Navigation System for Summer Road Trip?
 

My friends and I are heading out on a cross-country road trip from Boston to Los Angeles in a month to wrap up the summer and I’m looking to pick up a navigation system for the road. Any suggestions, I read a lot of good things the new Pioneer systems on www.drivehappier.com, it seems like they are really easy to use and have a ton of other features?

I can't help you with the Pioneer system but we have an in-dash navigation system and will never be without one again, if not in dash, then portable. They are great! It is just wonderful to put in either an address or telephone number and have the system take you there. What I really like, is that it tells you you will be making a turn at least a 1/4 of a mile before you have to get in another lane!

Bought our son a Magellan Roadmate for Christmas - it is great. Drawback is that it only works on car power - no outlet adaptor, so you can't check route from in hotel room.

People here have spoken highly of Garmin system - it was a few hundred dollars more than Magellan and out of our price range.

I have a StreetPilot III that I would not be without. It's kinda old, but I think there is a Garmin 2730 or 2630 or something similar that is an upgraded version of what I have. It's not installed in the dash, so I can take it with me if I want to...but it's bulky.

It is a lifesaver when driving into the sun, when you can't really see road signs...the lady who lives inside the GPS tells you where you are and when to turn. Also, if you want to know where the nearest 7-11 or Texaco station is, she will guide you right to the door. Plus much, much more.

Garmin has some new automobile navigation systems, ranging from about $500 to about $1500 for portable units.

I just tested a Garmin C550 and found it to be very nice, especially with the included MP3 player and Bluetooth hands free phone connection. In addition, you receive a three month subscription to the Traffic Information System, which alerts you to traffic congestion and delays, and suggests alternate routes.

We also have an older Garmin 2610, with a 2GB CF card loaded with every street in North America. My wife just took it on a trip to Montana (we live in NY), and proclaimed it to be the perfect companion for her trip.

There's plenty of information at this website:

http://www.gpspassion.com/

My husband and I just love our Garmin Street Pilot C340.. http://www.garmin.com/products/sp340/. Both of us are directionally challenged and this caused us many problems (arguments) on road trips and even in local areas. We were forced to do dry runs to make sure that when the actual time came to travel to that location, we wouldn't get lost. This GPS is portable and has a battery so that you can program it in your hotel room. You can even program the voice (in several languages). We had American Jill, but when "she" would give directions, my DH would always say, "are you sure she knows where she's going". I changed it to American Jack and my DH never questions his directions...Go figure!! Check out the site above...it has so many features..and best of all, you'll never get lost again and your front seat won't be loaded with maps and you won't argue :). Now, when we leave on a road trip my husband always says, don't forget to bring Jack.

wow so helpful, thank you so much for all of the comments!

A good old road map always works for me.

Husband loves his Garmin StreetPilot. When he's driving alone on business in another city, there's not always a convenient place to stop to look at a printed map. He can watch the road while he listens to the Garmin directions.

I love my Garmin Street Pilot C330. "Don't leave home without it."

They've really come down in price. My wife bought ours at Circuit City for around $600. You can now get them on line for around $400. http://www.cartserver.com/sc/cart.cgi

Here's a list of Garmin dealers on line. Shop around for deals plus no sales tax. http://tinyurl.com/4p5ua

I would recommend going on line and checking out the features you want or to a store to test "drive" one. You don't want to pay for features you will never use. ((b))

Consumer Reports Magazine, August 2006 edition, listed the Garmin Nuvi 350 and Garmin Street Pilot 2730 ($800 and $850) tops. They also listed the smaller, less featured, Garmin Street Pilot i5 ($350) as a best buy. Before you buy one, the article is worth reading.

so just a little update on my quest for a navigation system, after a ton of research and talking to people at best buy/circuit city/etc i finally decided on the portable pioneer system, largely due to the abundance of info that i found on www.pioneerelectronics.com, just seems like the best fit for what i want, i'll keep you all posted on how i like it!

I discoverd something funny about the Magellan (likely others as well). It becomes distressed when you detour into a Dunkin Donuts drive-thru. It says things like "You have veered off-course" and "Please make a legal u-turn when possible" and then it reroutes you.

Smart system! :)

We just bought a new car and that's the one gadget it is missing. To get one installed meant ordering it <i>from the factory</i> in Germany and we weren't about to wait X months just for that. Unfortunately, I'm constantly lost in my new city, so we are going to get something portable.

I think I've about settled on the Garmin 2720 after looking at numerous reviews. Next step up, 2730, has satellite traffic and bluetooth capabilities, both of which we already have with the car, so it'll probably be the 2720 which I've seen listed online for 600-700.

topping for lin

We paid $12.95 for an atlas of all 50 states plus Canada! I have a question about using GPS for a cross country trip; isn't most of your trips miles and miles and miles of straight driving on one highway? It seems to me that GPS is good for around town, looking for a specific address. We took a couple of very long road trips this year and I can't think where a GPS would have been handy, other than maybe pinpointing the hotel where our reservation was (usually we got billboard warnings for miles in advance).

Wait until Robespierre finds THIS thread!!!!

If you want a Rand McNally Road Atlas of USA, Canada etc check at your local Wal*Mart, they have one for $4.97, the new 2007 Atlas should be out now, they normally are on the shelf the month of October. I can see no advantage in a GPS Nav System for Interstate driving. That I do not do, I use the Atlas and AAA maps for the back roads and never a problem......

My suggestion for the people who rely on road maps only is to have one demonstrated to you. It's nice when you need a post office, rest stop,cafe,address in a city,fuel,etc. etc. I wouldn't be without one, and I used to be a none believer

The nav systems may work when you need to find a specific address. Other than that I will still do the map thing. Rest stops are indicated on maps and don't need a post office that much. As far as fuel, a place to eat or a motel.... from my travels I have noticed there are more than enough 'hints' as to their locations. In most cases far too many.

ps: inflation has hit Wal*Mart. Their 2007 Rand McNally Road Atlas is out and the price has increased by a buck -- it is now $5.97.

I have both a built-in and a portable GPS. Maps are nice for interstate driving, but who spends their driving life on an interstate? :-)

Maps and downloading mapquest directions are a thing of the past in my opinion. I don't know how I ever got by without my GPS, like some who don't know how they got buy without cell phones.

Waiting to hear back from the OP. :-)((b))

Oops, &quot;buy&quot; should be &quot;by&quot; but you know what I meant. :-) ((b))

I have a built-in GPS in my car and we love it so much, my husband just purchased a Garmin Street Pilot 2720 for his truck. We use it locally and also when we travel. It is so good not to be lost and to travel straight to a place that we've never been to. I'm with you Budman, I could never go back to maps.

I never drive Interstates and I can get along very well without a GPS nav system or a cell phone. Not many people drive the older US highways, at least not the ones I do, so I would think the ones that have a GPS nav system are on the interstates. For the ones that do stay off the beaten path here is an interesting site. http://www.us-highways.com/

That's what makes the world go round. I only have a cell phone because my wife wants to keep me on a short leash. :-)

And you don't need a GPS either, but it sure came in handy navigating around a traffic jam on a highway in an unfamiliar area. ((b))

Budman-- Don't you know those things have an on/off switch. Some are even tracked by GPS. Your wife knows where your.. I have not been in a traffic jam in many a year and we usually do 10-15K miles of road tripping a year. Thats the reason I never drive the big highways and use the Atlas and AAA maps...

I too love my Nuvi for getting around my hometown (its nice to use when going somewhere for the first time) And it always comes in handy when visiting other towns. The best feature is the Home Button. So no matter where I am, I can push Home and it will get me there.