Does everybody have a GPS? If not you should.

[MattinSTL]

Recently Radio Shack was part of Black Friday, but as it turns out they offered some great prices beyond that and I guess we hit another price-drop in GPS tech. If you don't have a very specific model you're looking for, this is a pretty good time to buy one.

When I was out on the salt flats as part of the Macregor crew, I noticed Mac using a GPS frequently... especially since the flats are so vast, it's the obvious way to keep track of where we were filming every day.

For some reason I always thought that GPS wasn't for me. I had a lot of misconceptions about them... and when some of my friends saw my new GPS over the weekend, their questions made me realize that MOST people are ignorant about GPS... I wasn't the only one.

Let me tell you... a GPS is about the coolest thing I own right now, and the best part? It was only $149 from Radio Shack! I got the Mio C320. This is not an endorsement of that particular GPS, but I am totally thrilled with it, especially at the price.

GPS FACTS and misconceptions:

1) Despite how it's going to sound when you read my points below... GPS is simple... simple enough for your mom... and WOW! is it ever helpful! After having one for just 3 days I know I'll never be without one again.

2) A GPS works off of the global positioning satellites. Aside from traffic info, there is nothing complex to program, no cities to select or "buy", and no information you have to provide aside from your own preference on how you want the screen to look and the sounds you want to hear from it. You buy it, stick it on your dash, and it works... FREE and DONE. It works where ever you go... anywhere in the world!

3) With the exception of optional traffic information! A GPS doesn't automatically provide traffic information unless you buy a model that specifically says it has a TMC receiver built in or as part of the package. Then to get updates on traffic conditions you must pay for this service unless you bought a high-end model that includes life-time subscription as part of the price. I've also seen "one free year" as part of some promotions.

4) Not all GPS systems are the same! They vary in several aspects of performance regardless of how pretty they are! While I really wanted a Navigon system because the screen looks like your actual driver's view, most reviews I've read say that the speed of the system is slow. That's all I needed to hear... I've read some reviews on various GPS systems where people say that the system is slow and sometimes you miss the turn it's about to tell you to take... and then that brings up the next issue...

5) Route Recalculation is a feature of all GPS systems, but this also varies some from each model and manufacturer. This comes into play if you miss an exit or turn for some reason... or if you choose to deviate from the suggested course. You want a GPS that doesn't struggle with modifying directions based on your choices to avoid a building traffic situation... or if you leave the road searching for dinner.

6) The actual signal receiving capability varies between some manufacturers! Some units are better at getting a signal then others! Check out the reviews based on what you want to spend. I read reviews on cnet.com, circuitcity.com, gpslodge.com, and where ever google took me based on model names.

7) Generally speaking... GARMIN is the safest/best brand. They are universally accepted as the defining GPS, but they are also some of the most expensive across the board. What this means is that for a given price-range, you get fewer extra features with a Garmin, but you can be sure that the unit is pretty good at being a GPS... and the interface is so simple your grandma could use it.



The reason I got the Mio, was because it's one of the fastest performing GPS units at the price... meaning when it says "turn left in 300 feet" it means it... if the thing says "turn left now" you turn left now. I was on an all-day shoot yesterday where we changed locations 4 times. On one of the changes I wasn't sure of the best way to get to the next stop, and I was following the guy in front of me... I had the GPS on the dash but I wasn't using the route feature. Long story short we got separated at a light and by the time I got to where I saw him turn down the road, I'd lost him... so in a matter of about 5 seconds I had the address up on the screen and hit "route to" and that was it... I arrived at the same time as everybody else as I took a bunch of streets that I didn't know... I was just driving and trusting the GPS.

I know people see me driving with this giant smile the entire time and wish they could be that happy driving around town... but they don't realize I'm smiling from that darn GPS! It's AMAZING how well it works! If I'd had one when I was in LA I would have had a way better visit... and probably still had more friends out there. Between avoiding traffic and getting boofed by mapquest... I probably cost us a collective 6+ hours of vacation through poor navigation.

[Jeff Anderson]

Hmmm I'll have to check out the mio - actually just decided to get a little gps like this. I've got a usb gps and MS streets and trips which is great for a road trip with a navigator but being laptop dependent is a drag for everyday use. Any other thoughts on the Mio vs the others out there?

[Kegan]

I personally haven't used a Mio, but I picked up a Garmin Nuvi 250 a few weeks back and I love it. Its great when you know the address of where you want to go to, but the POIs (Points of Interests) lack on mine. They picked strange ones - for example, when going to the fuel section, a snack bar is considered fuel. If I wanted a snack bar, I would have picked food, not fuel.

Driving downtown Toronto is almost enough to confuse the GPS and I was very tempted to sell it online to purchase a better one, or rely on Mapquest. I went downtown for a shoot the other day and it worked perfectly for an address I entered. Maybe what I have to do is enter my own POIs and not use the system loaded ones. In terms of the "turn left in 300 feet", I find the Garmin fairly accurate. The "turn here" on the other hand varies, based on speed. If I speed up and slow down based on traffic, the GPS lags a bit in catching up.

If I were to buy another GPS, I'd probably do a little more research this time around and try to get one with TTS (Text to Speech) so that I can change the voices. My GPS' voice is so boring! I found that it is possible to change her voice, but I'd have to split the original file into each command and then edit the new voice in, or record a new command and then put the file back together.

All in all, for the price point the Garmin Nuvi 250 is a great GPS, as its fairly easy to use and accurate if you have the address for where you want to go. If you're unsure of where you want to go, program the POIs yourself and it'll save you a headache.

-Kegan

[n8ture]

I use my GPS all the time out in the field.
I have a Garmin GPSMAP 60CS. I'm always marking locations to come back and film.

Sometimes I drive down back country roads looking for interesting places and mark spots as I find them.

I also use it for Geocaching.

Here's a short film I did for a film challenge on Geocaching.
http://www.uwolchallenge.com/challenge2/KJR_UC2_geocaching.mov

[Luis Caffesse]

That's a hell of a deal you got Matt - looking at their website (http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2862025&cp), the price is listed at $299.99

[mjjason]

I always get the GPS option when I rent cars from Hertz. The greatest invention ever made. Makes traveling so simple.

However, I have been holding off on getting one personally as I just can't handle another device. Already have an MP3 player, a cell phone, a laptop, and a PDA, the GPS will be another thing I have to carry. I am holding out for the MP3, PDA, Cell Phone, GPS, laptop all in one device. The iPhone is the closest device so far but I am waiting for the windows version. Such a device will probably exist in 3 or 4 years time once solid-state drives become more available and affordable.

Until then I have to live with crammed pockets.

[Jeff Anderson]

just checked at the ratshack website and its in stock for 149.99 all around me. Damn. now I have to go get one at lunch... oh well...

[MattinSTL]

Yeah Luis... I think that's part of what convinced me. Everybody who has seen it guesses that it was over $300 just by looking at it.

mjjason... if you get the GPS option when you rent a car then a GPS would pay for itself after approx. 6 total days of renting a car with that option.

Since I just got this one I haven't tried it in other cities, but so far I'm thrilled with it's performance in STL. For English voices I only have the choice of an American Male or a British Male (I've got British going)... but I have no complaints about it. I should have mentioned that this unit does NOT have TTS (text to speech) on it.

jdajda... the reason I chose the Mio is because they are largely responsible for bringing the price of GPS down... through offering more for less... and that pulled other companies down in price. Personally I feel they are still doing this from the relatively small research that I've done.

The unit I got has a wide screen with a tabbed function... you can touch this little arrow in the top right corner and it splits the screen with map and info... and then you can choose what info you want to see... and to what extent. This little info section also changes according to whatever is appropriate for how you're using the GPS.

The other thing that (as I read) is unique to the Mio line is that the POI (points of interest) function gives phone numbers in addition to directions/location. For me this is really handy as I HATE calling information for numbers! Let me restate... I HATE THIS... half the time they can't even find the number I'm looking for... then when I get home I check and it's right there in the yellow pages! The worst part is I still get CHARGED for the info call! WTF man? You would think that they have better access to finding numbers then I would have on the floor of my kitchen cabinet.

So yeah... problem SOLVED. No more info calls ever.

OK next... the touch screen works great. You can drag the map around with your finger and pull up POI based on where you stopped dragging. Or you can simply touch the screen anywhere you want and it makes a little bullseye right where you tap the screen... and if you choose you tap "route to"... so even if you only know approximately where something is in town (or for some odd reason you don't enter the address) it's still easy to find the best way there.

Finally... as I was saying earlier. The Mio is reported to be one of the best at recalculating a new route. If you want to use the thing around your own city and you don't want to take a road that it suggests... you can either tell it in advance that you want to avoid a particular road... or else just turn off the suggested course and within an eighth of a mile of ignoring the GPS instructions it will give you a new route. I LOVE this feature and the precision with which it does this. All GPS units will recalculate a route, but they aren't all fast or accurate in doing so... this one is considered to be exceptional at this aspect within this price range. More then anything else that is what sold me on a Mio. Just like with any computer... these have processing and a form of software that they run... and some units are bogged down by the graphics being prettier then they need to be (thinking Navigon here)... and some use lesser processors then the Mio. I drive like a nut and this thing has always been right there... it's never lagging. You can adjust how much info it gives you... as I have it right now it tells me when the exit is a mile away... 900 feet away... then exit now. When I'm not on the highway it does the same thing based on 1/4 mile... 400 feet... turn now.

How much time do you spend driving and really concentrating on your navigation? Unless you're on a route that you drive A LOT... I'll bet you spend a lot of time wondering which of several routes is the shortest or best route. I'll bet that even in areas that you KNOW that you don't really know which of several ways is the best. With a GPS you not only know EXACTLY which way is the best... all the time... you even see other options on the 3d map that you may never have even realized... "Oh... there's no way to even get OUT of that neighborhood..." etc. With this thing I'm ONLY thinking about enjoying the drive.

If you read CNET you'll see that they hurt the Mio C220's score because the screen isn't that easy to read in sunlight... but then you see a rebellion of almost ALL the actual users who say "thank God I didn't listen to the CNET suggestion against this... thanks to the other owner reviews who convinced me to try it anyway." Based on that I actually also bought a C220 while I was at OfficeMax, but after seeing the C320 at Radio Shack I got that one and I'm probably going to just return the C220 (it's still totally sealed... since it was BF I figured I could just decide, open the keeper, and return the other one).

What's funny is that I like this thing so much now I'm trying to decide if I even want to return the C220!

You can zoom so far in that the thing will be a GPS even just for WALKING. Like let's say if you were in Vegas and walking all around the strip and you want to decide where to go? It's still a priceless convenience.

[Jeff Anderson]

Cool thanks for more info... I'm pretty sold on it, but I was mistaken and saw the 230 for 150 and the 320 is back to normal price (damn black friday, although I did pick up a dirt cheap inkjet printer when mine died over the holiday). And it looks like the 320 doesnt have Text to speech which would be really nice... decisions decisions... I think I may just go with the cheaper 230 as it looks to do all I need. No fancy split screen, but from the reviews the layout will work fine for me. Interstingly the 230 review on C-net's site just raves about how much better the screen is... who knows... Looks like a good unit none the less. I'm really interested in using this for walking as well. The wife and I travel to large cities and always get lost walking around. Sucks when you cant find your own car :(

[MattinSTL]

When you park all you have to do is tap the GPS on the spot you want it to mark... and it will put a flag there (literally on the screen) and then no matter where you walk to you can always see where you are relative to that flag. What's nice is the GPS scales all the way down to display a 3D view of your location so that the entire screen only covers about 100 feet!

In all fairness to Garmin... this is one area where the Garmins are rated a little better. They will supposedly get you to truly exact positions and the Mio gets you somewhere between exactly and up to about 100' away. Since I'm pretty confident in my ability to read and use my eyes I consider this to be close enough for navigating... and so the other features of this unit were enough to sway me.

Just so you know the c520 is about $250 and it's got more going for it then the one I got... and to be honest. If I was in the $250-$300 range I would probably double-check my choices again. But based on my experience so far I don't think you could go wrong with the C230 either.

If you want the C220 that I bought on BF then you can have it for what I paid plus any paypal fees and shipping, but honestly at that point I think I'd suggest that you get the C230 anyway... just for the improved screen.

[Terry_Lasater]

I've never owned a GPS, but I've always been fascinated by the technology.

I'm in hopes that the next release of the iPhone will incorporate a usable GPS.

[Barry_Green]

Best. Invention. Ever.

I've been using a TomTom for a couple of years now; it made moving to a new city and traveling across the globe so much easier! Perhaps the greatest feature is when you're headed somewhere and you decide that you need to get gas or food or something, you just tell it to point out a restaurant or gas station along the way and it'll give you dozens of choices. No more being held hostage by the closest-to-the-freeway/most-expensive-gas-station syndrome!

[wabbit]

Nice find on the Mio. I am a bit of a GPS junkie. They are like cell phones, if you don't have one you won't generally feel a need for one but once you own one there is no going back. I have owned Garmins, TomToms, and Magellans and, for me, the Magellans work the best. In particular the routing tends to be a lot more natural (ie not demanding U-turns everytime you miss a turn but actually re-routing a easy correction), inputing addresses is much simpilier, their mapping software is the most up to date, and little things like routing to get your address on the right instead of randomly left or right.

That said, the TomTom One is a great bang for the buck; had one for awhile and loved it before giving to friend. Garmins I have been much more neutral on. They are better then TomTom generally but you pay more. I am really fond of their handheld units (Vista HCX is perfect in everyway) but find Magellan better for the price on car units. Mio is one of the ones I have never tried. Indiviudually everyone has different preferences on GPS makes but honestly at the prices and features you can get today, you can't really go wrong no matter what you choose.

If you are shopping for a real bargin used and refurbished GPS are for sale all the time. A lot of people will buy the latest and greatest and then sell off last years perfectly good model.

To people who crew freelance a GPS is practically a necessity. As Matt was saying, it will shave your time in half getting to new and difficult places. Even if you apply a value to your time as low as $20 a hour, you will recover the cost of your GPS in a week or two.

On a side note, I am a Geocaching geek like N8ture (nice flim). It is truly a fun way to blow a day discovering new places in your area. The wife likes trading all those coins and travel bugs but the hunt is the thing for me.

Cheers

[mjjason]

mjjason... if you get the GPS option when you rent a car then a GPS would pay for itself after approx. 6 total days of renting a car with that option.

Actually I use my company agreement with Hertz which get the GPS at no added cost even for personal rentals.

[uhrgl]

I just got a Magellan 3200 as a gift and I am loving it.

I've been printing out Google maps (and Mapquest before that) for the last eight years, and they worked pretty well, as long as I didn't miss any turns, which is easy to do with DC's MC Escher-like road system -- now I just get rerouted.

[DC]

My GPS (Garmin Nuvi 650) is the device I have that I cannot believe I have ever lived without. Quite possibly the most useful thing I have ever owned. Life on the road is 1000 times better with this thing!! Well worth the investment.

[MattinSTL]

DC... yeah, that's a really really good one.

mjjason, I see... I stand corrected. In my past rental experience the GPS equipped cars added about $20+ per day.

Wabbit... I am by no means an expert on these things. Only relaying my limited experience and sharing my enthusiasm. I hope to really know what the best is for me at a given price by the next GPS purchase.

I'm curious what you mean by easy entering of addresses?

One of the things that I liked about the Mio (that I thought was unique to this company) is that when you enter an address it gradually blacks out keys on the keyboard... only showing possible letters for every address in the area... then before you even finish typing the name, if there's only one name in the city that fits, it goes there. Is that unique or no?

Also... I agree that buying a Garmin is basically saying that you want to spend the most you can for a given set of features... but they seem to be good from everything I read (including user reviews).

Secondly... the TomTom has a really good reputation as well, but as I gathered through reading (perhaps incorrectly?) that a lot of the "extras" actually COST extra... like you have to pay or subscribe to get some of the functions that are simply part of some other GPS systems? Maybe I got that wrong? Like POIs and stuff?

What stinks about the net is you really have to be careful when looking for info... because in the digital age a year or two is practically a lifetime... and while I was trying to research the best GPS for me... I found a lot of outdated info and details regarding the tech.

This thread would be a great place to direct our members to the best choice. I don't know if mine was the best choice or not... it's just what I came up with as I had limited time to decide about one on BF.

I had bought a Magellan 3100 from Sears... and upon discovering several problem reviews, I returned it unopened. The complaints were various... but the one area that pushed me to the Mio was that actual reception on the 3100 was listed as poor and the Mio was reported to get a sat signal anywhere...? But the higher-end Magellan models seem to all be reviewed well.

That right hand thing is pretty smart too... I never would have even considered that feature.

jdajda... as has been mentioned... you really can't go wrong with a tomtom either. The current best deal IMO is the TomTom One 3rd Edition (that is the actual name) which is about $149 right now.

[Beat Takeshi]

This is what a GPS did for us recently. If it wasn't for having Macgregors phone number we would have been a$$ out with the GPS because we had nothing but a hotel name to punch in and it wouldnt just do Madrid as a location. Who would think a hostel would be on it before a hotel. We checked the name over and over again and it was the only thing that came up but of course it just said "Mirasierra" not "Mirasierra hostel"

Our guide in Spain whips by some traffic and we get stuck behind some trucks.
http://www.puffinfilms.com/Spain/IMG_2117.JPG

It starts pouring out and we are trying to figure out the signs so we turn on the GPS.
http://www.puffinfilms.com/Spain/IMG_2119.JPG

We type in the name of the hotel we are staying at and it takes us to the middle of no where.
We are looking for this.
http://www.puffinfilms.com/Spain/IMG_2188.JPG

but wind up here.
http://www.puffinfilms.com/Spain/IMG_2122.JPG

Johnny trying to figure out what went wrong.
http://www.puffinfilms.com/Spain/IMG_2120.JPG

No one speaks english and that hostel is the only thing that comes up on the GPS. Find a lady willing to let us use her cell phone and call Macgregor and he says to look for a certain hospital cause its near the hotel we are looking for. We punch it in and it says we are an hour away.:(

Pur first sign of civilization

http://www.puffinfilms.com/Spain/IMG_2123.JPG

home sweet home.
http://www.puffinfilms.com/Spain/IMG_2124.JPG

[mcgeedigital]

The Nuvi are the cats ass. I am giving my mom my old lowrance Iway 500c and picking up a Nuvi650 for myself for Christmas. I travel a HELL of alot, (right now I'm in Panama), and a GPS is a MUST have!

[Jeff Anderson]

ooh glad you finally found your way... reminds me of when the wife and I went to NYC for our honeymoon (neither of us had been before). We trusted MS streets and trips for directions to the MOMA... damn thing took us to the administrative offices in brooklyn somewhere (i think thats where it was). My wife's like - I thought it would be bigger... I'm like I thought it would be less scary... just a blue building in the middle of nowhere with not a single soul around. Kinda eerie after being surrounded by people in manhattan. sadly our hotel was 2 blocks or so from the real MOMA...

[MattinSTL]

C'mon dude... which model WAS IT?

One of the user-reviews about the Magellan 3100 said almost the same exact thing... I mean almost exactly.

[Barry_S]

I've got a TomTom One and I've been very happy with it. At the current prices, it makes a lot of sense for almost anyone. It usually does an excellent job of routing, but occasionally spits out a route I know isn't the fastest. I usually just start driving the way I prefer and it quickly reroutes. Many times it finds shortcuts and faster routes in areas I've been driving around for years.

A GPS gets you to your destination safer and faster. Without a GPS when you're searching for a destination or lost, your driving tends to be more erratic--slowing down to read street signs, moving across lanes, etc.--usually at night.

You still have to remember to use your brain with A GPS--no map dataset is perfect and it helps to question if the directions make sense. Also it's good to practice keeping your eyes on the road and just listening to the instructions rather than fixating on that pretty screen.

[snowleopard]

Now from a different point of view...

I used to be hardcore into the great outdoors. Off trail hiking, backpacking, mountaineering, sea kayaking, orienteering. Traveled all over the world, etc. When GPS became affordable and they removed the accuracy restrictions on it, I thought it was a godsend. I took it everywhere with me, made all kinds of remote waypoints. It was cool seeing things like dots out in the ocean where a tiny island is, and looking at the unit say 20,204' on top of a peak in South America. But when it came down to using it, as a navigation helper, or even a lifesaver, I found that I never used it for that purpose in 3-4 years of owing it. Not once - not even to walk down a mountain in white out. I think because I had been doing this for so long, and knew what I was doing, that no matter how accurate the GPS was, it didn't come anywhere near close to replacing the skills of terrain reading, topo map reading, or general direction common sense, and survival skills. This isn't to say I'm Bear Grylls, no. But I found that the GPS was dead weight, didn't do me any good, and I sold it, and never missed it.

Now, having spit that out, I think the newer ones with maps in them and touch screen functions are very slick, and driving in big cities, or even small, but unfamiliar ones, or hiking in wide open places like salt flats looking for a previous camera location, they probably are a godsend, and I completely believe you guys.

But for what the unit was, and still is, sold for at many places- helping you find your way out in the wild, and maybe save your life, I thought the thing was a dead weight.

[Anhar Miah]

yea GPS is real cool, I remember back two years ago when I was trying to develop my own custom navigation system (using the standard NMEA data stream and A star algorithms),

Its funny that GPS has some hidden features that they don't tell the consumer about, eg it does have an enhanced mode (I suspect for military use) that gives a much better resolution not available for the public use, I found this out when the last place I was working at they were developing a national tracking equipment.

[wabbit]

I'm curious what you mean by easy entering of addresses?

One of the things that I liked about the Mio (that I thought was unique to this company) is that when you enter an address it gradually blacks out keys on the keyboard... only showing possible letters for every address in the area... then before you even finish typing the name, if there's only one name in the city that fits, it goes there. Is that unique or no?


I never used any Mio but Magellans allow you to start with zip codes or city,ST and then works down from there, greying out choices as you proceed; making it quicker to input full address. In my experience with Garmin and TomTom you have to start with street address and work your way to city,st. A much slower process in my experience. Especially annoying if you aren't 100% sure whether it is a St or Ave, or if the numbered road was NE, SW, etc. In the Seattle area that is critical (there is very little logic to how our roads are ordered).

I am sure that feature is not unique but a huge headache saver and worth looking for IMO. I would wager newer Garmins have it but the high-end one I got 3 years ago did not.

But still, the price drop compared to features you can get now-a-days is amazing compared to just a short time ago. I don't think you can go wrong with any of them.

Cheers

[Barry_Green]

Secondly... the TomTom has a really good reputation as well, but as I gathered through reading (perhaps incorrectly?) that a lot of the "extras" actually COST extra... like you have to pay or subscribe to get some of the functions that are simply part of some other GPS systems? Maybe I got that wrong? Like POIs and stuff?
No, that's all free. The traffic service is an extra-cost option if you want that. And map updates cost. But normal usage and points of interest, etc., that's all free.

[DC]

yea GPS is real cool . . . Its funny that GPS has some hidden features that they don't tell the consumer about, eg it does have an enhanced mode (I suspect for military use) that gives a much better resolution not available for the public use, I found this out when the last place I was working at they were developing a national tracking equipment.


And just how do we access these hidden modes, Anhar? :)

[Chris Messineo]

I didn't realize the prices had come down so far on GPS systems.

I'm thinking of picking up a Garmin Nuvi 200 for my wife for Christmas. They're only about $200 at Amazon.com.

[Barry_Green]

Just got one of those for a present; $169 at Best Buy on "Black Friday".

[Shawn Philip Nelson]

My day job is actually working for Garmin. Before working here, I didn't even know why I'd need a GPS, they are the future. The cell phone analogy is good, before you have one you don't know when you'd use it, but after, you can't live without it.

[OldCorpse]

Meh. Wake me up when the accuracy is such that I can pinpoint the exact spot my car is parked in one of those huge parking structures, where like in a Seinfeld episode, I always seem to forget where I parked :)

[Drew Ott]

Anhar, let us know how to access hidden features. Sounds awesome.

I won't tell.:lipsrseal

[n8ture]

I know in some situations where there isn't much to dilute the signal my Garmin comes in with about 3 feet of accuracy. Certainly enough to find my car in a big parking lot.
\

[jdmoviemaker]

dude , I have one built-in on my escalade esv

[Anhar Miah]

Well I wish even I knew how, I'd love to tell you but the engineers never let me see the program code and test bed that they was running, just explained that it existed..

The accuracy in civilian models is increased via oversampling, and some of the navigation software makes some assumtion based upon vehicle speed and direction (i.e. if your travelling forward, in the next second your most likely to be travelling in the same direction) you can actually test this, swicth or kill the GPS signal randomly and you will see that the software "assumes" your current position (but not indefinately)

The military can change the SA (Selective availability[1]), and have access the unencrypted mode, but this is not available to us mere mortals sadly.


On a bright note, for those who hunger for more accuracy you can also switch the European Galileo positioning system[2] :) which I believe is more accurate than existing GPS, and the project has stated they will not implement SA or SD

[1]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Positioning_System#Selective_availability

[2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_positioning_system

[snowleopard]

I believe the old Soviet "Glonoss" system has even more accuracy, or did or... someone needs to do a web search for more on it, the sat's may no longer be up.

[JasonFox]

I got a Magellan 2200t from Buy.com a few months back for $165. A refurb, of course, but an awesome deal for a model with text-to-speech (which is what I was holding out for). Now, Costco has a slimmer Magellan with speech for $199. Granted, I'd rather have a Tom Tom as they're Mac compatible, but I'll make due with my non-updatable maps for a while longer yet. Great for road trips.

[MattinSTL]

Can you guys drag your finger on the screen to pull the map around? Like you would pull the pointer with a mouse pad? On my unit you can pull the map around and zoom in and out with your fingertip... and when you do this it stops showing progress so that you can drag the map over to find something... then you just tap it again and it resumes following the route. Is this a normal feature? Also I can tap a spot to see the POI around that spot... and I can tap-tap the POI to pull up the address and phone number. Is that normal on the other brands now?

I'm also wondering if most brands have a daylight changing to nighttime display?

I really dig the idea of being routed for right hand arrivals... and I know that the Garmins are reported to be the most accurate. If it really can get you to within 3' of your car that's pretty impressive. I can get to within 3' of a point as long as I set the coordinates... but so far I'm just moving around with finger taps... and that may be part of the reason why I'm not nailing my position exactly.

The GPS has been a bit of a learning process (although it's easy as pie)... but I can say that I haven't enjoyed any tech item more then this thing... at any price... I'm floored that these things work so well and I'm even more stunned at how few people have them! It is exactly as you guys say... it doesn't seem like anything to get excited about but after having one there's no going back.

It's great finally learning the roads in my area... my mind is totally blown by these things. I hope I don't have an accident watching the GPS though...

[Anhar Miah]

Self Correction:

The alternative mode that I was refering to is not related to SA, although SA does affect the accuracy, the mode I was thinking of was the P-Code, the public use is the C/A signal.

Some digging last nigt revealed that the P-code is encrypted with the A-code, this is what is needed to decrypt the carrier signal, and the "work around" is that an estimated value can be used, I suspect this is what the engineers where doing.

Ok now that my technical info has been revised I feel alot better :)

[GenJerDan]

No, that's all free. The traffic service is an extra-cost option if you want that. And map updates cost.

They do? Just bought a TomTom and it looks like the map updates are free, too. "Use Latest Map Guarantee" in the TomTom Home menu.

Oh, and earlier Navigon was mentioned and dismissed.

I concur. Overpriced piece of doodoo. And badly designed: adjusting the position on the pedestal will usually result in you turning the thing off. And then you pray you can turn it back on again.

[Beat Takeshi]

Do all GPS units remember your path like if you are on a boat and find a good fishing spot so you can find it again the next day? My Bro in-law's does that and its great when we hit the reefs in florida. I think he has an old magellean.

[Erik Olson]

Back in 2002 we used the TopoUSA application from Delorme to navigate from Mexico to Canada and back to San Francisco - 65% of it off-road. As with other all-in-one applications, you could tell it to route only on primary roads or to use any available road.

We shaved a few hours off our return trip by taking the suggested route down a dirt logging road that ran most of the way through Montana. There were some moments where we questioned our decision (usually when we found ourselves face-to-face with a log-laden tractor-trailer), but we actually came out way ahead.

Used the Delorme system to navigate against LAT/LONG maps of USA, Mexico, Belize and Guatemala in 2004. It's really amazing what you can do with one of the GPS units when you have an appropriately corresponding printed mapset. We still have all the Gazetteers from those trips.

While the nice 15" laptop display is great, it is a little bit cumbersome! So, for daily driving in and around the civilised world, it is TomTom for me.

e

[MattinSTL]

Do all GPS units remember your path like if you are on a boat and find a good fishing spot so you can find it again the next day? My Bro in-law's does that and its great when we hit the reefs in florida. I think he has an old magellean.

I'm pretty sure that's a common feature for all GPS units now.

On mine you can be anywhere and with one button you can drop a flag on that spot... or if you know you want to put that spot in the database permanently you can save it. Then yes, in about 2 taps of the screen you can be directed back there at any time.

They sell marine specific GPS systems... and I'm sure that's what you'd want to buy for your boat... because of channel depth, shipping lanes, unseen hazards, currents, and borders that are defined entirely by coordinates based on distance to the shore. I wouldn't suggest anybody get an ordinary GPS and figure they can just use it for both land and water.

[dory_breaux]

My little brother has one for GeoCaching, but I sure as hell would like one for mapping bike trails and such.

[Barry_Green]

Check out the new Google Maps for Mobile too. It's for cell phones that have an unlimited data access plan (like EDGE, etc). Just downloaded it, and it gives you mapping, and if you have a GPS in your phone or you have a separate GPS device through BlueTooth it'll be able to read that and show you your position in the world.

But what's kinda cool is that it can also do that even if you don't have a GPS! They've added the ability to triangulate your position based on nearby cell towers. So it'll mark your position within, say, 1/4 mile or so. And it's free.

http://www.google.com/mobile/gmm/index.html

[Sean Michael]

My wife and I took a 15,000-mile road trip this year (drove from Key West to Seattle and points in between). We bought our GPS (a Garmin Nuvi 660) in Seattle -- it made the trip home MUCH more pleasureable.

I haven't researched the entire Garmin line, but it looks like the more expensive models toss in extra features (ie. Bluetooth, FM transmitter, MSN info, etc.) that you may or may not need. You also pay for screen size.

Anyway, I can vouch for the Garmin Nuvi 660. It's been almost flawless. Once you’ve traveled with a GPS, there’s no going back.

[Blaine]

I was looking at the Mio 320 but it's not compatible with Mac, so I think I'm going with the Garmin Nuvi 200W which does have Mac compatibility.

[Ryan Patrick O'Hara]

I don't like GPS.

They can find you. They can track you. Big Brother knows where you are going and where you have been.:Drogar-Shock(DBG):

[J Michael]

My little brother has one for GeoCaching, but I sure as hell would like one for mapping bike trails and such.

Garmin has historically been pretty good about making their units open for data access from other applications. I've written scripts to do stuff like look up all the airport coordinates within a given distance from a coordinate pair, then plot those airports on a Garmin eTrex. You can also download the data with your track, say to plot on a topo. You can interface with the Garmin topo software. Also check out APRS which lets you track a GPS in real time.

[Noel Evans]

I was looking at the Mio 320 but it's not compatible with Mac, so I think I'm going with the Garmin Nuvi 200W which does have Mac compatibility.

Good to know... was just looking at some systems today for my Aus return to a new house in a part of Australia I dont know the roads at all. (And Im on mac)