GPS recommendations?

[mla973]

All,

I'm thinking of getting DH a GPS for Father's Day (we will have a new little one who will be born any day now).

We have a GPS ap for our iPhones, but it's not very good. I don't want to rely on a GPS, but he has been talking about getting one so I was thinking of surprising him.

Can I get a decent one for $100 or $150? Once I buy the GPS, are there any 'subscriptions' or other costs involved?

There was a Garmin nuvi 1350 at Sam's Club for $150 or so. I don't really know much about them (only used a GPS once on a trip, and once we went in one of the "underground" streets in Chicago, we lost signal, so it didn't work for what we needed anyway).

Thanks for your help!

 

[legalsea]

All,

I'm thinking of getting DH a GPS for Father's Day (we will have a new little one who will be born any day now).

We have a GPS ap for our iPhones, but it's not very good. I don't want to rely on a GPS, but he has been talking about getting one so I was thinking of surprising him.

Can I get a decent one for $100 or $150? Once I buy the GPS, are there any 'subscriptions' or other costs involved?

There was a Garmin nuvi 1350 at Sam's Club for $150 or so. I don't really know much about them (only used a GPS once on a trip, and once we went in one of the "underground" streets in Chicago, we lost signal, so it didn't work for what we needed anyway).

Thanks for your help!

Go to Amazon and research there. I have a Garmin Nuvi which works very well. Look up the Nuvi 1350 on Amazon and see what they say about it.

It is true that they will not work underground; I also had trouble using one while driving in Manhattan (due to the tall buildings).

Prices have come down, and you should easily find one for $150.00 Most do not require any monthly fee after purchase (I have an optional traffic subscription which costs $60 per year; some have 'free' traffic, but they do have pop-up advertisements).

 

[DrCavin]

I love my Garmin Nuvi. I would stay with the wide screen, which the 1350 has. You dont have to buy any subscriptions, but can get traffic & map updates if you want.

Any GPS will lose signal going into a tunnel or parking deck. A GPS will get you to your destination, may not be the "best" way but you will get there. Only complaint on mine is trying to find places by name, takes too darn long. Finding by address seems to be much quicker.

 

[mamacatnv]

I just bought the Garmin Nuvi 265WT - I wanted a GPS with BlueTooth and this one had it. Consumer Reports also really liked it. It is in the $165 range at Costco and I think it is a coupon item this month. I bought mine at Radio Shack before the Costco deal for $179.

 

[bicker]

We have a new Garmin Nuvi and a three year old TomTom and they both are very flaky.

 

[Dan Murphy]

http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=36858718&postcount=25

 

[disneyred]

I just bought the Garmin Nuvi 265WT - I wanted a GPS with BlueTooth and this one had it. Consumer Reports also really liked it. It is in the $165 range at Costco and I think it is a coupon item this month. I bought mine at Radio Shack before the Costco deal for $179.

how does this 265WT compare with the 13xx series ??

 

[Dan Murphy]

You can do side by sides here.....

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=134

 

[aprilvaca04]

I love my Garmin Nuvi. I would stay with the wide screen, which the 1350 has. You dont have to buy any subscriptions, but can get traffic & map updates if you want.

Any GPS will lose signal going into a tunnel or parking deck. A GPS will get you to your destination, may not be the "best" way but you will get there. Only complaint on mine is trying to find places by name, takes too darn long. Finding by address seems to be much quicker.

How do you get the traffic and map updates? We have a Garmin Nuvi but don't know how to do this, thought you had to buy a subscription.

 

[bicker]

Some nuvi's come with the subscription included afaik. (Mine did.)

 

[aprilvaca04]

Some nuvi's come with the subscription included afaik. (Mine did.)

What does this mean?

 

[Dan Murphy]

Some Garmins have real time traffic. Some of those require a subscription at additional cost, others have no cost. See link above.

All GPS's can be updated periodically with updated maps. Those are additional charge, but you can purchase a lifetime (of the unit) subscription for not much more than a one time update. If you plan on keeping the unit a long time, not getting 'the latest and greatest' as new ones come out, a lifetime map update subscription might be good.

 

[mla973]

Dan - Thanks for the links. Any idea why the "Garmin nüvi 765/765T 4.3-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Traffic" is such a sale at Amazon right now? It seems like a deal that's too good to be true.

With this model, is there anything else left to purchase (subscription, map updates, etc.). I would go above my $150 if it were the "full package" of what we would need.

Thanks!

 

[Dan Murphy]

That is about the right price. I bought one for myself about 9 months ago, it was about 250. I bought one for my DD about 2 months ago, it was actually a few dollars less, like 205.

The 765T has lifetime traffic, though map updates, if you want them, are extra. Most people, if they ever get map updates, get them maybe every other year. It is a really great unit.

 

[mamacatnv]

OP when I was shopping around I found that often the "best deals" were for refurbished models. Read the fine print.

 

[southernbohemian]

We have a Magellan and have been very pleased.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Actually, a few dollars less...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-list...?ie=UTF8&qid=1275527601&sr=1-10&condition=new