New GPS Unit: A must read before you buy!

GPS Buyers Guide, GPS Reviews | GPS Software Hub | January 2, 2008 at 9:55 am

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If you’re shopping for your first — or next — GPS unit, consider the following five features (many devices will have two or more):

• Garmin Nuvi 660: Real-time traffic alerts. New GPS devices can alert you to traffic issues so you can avoid them. But the service usually requires an annual service fee (of about $60 a year) to get the real-time updates. Plus, it’s available only in select cities throughout the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

A small antenna gets data via FM frequency, so you can be warned of traffic backups. The Garmin Nuvi 660 ($749.99 at www.garmin.com, but you can find it, and other products mentioned here, for less if you shop around) includes this integrated traffic receiver and a 90-day free trial.

• Mio DigiWalker H610: Built-in battery. GPS devices once were limited to the vehicle where they were used, either because they had a non-removable in-dash design or required power from the car’s cigarette lighter. Now, many GPS devices offer a rechargeable internal battery, which means you can easily use it in any vehicle — or even on foot. The Mio DigiWalker H610 ($199.99; www.mio-tech.com) is smaller than a bar of soap (2.32 inches by 3.35 inches by 0.74 inches). It also offers pedestrian and cycling maps, so it won’t tell you not to walk the wrong direction on a one-way street.

• TomTom One XL-S: Text-to-speech translation. Many new GPS devices, such as the TomTom One XL-S ($299.95; www.tomtom.com) include a handy “text-to-voice” feature. So, instead of the machine telling you “turn right in 1 mile,” it will say something more specific, such as: “turn right in 1 mile on Alphabet Street.”

Many people prefer to hear the name of the road read aloud, rather than having to look for it on the GPS map or street sign. For $499.95, the TomTom Go 920 also lets you say the destination address out loud rather than type it in.

• Magellan Maestro 4040: Bluetooth. This is a short-range wireless technology designed to help devices communicate with one another, such as your cell phone and a headset for hands-free chatting. If your GPS has built-in Bluetooth, and your nearby phone has it, too, you can do things such as talk through the GPS unit’s external speaker instead of wearing a headset. Or, depending on the GPS device, you can tap on a point of interest, such as a restaurant, and it will call the business so you can make reservations (via your phone).

If you wear a Bluetooth headset, you might also hear turn-by-turn directions in your ear instead of through the external speaker. The Magellan Maestro 4040 ($499.99; www.magellangps.com) is an example of a unit that offers Bluetooth connectivity.

• Mio DigiWalker C720t: Multimedia playback. Because many GPS devices now have expandable memory, a rechargeable battery and a touch-screen interface, it makes sense that they also double as portable media players, too.

More than a dozen GPS devices, such as the LG LN740 ($449.95; www.lgusa.com), let you listen to your favorite MP3 music or view JPEG photos. Media is stored on removable Secure Digital (SD) memory cards.

The pricier Mio DigiWalker C720t ($599.99) also plays videos — supporting MP4, MPEG4, Divx, AVI, MOV, ASF and WMV files. Plus, it includes an integrated 2-megapixel digital camera.

Source:Marc Saltzman, USA Today