I just looked at Garmin's website to see what is available at a moderate price. I counted 46 - that is forty-six models of Nuvi, and most of them have the following features:
This is a very affordable model at $159.
nüvi® 2250 - Affordable, get-around-town navigator preloaded street maps for North America, lane assist, myTrends™, optional lifetime traffic, speaks street names, Where am I?, photo navigation, ecoRoute™, pedestrian navigation options
What is "optional lifetime traffic"? I've had just about enough traffic for my lifetime, but they DO say it is optional. Lane assist is good, but what are "myTrends"? Spoken street names is a feature I definitely want. "Where am I?" If I need this feature I am definitely lost, and I try to not get THAT lost. I can barely take my eyes off the road long enough to glance at the screen, and I'm not sure if photo navigation would be my safest bet. I'd like to know more about ecoRoute, but don't think I would use the pedestrian navigation options.
If I am willing to spend $239 I can get lifetime maps in addition to lifetime traffic. You get the picture - 46 different models of Nuvi alone to choose from, with varying levels of complexity, including 3D terrain maps and speech recognition, neither of which I can figure out why I would want in a GPS.
What I do want is to get rid of the crabby woman who currently directs me, and get a sexy man's voice, preferably with an Italian accent!
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Our Garmin comes with maybe half a dozen different voices in different accents & like I said before, it's more important for me to hear the directions as we're traveling rather than see the directions. That way my concentration is on the road & I'm not trying to look at a small screen with an even smaller map on it. Of course I have the advantage of having someone doing all the programing & changes as we go too & that of course is a big help.
ReplyDeleteWhat ever happened to reading maps? Planning it out? I realize the GPS is the greatest thing since "OMG Sliced Bread" but honestly? I get so tired of reading one blog after another that details how poorly the GPS worked for them. Too many times I have been relegated by how the GPS sent them down roads that weren't passable or in the wrong direction. I read that type of thing more often than not.
ReplyDeleteNot denigrating your decision, mind you, but it is amazing how anyone got along before all this technology. Good luck in your decision.
That should be regaled and not relegated, sorry. :D
ReplyDeleteThe Where am I is one of the things we use for the parks. You bring up where am I, save it and you can always find your way back to the park when you're sight seeing. It's fast. You can also put in the address and save. Where am I is like a bread crumb. We love our Nuvi, it TALKS when we're suppose to turn.
ReplyDeleteI have two of the darned things. My Magelan is my favorite, but the Tom Tom is alright too. Both were around $150.00. They both talk. The where am I is probably the same as your Home address. Both of mine give options for different voices in different accents. I also have a Garmin hand held that I use for geocaching. I like that one too. Its all in what you like I guess. I bought both of mine because they are very simple to use, and now I always have a back up. I think the traffic thing may be a rerouting program. I've never used mine.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I'd just get the simplest one with the least options. It will get you from point A to Point B just the same as the ones with all the doo-dads you'll never use.
ReplyDeleteI like the GPS because when we get lost driving around a city, it's always easy to just punch in our destination and we're safely guided right back. That's not always possible with paper maps.
We don't have a GPS and I don't think we've ever even looked at one. :( Sad I guess in this day and age of hi-tech gizmos. Still, I'm glad you can use one and make it work for you!!!
ReplyDeleteIt is a great way to see the USA and I think the GPS technology is only going to get better.
ReplyDeleteI use a GPS but only as a backup to my map reading skills. The two working together help give me the confidence to go into unfamiliar territory.
I think you will have fun with whatever you buy and just get out there and enjoy it. It ain't perfect but I never saw a printed map that was perfect either. I've even had back set drivers that were wrong on occasion...
I have never had a GPS, though I have looked into getting one, just for geocaching.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was driving my brother from England around Houston, he had his TomTom with him. His British sounding TomTom "Lady" would get quite upset when I took the backstreets to avoid traffic jams. She had us in stitches! It was very amusing.
I have the trucker's edition of the Garmin. More pricey, but puts my mind a little more at ease about low underpasses, etc. I use the guy with the Australian accent, and call him Jack in the Box! :)
ReplyDeleteI am still an avid map user...A friend of mine used one in NYC and the main problem was it had no way of learning the traffic problems, so when she used it we got stuck in traffic a lot..we knew when to and when NOT to go to certain parts of the city in order to avoid traffic! BUT it was a God Send when we were sent out of state to do a transport! Good luck making your decision.
ReplyDeleteBetter not get one that has too sexy a voice, you will forget where you are going!
ReplyDeleteI had a Garmin, couldn't hear it over the diesel and couldn't see the screen because of the glare. Sold it for what I paid for it! Getting lost if fun, you might see something you otherwise would miss!
Ohhh ours had an irritating woman who was always saying "OFF ROUTE! OFF ROUTE!" We turned her off.
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Karen and Steve
(Our Blog) RVing: Small House... BIG Backyard
http://kareninthewoods-kareninthewoods.blogspot.com/
Ohhh ours had an irritating woman who was always saying "OFF ROUTE! OFF ROUTE!" We turned her off.
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Karen and Steve
(Our Blog) RVing: Small House... BIG Backyard
http://kareninthewoods-kareninthewoods.blogspot.com/
I'm a map person, even used to draft them at a job I had, but sure would like one to tell me where the closest "whatever" is.
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