Can anyone recommend a good entry level GPS that mounts on the windshield. My wife is looking for one she can use the 4 or 5 times a year she goes farther than 15 miles from the house.

I'm looking for easy to program, voice instructions on when to turn, automatic rerouting if you miss a turn (this feature will be used a lot) and anything else that may be important.

I've seen that the Cobra models have a database of red light cameras and can warn you of those. What other useful features should I be looking for. Any recommendations on models to look at or stay away from.

Thanks.

 

I have a Garmin 330 Street Pilot and I am very pleased with it. It mounts to a dash pad or the windshield, is fairly compact, and easy to remove if you don't need it or you have theft concerns. I used mine in New Orleans after the hurricane and there were almost no street signs in some areas. It paid for itself in a day. I have had some reception difficulties when the rain clouds turn the sky black, but generally it comes back on soon enough. If you miss a turn it automatically recalculates. I have had a few times where it told me to go up the road a mile and then turn around, when there was a break in the median right next to me. That and a few times that I used it the destination was on the opposite side of the street from wht was indicated. All things considered though I love it. I have used it thousands of times and it is the second Garmin product I have owned. I would not hesitate to recommend it. The biggest downside has been that i have become too dependent on it. Do you remember getting your first calculator and then forgetting how to do long division by hand about a year later? It's the same thing for me with this GPS.

ON EDIT- I almost forgot your question. My Garmin has a touch screen that works well, it is capable of online downloads to update the maps, the display is very adjustable for different lighting conditions, the voice feature is easy for most people to hear but i can still manage with poor hearing, the navigation screen has a few modes to choose from to suit your preferences, automatic switching from daylight to dark mode, an external antenna is available,and if you go up one model you can add the thingy that gives you traffic information off of a radio signal that is available in some areas. You can save "HOME" and then no matter where you are just hit the home button and follow the directions to get back to the house. It also hs an internal battery that lets youstill use it when it is not in the car. I don't have a need for that, but it comes with it. Those are the main features that are available on mine.
Also one caution on the touch screeen- you will run into the ditch if you try to type in a destination while driving. Trust me on this one.

 

Yep as long as it's a Garmin you will like it. Garmin was the first Gps nav company even back when it was only for the government. That is what they still use. You don't want some home owner Magellan.

 

Good info, thanks. Too bad it won't give you a warning about running into a ditch. My wife actually got stuck in a ditch a few years ago trying to make a u-turn 1/4 from our house (small country roads). Anyone else have any comments?

 

I used to work at a place that sold Garmin, Magellan, Cobra... I was told Garmin was the best by the manager of the dept. If that helps...? I personally have an in-dash unit so I am of no help in the portable area.

 

From what I've been been told, anything but a tom-tom. Depends on how much your looking to spend too . Garmin is supposed to be the best but among the pricier of them. Mine's in-dash by navtech.

 

How well does the route recalculation work? I was driving today and hit a road closed detour. I followed the detour signs and got back to where I needed to be. While that may sound simple to me, my wife has great difficulty doing this sometimes. Will the automatic route recalculation keep trying to get her to turn around whereshe will have to pull over and tell the machine what's going on, or will it figure things out as she keeps driving?

The only experience I've had with portable GPS was the first generation stuff that was so big it had to be put in the back of a Humvee to be considered portable. Back then most people weren't allowed to touch it and none of us understood how the thing worked.

 

Actually last night my buddy got in my truck and had his Garmin with him. He started playing with it while we were driving around and it re-calculates the route very quickly if the turns arent followed exactly.

 

Almost all of the newer gps navs will reroute on the fly. They're easy to use and almost idiot proof Though they still won't steer you away from ditches.

 

Not to sound negative, but since my wife won't read this post, when she gets lost in her 04 lariat, 21,000 miles, with the internal compass, her answer to which way is she going is always "straight ahead" her local reference points are "I just passed an gas station on the right" I could go on but it only gets worse from here.

I'm just scared almost idiot proof may not be good enough. Since she doesn't travel far from home very often I don't want to spend a lot of money on this, but I'm also worried that with a GPS she will have a false sense of security and try and go anywhere.

 

Idiot proof is a bold statement, but I would say that my unit is mostly female-proof. As for the re-route I agree with the others. If you just listen to the little voice it will get you there. My unit has a detour feature but it is just as easy to just drive past where you were going to turn and it the unit recalculates automatically with no input from you. The reroute will happen in a matter of seconds, and you will see the distance indicated to the next turn, 300 feet, 200, 100 50, 10 etc. It actually is pretty fascinating that they can do what they do. As for the false sense of security, if she does not like where she is she can always turn around and drive wherever she needs to and it will still get her home. It also has the locations of fire departments, police stations, hospitals, etc. in the software. I would say that it can actually enhance her security because of that. Just go get one (mine was about $350 or so) and you will not look back. Even if your wife does not use it or like it, a good GPS is great for anyone who runs service calls or stays on the road alot.

 

Keep in mind I said ALMOST idiot proof. and you are right that is a pretty bold statement.bodabdan is right, most of them have a large amount of point of intrests throuhgout the U.S. and Canada, stores, banks, gas stations, fire dept., police dept., and so on. Once you get one and set it up, do it at home and it will store that location as your home point and all you have to do is punch up the menu and push "home" on the list of locations (it's always at the top of the list) and it will automatically direct you home from wherever you are at that time. It's really pretty impressive!