Ive been doing alot of traveling in my truck lately towing my Jeep around and 4 wheeling realizing just how easily I can get lost.

Ive got no experience shopping for these so can someone just point me to the best deal on a good unit for my truck

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Thanks!

 

Amazon.com: Garmin nüvi 1450LMT 5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator with Lifetime Map & Traffic Updates: GPS & Navigation

i recommend something like this. i have used many different types over the years for work and there are a few features that need to be included.

traffic alerts and rerouting

street names with turns ( some systems say " turn right in 150ft" others say "turn right onto smith lane in 150ft") the street name is very helpful, especially in cuty applications were multiple streets are on you right in 150ft

lane assist is also very helpful- it tells you what lane to be in, before its too late and you miss your turn

 

Great, that looks like a good one. Thanks for the recommendation.

Im not as concerned with features like traffic advistory and real time gas prices as those just drive up the price (although very cool and would like to have) but what I am specifically after is extremely precise directions. Because thats exactly how my GPS is now. Very vague when it says turn right in 140 feet. And the map on it lacks detail I cant even tell you how many turns I have missed because of the lack of detail on the thing.

Its also extremely frustrating when the GPS doesnt match the signs on the road

 

What ever you get, get free map updates. Updates can be very expensive. I have a friend whose updates cost almost as much as my Tom Tom with traffic and map updates. BTW, I like the TomTom. Yeah, I know it is a dumb name.

 

Are the things even worth updating? I cant imagine that enough roads are change or made to make it worth it??

 

you can get a tomtom with free updates for $75

i don't use mine very often, but it is nice to have

 

Construction projects make map updates worthwhile. It takes me about ten minutes to update. I get periodic emails suggesting an update is available. If I am going on a trip I update prior. You're right, they are probably not worth fooling with updates they're so cheep.

 

my tomtom tells me when there is an update available

 

They update other things like points of interest too. And sometimes the maps are just wrong, so getting an updated map will help in correcting those errors. I've tried Tom Tom. I liked the way it could figure out which city or street I wanted to go to based on where I currently was. Just start typing letters and it offers a list of choices that are narrowed down as you type more. I didn't like the routes it chose. It just seemed to go out of the way.

I tried Garmin. It always seemed to choose the best routes, but the traffic rarely worked, even in big cities. It also was bad about telling you to stay left and then as soon as you pass one exit, it would tell you to exit now if the next exit was only 20 yards away. If you drive on the freeway and pass a major interchange, count on the Garmin to put you in the wrong lane and make you miss the exit right after the interchange. Garmin also refuses to try and figure out that you may want to go somewhere in the same city you're currently in, so you have to spell the city out first each time you want to go somewhere. Garmin is pretty good about telling you which side of the street your destination is on. It also seems to have the best handle on rural roads and their speed limits in terms of calculating the quickest route. Others tend to assume all rural roads are 30 mph so they send you the long way around instead of taking FM roads.

Magellan is like TomTom in terms of typing things in. It figures you may want to go somewhere close and chooses cities and streets based on that, and narrows or expands the list the more you type. Traffic seems to work well too, except that if it pops up some traffic alert with an alternative route suggestion, you have to choose something or it will just freeze the screen waiting for your decision. It also likes to go out of the way, or if you choose shortest route, it becomes completely stupid about it's decision. It will actually tell you to exit the freeway so you stop at a stop sign or light and then get back on the freeway if there is a slight right hand curve in the road. Taking the exit when there is a right hand curve in the freeway will actually save you a couple of feet of travel distance, but will waste a bunch of time if you're cruising on the highway.

None of them are 100% accurate as to the location of an address or their POI searches. I've had all 3 brands take me, or try to take me on some roads that no longer existed, and hadn't for many years.

 

I will second the tomtom. I have one and I really like it. I throw it in the work truck every time I go out. The directions aren't absolutely dead-on all the time, but it is good enough to get me around. Mine has live traffic and a few other "goodies", they're nice but if you're just looking to get around you won't need them.

I don't know if all tomtom's do this or not, but mine will let me update the database with a map correction. When I hook it up to the computer it will download updates and send the correction back to the tomtom server. Whether or not it makes it to the mass software updates I don't know, but at least the thought is there that if you do find an incorrect location there is something in place to correct it.

 

with the increase of red light cameras popping up all over the place, it is a good thing to update so the unit will tell you if you are approaching one so you can stay way far back from it if it turns red.

i know a couple of people that have gotten tickets for running the red light, and the picture shows them stopped before the line.

the cameras are the law. if it sends you a ticket, you are guilty even if the picture shows you sitting there.

 

Very interesting, thanks for the info!!