Portable GPS Nav

Appologies if this is the wrong place for this post. I am in the market for a portable GPS Navigation system. TomTom, Garmin, Magellan seem to be the leaders. Has anyone recently purchased any of these and have a recommendation as to brand and model? Price is not a significant issue.

I recently purchased the Garmin StreetPilot c530. It is an excellent nav unit that is portable. There was one more increment in that lineup, but the added money bought features I didn't care about (mp3 player, voice annunciation of street names rather than just "turn right onto Rt. 93"). In my limited experience, Garmin makes some of the best units and has a very good user interface. I have been very pleased (I wish Mercedes used a Garmin as an OEM supplier). Tom

I've had success with Garmin in the past, but I like TomTom's design. If price is not an issue, why don't you look into an integrated solution and change your stock radio? Pioneer makes great single and double-din products that work much better than the ones that attach to your windshield and give your car a cleaner look.

I would also recommend the Garmin units. They are very user friendly (even my wife can use it) and the visual and audio directions are very good.

I have the TomTom system for my Treo 650 and it works pretty well as well does 3-D or Topographical. Totally portable and keeps me from having ANOTHER piece of electronics in the car.

Price might not be a significant issue, but you can have a lot of fun creating these systems for yourself and using eBay of course and doing it much cheaper. The image below is an iPAQ 3850 PDA connected to a Tom Tom GPS antenna and using the Destinator 3 navigation system. I am also working with an iPAQ 3970 and Sony Clie TJ25 with various suites of software such as iPAQ Navigation, Tom Tom and ViaMichelin as well as playing with different accessories such as expansion packs and verious mounting/powering to achieve the best desired result. I only posted this for general info and to show that there are alternatives to the GPS exclusive systems available on the market especially for those with a budget. Ciao, Adrian. PS: This system is installed into my Alfa 145 winter car. The antenna has a magnetic base so can be used on the roof as well.

i rely on my magellan roadmate 700 on a daily basis. the newer models (i've had mine over a year now) have some nice improvements, but overall i have no complaints. mine is hardwired into my suburban using a mount from proclipusa.com and an external antenna.

I have a Garmin 2610 which works fantastic. It is especially good if you also have a motorcycle as it can be seen in outdoors light and is waterproof. The Garmin is better in many ways than the built in units in my Acura and Audi. However, I am considering installing a double din navigation unit because I want to upgrade the stereo system anyway. I have been looking at the Pioneer units, both the AVIC Z1 and the AVIC D2.

I think the new TomTom big screen is on sale. Check the website. Personally, I love my Traffic Pro. Keeps the interior "clean looking" But I am looking around for something simple for Cindy's 91 Cab.

I like my Garmin Quest a lot. Small, can switch between cars easily and works on my bike with a special mount. I bought it at gpsnow.com which had good prices and a lot of ways to compare between models. I think they only carry Garmin though.

You could think of an in-dash installed navigation system. Kenwood & Pioneer both make great systems. Having a large 7" touchscreen really makes a difference. The 911 was the first car of mine which had navigation ... and I'll NEVER buy a car without it in the future.

I chose Lowrance Way's GPS but you're not interested in those. Here is a forum that covers all GPS companies. http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/default.asp?Group=2

I have a Tom Tom Go and love it. Has other types before and this is by far my preferred to date.

I second this, I have the Pioneer D-2 and I love it. Found it brand new for $650 on ebay a month ago. I paid a few bucks to have it installed and the A/c controls moved down but it makes the interior look a lot more updated and it has XM built in which I love. Spend the extra $'s.

I can recommend the Garmin C320, C330, and C340 models. They all have 3.5" (diagonal) touchscreens and are easy to use [most portable GPS units are easy to use...] The C320 (around $300) does NOT have the maps installed, but is pretty much identical to the C330. The down side is you have to upgrade Flash Memory to hold the all of the US maps (1 Gb just about does it - but I had to omit Montana and N + S Dakota). The C330 has maps installed (about $400) and operates identically to the C320. I think it's on sale at Wal-Mart right now as well. The C340 is basically the C330 with a streetname feature. This one is around $500. For example, my C320 says, "turn right 1 mile" and the C340 would say "turn right on Main street in 1 miles." These are excellent GPS units for long or short trips - but like all units, they aren't perfect. If you need more info, drop me a PM. -td

give the garmin nuvi 360 a try. portable with bluetooth....get in the car and your phone is hooked up. my wife loves it.

I just worked on a commercial for the new garmin nuvi 660. I had it here on my desk for a bit and I gotta say, its one great device. Screen looks great, hooks up with your cellphone...... I'm thinking about getting one myself if I don't go wtih the navigation unit for my motoQ.,

I am a GPS addict - as a magazine editor, I get to try out alot of different models. I like the Streetpilot, but the Navman system is very slick, too. The Lowrance iWay is outstanding, but too big for my 996's dash (it is ideal for the Jeep, however). If all esle fails, I whip out my Garmin GPS v - works right out oif the box - no need to read the instructions.

I priced an eclipse system with hard driv, double din,ipod,etc. It would of been classy, but the installers wanted $3000 for system and install. Considering the noise level from the tires, not sure a super system would be worth it. I have to agree that a small portable nav unit would nice. The new 660 looks thin enough not to clutter up the cockpit. I quess we are all over the map on this one!

I had a Magellan 360 before and returned it for a Nuvi 350 -- I think I'll swap it for the 360 that has Bluetooth but, other than that, it is a very nice unit. Marc

I have 2 Magellan 700s...one I upgraded to a 760. Nice unit....works great...only negative is you can't punch in zip code. I know TomTom lets you...though I have heard quality issues with TomTom. I don't think there is any clear winner yet as to the GPS of choice. Oh..if you go for in-car unit..make sure it has touch screen. thanks, Amir

Garmin Nuvi, yes its expensive, but yes its the best

yea Garmin... i have used the Garmin IQUE 3600 for the past 3 years and it has got me everywhere... very easy to use.

Go for the nuvi. It has a very effective windshield mount and yet can be detached easily. Get the wide screen model, 660 I think. It is very easy to operate and is portable. My experience is that inside a 911 there is not much space to neatly put a GPS except on the windshield. The nuvi fits well and works well.

I agree the 500c is too big but not the 350c. One of the main things I like about Lowrance way are the free updates.

I bought a Garmin Nuvi 660 two days ago and used it yesterday for a full day of driving to two different cities. It worked well and was easy to use. I like that it's thin enough to put in your pocket and use while walking.

Hey Dell I have the TomTom for my Treo also. I really like it but I'm on the phone too much and now I'm hooked on having a gps unit, so I think they've hooked me into buying one of the new GO510's or 610's. Anyone have experience with these units yet?

I used to have a Magellan (used in Hertz rentals) the size of a laptop. I now have the Garmin Nuvi 350 and recommend it for the following reasons: Compact size, easy to store and unobtrusive on the windshield 1 hour battery, no need for dangling cord Both top down and 3D views Announces streets by name Built in flip up GPS antenna, fast satellite acquisition Reliable routing most of the time The Nuvi 360 adds Bluetooth and some other features. Check this out too http://reviews.cnet.com/4321-3430_7-6547218-1.html

I recently purchased a TomTom Go 910 due to the fact that I was taking a driving trip through Italy, France and Spain and it came preloaded with North America and Europe. I can't compare it to other GPS systems, but the TomTom worked flawlessly. I really can't imagine what a nightmare the trip would have been without it. We drove over 3000km and never go lost once!

Thank you for all the information you have provided. It has been very helpful. I read all of the posts on this thread and then went on to a number of GPS forums for some research. I decided to order the Garmin Nuvi 660. It has almost all the features I want and is small enough to easily fit into our cars (especially when not in use...read no storage!). I decided I did not want an in dash unit as I may sell my car in the near future and figure that I will get the most use from a system I can take with me on trips out of town, which I usually fly to and then rent a car. I really thought that I would buy the Tomtom 910 as it provides the most features for the money (i.e. maps of U.S. AND Europe, bluetooth) and considered buying it BUT after reading the GPS forums, it appears that this model has some significant issues, with many of the people posting complaining of the mounting hardware and saying that the model was "rushed to market and not ready." The bluetooth feature (which I do want) is not compatable with many cell phones, at this time. Tomtom supposedly uses mapping software (teleatlas) that is better for Europe while Garmin's is supposed to be better for U.S. So, I went with the Garmin, it has bluetooth, good reviews, better software for US, and this model integrates with the FM radio in the car. Thanks again and hope that my reasearch can help some of you looking, as well.

Thanks for the update. Where did you find the best price?

Best price was at GPSonsale.com for this particular model. If you are looking for other models, other vendors may have better prices. For example on the Nuvi 360 Amazon.com had a really good price and substantially better than places like Circuit City or Best Buy.

iman, you mentioned that the 660 has MOST of the features you wanted. What was lacking that you would have liked? Also, did you get any of the optional accessories? I've been going back and forth on one for Cindy's 91 Cab in Florida and want to make sure that whatever I get is simple to mount, dismount, and easy to use, if you get what I mean. TIA, Don

What it does not have that I wanted was the maps of Europe. My understanding is that you can purchase these on an SD card (it has an SD card slot) but they may be expensive (not sure of price yet). The Tomtom 910 has these maps and has a 20 gig hard drive.

I now have a Navman iCN 320 and the 520. The 520 integrates a digital camera - when you want to log in a location (a restaurant, a scenic area, some hot babe's house, etc) you just "take a picture" It's that easy. It talks to you, too, which is ok when trying to find your way in a new area, except when you don't follow the direction and it gets cranky.

Hi im looking for a portable unit that fits into a 911 dash/window mount. I dont need it to work for other countries. I do mostly east coast type of driving. what can you guys recommend. Has to be compact but visible being that the space in the 911 is limited. so what do you guys say. NOT looking to spend a fortune. Thanks in advance.

Magellan 4050. Big screen, easy to use bluetooth etc. Same as the Nuvi but cheaper. I got mine on sale at Circuit City a while back. Happy with the performance. It did change my perspective on speeding though. Nowadays I just go with the flow of traffic, you'll find out that you really only shave off of a couple of minutes and that you can lose that at a traffic light. Anyways.....thats another story.

Quotes source post: 4669631

I have a TomTom 510 and I really like it. Has gotten me to every client's house during the past 9 months. Easy to use, voice directions. I would get another one in a heart beat!

I've owned both Garmin and Magellan units. I definately prefer Garmin. Currently using a C340. Super simple interface and even my wife likes to use it. I checked out TomTom as well when I bought my latest Garmin and they seemed good as well.

Quotes source post: 4669691

True statement. My Garmin calls the arrival time within a minute over a trip of an hour or so, and you've got to drive like a maniac to shave even two minutes off it's projected ETA. You quickly realize that the only reason to drive fast is for the pleasure of it (assuming safe conditions, etc, etc).

What would a fare price be for the different NAV systems and Where should I look? Thank You guys in advance!

I think I paid something like 480 out the door for the Magellan 4050. I did want the big screen and was willing to pay for it too.....but not too much..so I didn't get the Nuvi.

Ok thanks for the advice guys.

Oppps FYI I just realized I bought a 4040. Not 4050. I was just going to register it online, and saw it was a 4040.