Car GPS Devices

[Sea Ray]

No, it's a wireless FM broadcast. You simply tune your GPS and your radio to the same frequency.

XM radios have this capability as well.

What about HD radios? I'd like to be able to receive HD radio but I don't want to replace my current one which is a factory installed GPS, AM-FM, 6 CD changer.

[BuckWoody]

Thanks again for all the info. I went ahead with the Tom Tom. It's for my wife, the mother of my children, the woman of my dreams....who once left our friends' house in Preble County with instructions to drive south until she hit route 35, then turn left to get back to Dayton. She ended up in Cincinnati.

She eventually found her way home.

[RFS62]

Thanks again for all the info. I went ahead with the Tom Tom. It's for my wife, the mother of my children, the woman of my dreams....who once left our friends' house in Preble County with instructions to drive south until she hit route 35, then turn left to get back to Dayton. She ended up in Cincinnati.

She eventually found her way home.

You can get different voices for the Tom Tom.

You can have Mr. T giving you the instructions.

"Turn around, fool!!! You missed your turn!!!"

"Stop with the jibber-jabber and turn left, fool!!!"

[Johnny Footstool]

What about HD radios? I'd like to be able to receive HD radio but I don't want to replace my current one which is a factory installed GPS, AM-FM, 6 CD changer.

That, I don't know.

[RBA]

What about HD radios? I'd like to be able to receive HD radio but I don't want to replace my current one which is a factory installed GPS, AM-FM, 6 CD changer.

I'm hearing HD radio is not all that is cracked up to be. It's a digital signal which means it needs a clear line of sight (much like a satellite reciever needs from the sky). But sense the station towers are not in the sky above, the signal gets blocked by buildings, hills, trees, etc and the reception is spotty at best. But once it's tune in, it's cystral clear. I hear it's much better to have a set up on a home system.

Also HD Radio is a marketing term. HD does not mean "High Defition" or "Hybrid" radio. It's just a term to sell it like it's the same as HD TV.

[KittyDuran]

Decided to bump this thread up to tell of mine/my Dad's experiences with a GPS. We went halfers on a Garmin Nuvi 260. The first test was to get my parents and sister to Houston for my Dad's POW reunion. Even though the reunion has been held at the same place for a few years it is still hard to navigate in downton Houston. There was no problems except when they were looking for a casino in Lake Charles, LA, but it was no longer there. The second test was for my Dad and cousin to attend a funeral in Lexington. My Dad said that there would have been no way they would have found that funeral home w/o the GPS.

Now, for my experiences going to FL. I stayed the night in Atlanta at the Crowne Plaza near the airport - thiis hotel was just down the street from the Hilton which I stayed at last year. But the GPS paid for itself when I couldn't cross a busy street and decided just to get onto the highway. No problem except that the first exit I took had no easy turn around. I keep on going farther and farther away from the hotel looking for a street to take me back to the highway. At a traffic light I turn on the Garmin and with a few turns it gets me back on track.

I'm pretty familiar with Sarasota but had not been to other ballparks. Wanted to see the Reds play Rays and the Phillies. That meant going to St. Pete and Clearwater. I probably would have found the ballparks with Mapquest, etc. but there was so much construction. The GPS doesn't know that, but will recalculate to get you back on the route.

If there are any cons to the device is it doesn't know about detours (there may be software you can purchase), moved or closed establishments, and local traffic laws. It's favorite means of getting back on the route is doing a U-turn - which in many cases in around Sarasota is illegal.

[dougdirt]

I just went to Chicago with a buddy who has a Garmin. That thing saved us so much time getting around traffic jams it wasn't even funny. I personally wouldn't pay for one, but if I were given one, there is no way I would give it back. When you are somewhere you don't know where you are, or are going on a long trip, its a life saver.

[acredsfan]

I got a new GPS in January. It was around $140 and plays MP3s and movies. It also has a game on it, but it's pretty simple. It is an XROAD V4100 if anybody is interested in looking it up. It has a 4.3 inch touch screen, and for the price is far beyond what I would have gotten from other brands for twice that price. I also have it running into my car radio, so I can listen to MP3s through my radio. Basically when I'm doing my day to day driving, I just use it for the MP3 and Video feature. The GPS software is pretty good, and they are coming out with a new version that will have 3-D buildings. You can also get the traffic kit for $130 for the equipment and a lifetime of service. Compared to paying $30 a month for subscription fees plus about $70 for the equipment for most other brands, that is a great deal. That is the service that tells you about construction, traffic delays, and other such incidents.

[OldRightHander]

For some who don't want to spend the money or who don't need the dash mounted screen, there are some decent mapping programs you can get for your laptop that will work in conjunction with a GPS receiver. I have Sprint wireless broadband and the the wireless card has a built in GPS receiver. I spent $40 on a mapping program (Streets and Trips) and it will do darn near everything one of those GPS units will do, including the turn by turn if that's what you need. With the downloadable updates you can keep current on the maps and even construction information. I prefer not to use turn by turn because I'd rather run the route and know my turns ahead of time, but it's there if you need it. Sure, the portable ones have a lot of the extra features, but if you're on a budget getting a program for your laptop and a GPS receiver will do just fine. You just have to pull over when you want to look something up. I use my paper nationwide atlas to get from one city to the next and then I look up my delivery address on the laptop and read through the directions a couple times. Then if it's at night and I can't see the street signs too well, I'll enable the turn by turn just to identify the streets I'm coming up on.

I have often wondered when I see people doing erratic maneuvers on the road if someone is listening to turn by turn directions and doesn't know the next turn ahead of time. That's just plum lazy. I think those things will allow you to scroll ahead and get your whole route. I think that's probably safer, rather than doing each turn as it tells you and then making erratic lane changes when it tells you that you have to make a left in half a mile and you're in the right lane.

[RFS62]

For some who don't want to spend the money or who don't need the dash mounted screen, there are some decent mapping programs you can get for your laptop that will work in conjunction with a GPS receiver.

DeLorme is the industry standard in my business. I use it with a laptop with a mobile desk mount.

Here's a screen shot. The left side is an overview, the right side a close up. Your next turn is in text below the maps.




Here's how the desk with computer looks in your car.

[OldRightHander]

Here's a new unit that I haven't tried yet.

[goreds2]

Here's a new unit that I haven't tried yet.

I have been looking for a unit for less than a 100 bucks. That is the one!

[marcshoe]

Seems like this would take all the fun out of driving. If I'd had a GPS, I never would have stumbled into that place where the police had just made all those people assume the position the first time I drove in Cincinnati. If I'd had a GPS, I likely wouldn't have driven up to that Pentagon guard shack when I was trying to find my way off of the beltway. If I'd had a GPS I never would have driven on that dark road across central California in the middle of the night after realizing I'd got on the wrong interstate in Stockton. If I'd had...oh, never mind.

[joshnky]

I thought I'd bump an old thread rather than starting a new one. I recently received a Garmin Nuvi 205 as a gift and love it. However, the map is out of date although it was just released last year. I'm hoping an update will provide better coverage and I've seen that they have the 2010 version available. I'd rather not pay $70 to get this from Garmin so does anyone know of a better option?

[Raisor]

Love my garmin. I started my current job (being RFjr) using Mapquest. Bought the Garmin back in January, and can't believe I tried using mapquest at all.

I've got a Jotto Desk on order for my car. Once I get that thing for my computer, I'll never have to leave my car. I'll order pizza online, have it delievered to the car, along with water for drinking and baths.