The Straight Dope

Go Back   Straight Dope Message Board > Main > In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 01-17-2012, 05:12 PM
Nobody Nobody is online now
Guest
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Which GPS unit should I purchase?

I live close to a Walmart so I decided to see what brands of GPS units they sell. Going with three criteria I've narrowed it down to three choices.
First, the criteria:
  1. The unit itself is $100 or less.
  2. Lifetime map updates (not all of the GPSs I saw had this)
  3. Battery life at least three hours.
Now the GPS unitsIf you have any experience with any of these I'd love your opinions on them. Or, if think there's a better one that's sold somewhere else or only on-line I'm open to other suggestions.

Thank you.
Reply With Quote
Advertisements  
  #2  
Old 01-17-2012, 05:55 PM
astro astro is online now
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Taint of creation
Posts: 28,491
Over time I've found Garmins have the best maps and Amazon (in general) has the best prices. The very, very best prices are on Black Friday when GPS' are used as doorbusters, but that's over and done.
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 01-17-2012, 07:14 PM
Silver Tyger Silver Tyger is offline
Guest
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
My parents have a Garmin Nuvi (I'm not sure which model) which I borrow often. It's good. I've never had it get me lost (although it has sent me on roundabout routes), but I drive in urban areas.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 01-17-2012, 08:59 PM
ExcitedIdiot ExcitedIdiot is offline
Guest
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
I have a Nuvi 40LM. It's a great unit, but the battery doesn't last more than 2 hours for me.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 01-17-2012, 09:43 PM
Nobody Nobody is online now
Guest
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Thanks everybody.

Since everybody's suggesting a Garmin Nuvi then I'll get the Garmin nuvi 1300LM. If the list price of $249.99 is correct then I'm getting a hell of deal paying $99.98. Of course I'm sure the list price is inflated, but I'm still sure I'm getting a good deal.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 01-17-2012, 09:57 PM
Nobody Nobody is online now
Guest
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
OK, free shipping to store, but when it asks for the zip to locate the nearest store it lists one 23 miles away in another city, even though there's a Walmart in my city.

Guess I'll try Amazon.
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 01-18-2012, 11:21 AM
jasg jasg is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Upper left hand corner
Posts: 2,210
Make sure you get a model with 'Lifetime maps'. Personally, I don't like the Bluetooth models because dedicated hands-free phone devices have much better battery life.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 01-18-2012, 01:21 PM
Nobody Nobody is online now
Guest
 
Join Date: Aug 2000
Oh yeah, I made sure I got lifetime maps. And my cell phone is a cheap type that doesn't work with Bluetooth anyway, so that wasn't an issue.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:06 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.7.3
Copyright ©2000 - 2013, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.

Send questions for Cecil Adams to: cecil@chicagoreader.com

Send comments about this website to: webmaster@straightdope.com

Terms of Use / Privacy Policy

Advertise on the Straight Dope!
(Your direct line to thousands of the smartest, hippest people on the planet, plus a few total dipsticks.)

Publishers - interested in subscribing to the Straight Dope?
Write to: sdsubscriptions@chicagoreader.com.

Copyright © 2013 Sun-Times Media, LLC.