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Garmin nüvi 1450LMT 5-Inch Portable GPS |
The problem with buying a GPS system is there are so many manufacturers and so many products to choose from. The prices for GPS receivers range from $150 on the low end to almost $1,000 on the high end. So, if it's just a basic GPS you're looking for, you can get that fairly cheaply. You can, however, spend a lot of money on these things.
There are also a ton of features to know about. Many of these features are things you might not have thought about, such as your GPS receiver having the ability to send it's sound through your car's stereo system. (In the biz, that's called "FM transmission".)
To help you choose the best GPS navigation system for you, let's narrow this stuff down some. With only a little work, I can make this whole process a lot simpler.
For one thing, there are three big manufacturers of GPS devices. These three essentially dominate the market. They are Garmin, Tom Tom, and Magellan.
Garmin is by far the industry leader with almost 70% of the market share. Tom Tom is the new arrival, which is quickly making inroads by offering excellent products at very competitive prices, and Magellan is actually one of the first companies to make these amazing devices.
There are other manufacturers, sure. But personally I like to keep with the big three. That way I know my purchase will be supported well next year and the year after that.
Now for features!
All GPS receivers can tell you where you are via an electronic map. They can also tell you how to get to your destination with spoken directions. You can also expect a touch screen interface, ability to auto-calculate your route, a database of pre-programmed destinations and pre-loaded maps.
To my mind the best GPS navigation systems that offer these basic features are the Garmin nuvi 200, the Magellan 3100, and the Tom Tom One. All three sell for less than $200.
You can get a lot more features for not much more money, however.
If you spring for the Garmin nuvi 350 (right at $200), you can get Bluetooth capability, more maps, much larger database of destinations, actually saying the street names with the directions, and real-time traffic and weather (with subscription).
To my mind, that's a lot of GPS for $200!
Magellan has a direct competitor to the nuvi 350, which is the Magellan Maestro 3250. It has similar features at a similar price. If you want to get a Tom Tom, then the Tom Tom Go 510 would be the best product at this price range.
Of course, the more you pay the more you get! At the top of the market, Garmin probably has the best product selection. Although, don't rule out Magellan and Tom Tom. They both make very good products.
What you need to do now is find an informative website where you can browse specific devices and learn more about what they do and how much they are.
