada and Puerto Rico. Both of these automotive GPS systems have Memory available for map storage, the Maestro 4700 being Secure Digital (SD) card compatible and the Roadmate 1470 is Micro SD card compatible. Now for the bigger differences; the Maestro 4700 has Bluetooth Handsfree Calling and Voice Command, but the Roadmate 1470 does not. Now, the Magellan Maestro 4700 has a little bit bigger price than the Magellan Roadmate 1470, so you need to decide if the extra bells and whistles are worth the difference in money to you on your GPS receiver. Lots of folks will feel that they are, then you just have to decide how they fit your budget. That would be a completely personal thing in my book. I hope this has been helpful to you and am looking forward to seeing you next year. Happy New Year to all!
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Makin’ a list, checkin’ it twice… Well, here I am in my nice comfy chair, snack at my side, looking at those automotive GPS systems that are on their pre-Black Friday sale. Hmmm. Gotta figure out which one of those Garmin nuvi automotive GPS units I like best. There are so many things to like about each one! First, size – the nuvi 550 is the smallest and will fit in my pocket easily once I hit the sidewalks, the nuvi 1260T and nuvi 1450 are still pretty small but are much thinner, with the 1450 having the largest screen of all which will be easier to see while driving in hectic traffic. The nuvi 550 and 1260T both will have good pictures, but the 1450 has the most pixels, again easier to see in heavy traffic. Okay, color touchscreens on all three, that’s great.
While all are lightweight, the 1260T is nearly half the weight of the other two at about 4 ounces – I’m likin’ that in my pocket again if I head out on foot or bike ‘cause it won’t be bulky. Okay, good… All three have rechargeable batteries; with battery life between 3 and 8 hours on each, the 550 beats the other two out again, but I will just keep them charging while I am in the car. No problems there. All three come with preloaded maps and have the ability to load more – nice. All three use voice prompts and speak streets by name, I like that a lot, but none of these have voice activated navigation; well, I don’t really need that one, and it keeps the price reasonable.
All three will do detour calculations to get me back on track, but only the 550 and the 1450 will figure out the most direct route for me; although, all three models will help me avoid highways or toll roads – savin’ me money; and the 1260T and 1450 both include ecoroute to save gas. I like that. Oh, the 1260T is the one with Bluetooth, a handy feature to have; and that one comes with Lifetime Traffic included, oooh, nice. They all have world clock and a picture viewer, anti-theft (Great Idea) and are easily personalized with Garmin Garage. Ahhh, the nuvi 550, is waterproof and great for motorcycles, boats and geocaching! Well, I think I know which one I want for Christmas, oooops! I am shopping for everyone else!
Crazy, crazy stores Black Friday – I’m sure not joining in on that crush! Who wants to get up at O’dark-thirty and push and shove and stand in line with a bunch of other folks who are pushin’ and shovin’ and standin’ in line trying to get the best bargains. Not Me! I plan to do my shopping online, whenever it is convenient for me, with no other shoppers rushing me or confusing me or stressing me out. This is going to be eeeeasy shopping this year. With the house nice and quiet, got my little refreshments, my nice comfy chair, my computer and me. I’m liking this. I am checking out some pre-Black Friday bargains already online, looking at some automotive GPS systems and found some Garmin nuvi automotive GPS units already on sale! Who knows, I might finish my shopping Before Black Friday even rolls around. Yup, I’m talking eeeeasy this year. I’m crazy about eeeeeasy.
When looking for automotive GPS systems, it will all seem confusing at first due to the wide variety of pricing, features and brands. In fact, there are probably hundreds of models available today. Also, the price can vary greatly from model to model, depending on the features. When searching for automotive GPS units, you first have to know what options are available. Do you want just a standard system that can help you travel from one place to another, or do you want something more sophisticated with additional capabilities? If you just need something basic, then you should look at a price range at the lower end of the scale.
Some of the options available for automotive GPS include widescreen versus standard size, preloaded maps, touch screen to easily look up addresses and services, voice-prompted, turn-by-turn directions that speak street names to your destination, and some will calculate a more fuel-efficient route for you. Another thing to consider is if it is small enough and light enough to carry it with you when you get to your destination and the ability to continue to use your automotive GPS unit while wandering on foot.
Have you broken your GPS antennas on your navigation systems, or is it just not strong enough? Having trouble keeping track of your GPS receiver? Need a second mount so that you can move your automotive GPS units from one vehicle to another, or need to replace the holder that you used to use? Need to recharge your batteries, but still love your GPS device? It is time to consider replacing those lost or broken parts and save the hassles of replacing your trusted GPS receiver that has become like an old friend, one of your all-time favorite traveling companions.
There are lots of options. Perhaps you need a case, a holster or lanyard to protect your handheld GPS units, but help you remain primarily hands free on your adventure. Or you might just want to spruce it up and individualize it. With the right GPS accessories you can fix it up, protect it or update it without a great deal of trouble, and probably save yourself some serious cash while you are at it by breathing some new life into an old friend.
Well, it’s that time of year again, and up here in the North Country the snowbirds are thinking about taking flight back to warmer climes. It is time to be looking at automotive GPS units to help you get around all the obstacles that might be in your way, help you find the nearest gas station or restaurant and help you plan your route to save you gas along the way. There are so many options, let’s consider some of them.
For example, the DeLorme Earthmate BT-20 w/Street Atlas USA 2010 Plus is a smart, flexible GPS, mapping and routing solution offering both Bluetooth and USB connectivity which plugs into your USB laptop PC or ultra mobile PC (UMPC), or works wirelessly with your Bluetooth-enabled laptop, UMPC, PDA, or touchscreen phone. This DeLorme Earthmate GPS allows you to create driving routes automatically, with user controls for road preferences. It will help you locate 4 million places of interest such as restaurants, lodgings, attractions, truck stops, and businesses of all kinds.
Also, the nüvi 255W is a widescreen navigator with voice-prompted turn-by-turn directions that speak street names. It’s packed with millions of destinations and maps for North America. With its “Where Am I?” emergency locator, you always know your location. Simply tap the screen to get your exact latitude and longitude coordinates, the nearest address and intersection, and the closest hospitals, police stations and fuel stations. Garmin’s nüvi 255W includes many travel tools including JPEG picture viewer, world travel clock with time zones, currency converter, measurement converter, calculator and sports a sleek, slim design that fits comfortably in your pocket or purse.
So, go south if you will, but do it safely and efficiently with your choice of automotive GPS systems. There are many affordable automotive GPS units to choose from.