This surprisingly well-equipped navigation system can be yours for just 60 bucks.
(Credit: CNET)Ladies and gents, we have a new low! Buy.com has the Magellan RoadMate 2200T GPS for $59.99 shipped (after a $30 mail-in rebate). It's a refurbished unit, but it's also the least-expensive navigation system I've seen yet.
Needless to say, this model is a couple years old, so don't expect a lot of bells and whistles. It does offer text-to-speech, music and photo players, an optional traffic-monitoring kit, and a "smart detour" feature. Hmmm. Come to think of it, you get some bells and whistles, after all. It's even waterproof!
CNET awarded the RoadMate 2200T 3.5 stars out of 5, the major complaint being its sluggishness in switching between applications. I don't know about you, but I can live with that--seeing as I'd probably never use the other applications, anyway.
Because this is a refurb, the warranty lasts just 90 days. The rebate offer (PDF) expires February 4, but I suspect that these RoadMate 2200Ts will sell out well before that date. A full-feature navigation system for $60 is really tough to pass up.
Magellan Maestro 4350
(Credit: Magellan )It's been a little while since we've seen anything from Magellan, but on Thursday, the GPS manufacturer revealed its latest in-car GPS, the Magellan Maestro 4350 series. Consisting of the Maestro 4350 and the Maestro 4370, both portable navigation devices feature a new user interface called OneTouch that gives you quick one-click access to your favorite destinations.
Basically, you preselect your favorite businesses (restaurants, banks, gas stations, and so forth) and addresses and then the GPS will provide a single page where you can just tap on the appropriate icon to navigate to the destination from your current location. There's no need to go through several menus or manually enter addresses since they're all in one place. You can also add applications, such as Bluetooth or multimedia to the OneTouch interface.
Shared features on both PNDs include text-to-speech functionality, integrated traffic receivers, Bluetooth, and lane guidance. The difference between the Maestro 4350 and the Maestro 4370 is that the latter has a higher-resolution touch screen and is available only at Best Buy. Both models cost $499.99, though Best Buy is having a sale on the Maestro 4370 where you can get it for $399. We should be getting our model next week, so check back soon for a full review.
Magellan Maestro 3100
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)Q: 1. Is there any in-car GPS that allows me to review the route from start to finish without driving, once I input destination address in the device? If yes, which portable navigation device (PND) lets me review the route before actually driving? - Wize Chap via e-mail
A: Dear Wize Chap, turns out you have a lot of choices. Most in-car GPS offers route simulation or fly-over simulation (the name varies by manufacturer) that provides a running demo of your route from a bird's-eye view. It's useful in that it gives you an overall idea of what you'll be encountering along your drive before even hitting the road. That said, the tricky part can be finding the feature on the device, since it's often buried in the submenus and you may also need to turn the capability on in the settings menu.
On most systems, once you enter your start and end points, the PND will present you the map screen and start navigation. From there, you can typically find various review options, including a list of text-based turn-by-turn directions, whether you want to find an alternate route, add a waypoint, and so forth. It's usually in this submenu that you'll find the route simulation. I'm not sure what your budget is, Wize Chap, but if you're looking for high-end, the Garmin Nuvi 880 is a good choice, or the Magellan Maestro 3000 series or the TomTom One series for more low- to mid-range models.
This week, not one but two reader questions. Woo--getting crazy up in here. I kid, but hopefully, you're finding these posts helpful, and if you've got a question about your own, feel free to hit me up at bonnie.cha@cnet.com. That said, on with the show.
Q: Starting to look at GPS navigation devices, and don't know much about them. One of the vehicles that I may be using it in, does not have cigarette lighter. Since I have seen handlebar mounts for bicycles, I am wondering if these units are like cell phones and MP3 players in that they are rechargeable, since I always see them plugged in as dash-mounted units, I assumed that they needed to be plugged in to work. --ndhelp001 via CNET forums
A: Most of today's portable navigation devices (PNDs) come with rechargeable lithium ion batteries, so like today's cell phones and MP3 players, once fully charged, they can operate untethered for a number of hours.
The capacity of the battery varies by GPS model, but typically, you can get anywhere from 2 to 5 hours of use on a single charge, so provided that you're not going on any long road trips, it's possible to use one of these PNDs in your car that does not have a cigarette lighter. That said, I'd really try to keep that to a minimum. There are a number of other factors that can affect battery life, such as screen brightness and other radios (e.g., Bluetooth), and in testing these systems, I've found when not plugged in, the battery drains pretty fast so I wouldn't want you to driving in unknown territory and have the GPS die on you.
Something else to note: a number of GPS manufacturers only include a car charger in the box, so make sure to check the list of packaged accessories to see if you need to buy an extra AC adapter or not.
Magellan Triton 2000
(Credit: Magellan)Q: Why don't you review GPS that are not for car use? Say review them for hiking ... or maybe geocaching. There are a number of new models out that can be carried on a person. All I ever see is GPS for cars. Just wondering. --Wolf via e-mail
A: Hey Wolf. Good question. Handheld GPS, whether it be for hiking, running, or geocaching, is definitely something I would love to review more of but unfortunately, it's just been hard to find the time. When I'm not reviewing in-car GPS, I'm tinkering with all the latest smartphones, so that keeps me busy most of the time. That said, I'm looking to expand to the other types of GPS and in fact, I just got in the Magellan Triton 2000 so be on the look out for that review as well as others. Also, if there are any products in particular that you want to see reviewed, let me know!
(Credit:
Alpine)
Alpine Electronics has made a name for itself with its in-car audio/video and speaker solutions, but when it comes to portable navigation devices, the company has a little ways to go. However, it's hoping that will change with the new Alpine PND-K3.
The in-car GPS sports sleeker design than the company's previous PND, the Alpine BlackBird II, and features new map visuals and an updated user interface. The PND-K3 also comes preloaded with Navteq maps of the United States and Canada, text-to-speech functionality, and integrated Bluetooth for hands-free calling.
Other notable features include a 4.3-inch touch screen, 6 million points of interest, customizable map and menu colors, and an SD expansion slot. The Alpine PND-K3 is available now for about $550. We'll be getting a review unit soon so check back for our full review.
- prev
- 1
- next
