DRIVING GPS

[mnhunter79]

Hey folks,

Which one of many, would be a good driving gps to get someone for a x-mas gift? Would like a bigger screen, color, turn by turn navigation, dash mount, easy to use & easy to read the screen. OH yeah, do you need a chip to show more roads or do they already come pre loaded w/roads? Thanks.

[Nutty Fisherman]

Most are pre loaded. I just got a garmin nuvi (love it). All kind to pick from, depends on how much you want to pay for it.

[Northlander]

They all have most roads in them. If you want to use it in a boat or wheeler then the LOwrance XOG is the only deal.

[PierBridge]

Tom-Tom or Garmin can't go wrong either way!

[fishinbabe]

I just bought a Garmin Nuvi 265WT off Amazon a couple weeks ago, and so far am real happy with it.

[lawdog]

They are pretty cool, but if you have a GM you can get turn by turn navigation through On-Star and then you don't need that ugly thing mounted in your vehicle...

[PierBridge]

Big price differece though Dog. A $100 bucks and your set for years with a Tom/tom or Garmin....

What's On-Star now like $300 a year?

[mnhunter79]

It's for my dads semi. On the raod for a livin thought he would like one. Thanks for the ideas. Might go with the TOMTOM. I dont think his big rig has on star

[BUSHWAC]

I went to buy a pheasant stamp and walked out with a stamp and a Tom Tom. It was $99.00 and I really did not need it. I am surprised how much I like the thing. It's kind of sweet unit for the money.

[PierBridge]

Quote:

It's kind of sweet unit for the money.

It really is they were $600 just a couple years back.

Garmin's are sweet also it's nice having competition!

I picked up a TOMTOM for $69 on Black Friday.

[Bearfan1963]

Got my wife a TOM TOM in October for her birthday and like it real well, easy to use and has all that you listed for preferences, and affordable. Just got to get used driving along in the middle of the night with everyone sleeping then someone just up and telling you there is a turn in 2 miles, kinda startles you the first few times.

[Valv]

I had a Tom Tom and was happy, tried a Magellan and liked it a lot, went to Garmin and returned it in 1/2 day, and went back to Magellan wide screen with Bluetooth. I also have a Navigon which is nice since it shows Interstate junctions with actual sign and which lane directions but characters are a little too small. If he's a trucker there are some out there specific for his business (eg where are the weight scales, truck routes, low bridges, etc) but they are of course very expensive. Overall a basic Magellan or Tom Tom would be a good buy, above them it gets a little more difficult

[wishing for walleyes]

I use a magellan roadmate 760 for the car.Works great for me.

[Macgyver55]

For what its worth, I have a buddy that is a trucker that actually now has has 3 different units. A Tom Tom, a Magellan and a Garmin. He started out with the Tom Tom, but actually had a few times where he said it acted "confused" (his words) out on the east coast area. So, then he bought a Garmin and liked that better. Another friend lent him his Magellan to compare. Just for fun he has actually run all three at the same time. He told me if he were to choose just one it would be the Garmin without question. They all have things he liked and disliked about each but he said the Garmin seemed the most user friendly, and contained the most info. I bought a Garmin on his recommendation and couldn't be happier. I got one for my 83 year old dad and he was able to use it without even using the instructions. Compare them all they are all pretty good.

[Cabela10]

I got a TomTom 930 in October and it's great. If you have a phone with bluetooth, you can get current traffic conditions and it will bypass those heavy traffic areas. There are a ton of other options in the high-end 930 model. I think you can still get it for $400 but it usually costs $500. Great unit. Very user friendly.

[snoozebutton]

Thanks for the info Macgyver55, I'd tend to trust what a truck driver thinks. Looking for one for my wife since she does a lot of driving for her job.

[katoguy]

When one thinks of GPS in the states - think of Garmin.

However, even the cheap Nextar's and such are decent units. So there many options out there depending on all the bells and whistles that you want. I like the text-to-speech. Also, I recommend the 4.3" screen.