Navigational system questions

[Deesknee]

I looked to see if there was already a thread on this topic. I didn't see one, if this is a repeat please forgive me.

Recently I ran into an old friend who mentioned she has a "Tom Tom". I have seen a couple commercials on them, but am not too sure exactly what they do. I assume they give you directions & my friend mentioned something about getting restaurants in the area you need. But how? I mean not technically how. I mean do you key into a key pad where you want to go/or are? Do you talk to it? Also, will it give you points of interest in an area.

My DH (who seems to think we should get one for our upcoming WDW trip) mentioned there are different types other than the Tom Tom. I think he said Magelin.

Do any of you dissers have one of these? If so in your opinion would it be worth it for someone who mostly takes day trips. This is only our 3rd long drive in 15yrs. (long meaning more than 4 hours).

Also, how expensive are these. DH seems to think around $500. Is that correct?

Thanks in advance for any info.

 

[bradisgoofy]

I have a Magellan Roadmate 700 which I've had for over a year, love it, but it is a high end unit ( $$$ ). There is a place where you can find restaurants by type, or distance from your location. You can also search for a certain restaurant by name.

I'm not familiar with the Tom Tom but some of the lower priced units don't come with all of the detailed maps. You must buy extra software to load detailed maps.

Look for a large screen and fully loaded detailed maps. You won't go wrong with either Magellan or Garmin, just not the handheld units.

If you own a laptop you could buy mapping software with a GPS receiver for $150.00 or so.