GPS Questions - Help
 

I am now thinking about getting a GPS device. My spouse wants to move into the 21st century. I want something simple and inexpensive to start. Baby steps. Also, I have never seen one in action except on TV shows.

I asked my friends and they recommend TomTom and Garmin.

In doing my research, it seems that Garmin gives street names - a biggie for the spouse. So far I like the Garmin nuvi 255W.

I have also looked at many of the posts on TOTV but I still have a few general questions.

Can you plug it into the power source on the car when using it so it does not run down the battery?

It comes with preloaded maps. Is that enough? How often can you update it for free?

Can you give it an alternate route to use forever? Instead of rt 42 to 27/441 to Belleview, I like rt 42 to 301. Can I make that the default? Or will the GPS recalculate if I take the left instead of the right out of TV onto rt 42?

Is there a power cord for in the house use and charging?

Any help will be appreciated.

Z

Normal in car operation is that it is plugged into the cigarette lighter power outlet or other 12V outlet if you have one.

You can get an adapter to charge it from your in house 120V power (my Garmin required that I also buy a 12V receiver to plug it into.

Maps - updates are handled differently by different models. My Garmin is about 5 years old and I haven't updated the maps (I don't drive around side streets in the newer areas of TV much). If I wanted to update the maps it would cost me $100 or so for a few updates over a few years.

I haven't tried to program alternate routes - I usually check where I am going first on Yahoo Maps and then I know not to follow the Garmin directions if I don't like them. It automatically recalculates when you don't follow it's route. My wife followed its directions from one side of San Francisco to the other and it took her the shortest route - thru the neighborhoods; took her about an hour and thru some pretty seedy areas when she could have taken the freeways around the city and made it in about 30 minutes.

I don't trust it to get me around the block but it is nice to check your speed and have a live picture of when you are.


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I personally would recommend the Garmin. The 255W has been around for a while, so I might pick something released more recently. Although I believe the 255W would serve you well.

Yes you can plug it into your 12V receptacle for power while you are driving. Everything you need should be in the box.

I believe you can upgrade at no charge for the next update after you buy the unit and register it. After that you'll want to buy the Lifetime Maps. I paid $90 for Lifetime Maps on Amazon and I can update my Maps four times a year on-line for as long as Garmin supports that unit. Some of the new GPSs come with Lifetime Maps included.

The newer units may be able to save a specific route, but mine, about 4 yrs old, doesn't. I can save destinations in my Favorites though. When I set Belleview in my GPS it always picks 301 as the route maybe because I have my GPS set on QUICKEST not SHORTEST. If I were to turn right, she may try to turn me around for a little while, but she would soon recalculate the route up 27/441.

There is a home charger that you can plug into to charge the unit and there will also be a usb tether to your computer for charging and for downloading/updating.

You can also get lots of different specialized POIs (points of interest) for free from www.poi-factory.com . You can download them to your GPS. For instance, we travel in a motor home that burns diesel fuel so I have a POI of Diesel Stations that include Flying J, Loves, and Travel America. Another POI that I have in the GPS is all of The Army Corps of Engineers Campgrounds. You can pick out POIs for all kinds of things such as Waterfalls, Lighthouses, Covered Bridges, Wal-Marts, Sam's Clubs, etc.

Xavier

Did you check your cell phone to see if you already have GPS capability? I have Verizon wireless and although I have not used it (we have Onstar in our Vehicle) I know it's there if we use a vehicle other than the one with Onstar.

Z
The Garmin units all come with a mounting that has a power cord that plugs into the lighter or power source for power. You just snap the GPS unit into the holder and plug it into the power and you are running off the power source and not the internal battery. As far as in home use the units come with a USB cable and you recharge the unit that way. No additional charger.

If for example you are going from LSL to Belleview you would enter the address in Belleview where you are going. The GPS will calculate the route based on some settings such no toll roads, no dirt roads, shortest route or fastest route. Now if it comes up with a route of to 466 / 27/441 to Belleview and you head west on 466 the GPS will first tell you to turn or make a u turn to get back on track. If you ignore the GPS and keep driving you will reach a point that the GPS will recalculate and decide that the 301 route best meets your settings and starts directing you from there. Some times the change to the 301 route will be quick and other times longer as it all depends on how many options there are for you to turn around.

As far as updates the maps are always changing. The preloaded maps are okay for the major highways and where new roads are not being constructed but with all the new areas of TV you will want to be up to date. The updates will also give you changes in POI (points of interest) such as rest areas, restaurants, gas stations, hotels/motels, hospitals etc.

Garmin updates their maps 4 times a year (normally updates are February, May, July and November). They give you one free upgrade but that must be within so many days of purchase of the unit. They also have a lifetime upgrade program for about $90.00 that allows you to update the maps the 4 times a year.

One other thing about the Garmin is that you can use one of the programs called MapSource. This will allow you to create your own route, upload that to the GPS for your travels. This will override the built in GPS calculated route.

For example there is always a discussion on TOTV as to the best route down I-95 to TV. I used MapSource to create routes via I-10, 301, 206/19 an 40. When I leave Ohio I select which one I will use and off I go.

Other than the one free update to your new unit and other updates have to come from a bit torrent or some other hack or underground site. This is illegal but they are out there.

If you have any other questions or concerns send me a PM and I will try to answer them.

You have good advice above. My two cents worth is that the Garmin 1450 has a version where you don't have to pay to update maps. Its a few bucks more but well worth it here where the streets are like rabbits. I have had a Magellan, a TomTom and recently went to Garmin which is far superior in my opinion.

My friend had a TomTom that kept telling her to make a u-turn if she didn't follow the directions. My Garmin just says "recalculating" and lets me go my way. I also bought the lifetime map updates, four times a year.

Um Skyguy79... if Z even has a cell phone, I'm betting it doesn't have GPS. Trust me on this. :p

Z, although the Garmin comes with a mount, I never installed it. I don't like that people can see the windshield mount and know you probably have a GPS unit in the car. I have found that if you just leave the Garmin on the console, it picks up the signals just find. I do plug it into the cigarette lighter.

Please let us know if you buy one and how you like it and if you want me to come over and show you how to use it when I come down.:D

I like my TomTom. Buy a TomTom where the model ends with an "M" and it comes with lifetime maps included in the price of the unit.

Bill

Thanks to all
 

Thanks for all of the information. It really helped. I have saved these comments to a file and will take it with me when I go GPS window shopping tomorrow!!!

Z

:1rotfl::bowdown:P! - you know me so well! Actually I do have a cell phone. I have a seven year old Nokia and it is usually off. I have it for emergencies. I only use it for long distance calls and calls north of TV which are non-local calls.:shrug:

Be sure to check the prices of the ones with Lifetime maps. I got mine, Garmin, on Black Friday 2010 at Best Buy. Doorbuster deal. Went at 10 am and they still had lots. This was in Raleigh, NC.

"If one gets a TomTom, does one need to do a ritual rain dance for it to work?":throwtomatoes:

One word of caution about the Garmin 255W (I own one). When I wanted to update, it told me that it did not have enough storage to load the entire United States map. I had several options, I chose the Eastern half of the US as we don't plan to drive across the country, so it's fine for our purposes. Mine also did not come with the USB connector needed to do the update. I had to purchase it. If I were buying again, I would make sure it had all the features I needed, as well as the cords needed to do the update.

Thanks for the info. I was under the impression that any USB cable would do. I have one from my digital camera that I was planning on using. But i will make sure the end fits into the GPS to be sure.

Looks like more research anyway.

According to the Garmin web page the 255W comes with a slot to accept an SD memory card. Just get a 2 gig SD card and that will hold everything including Canada and Mexico.