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My buddy asked me what in-car GPS navigator I recommend, and it’s no surprise I recommend a Garmin. But which one? Here’s my response:

I have 3 Garmins and know many others that own them. Hands down, the best GPS you can buy. They are the leader in this technology.

For my car, I have the StreetPilot c330. My father has the c340 - one step up from mine. Honestly, the 330 has all you need. All of the roads in the entire US & Canada are built into this, as well as the huge directory of business & government establishments (like hospitals, parks, museums, etc). I’ve had mine for 1-1/2 years now and haven’t had the need to upgrade the maps, although I might before our trip to Disney. An update is like $70 - just buy the DVD, plug-in the unit to your computers USB cable & let it run.

So when you’re looking at the various models, look for “Preloaded street maps, full coverage”

The c340 “speaks street names, optional FM traffic alerts”. The street names are OK, but the FM traffic alerts carries a monthly fee. Don’t bother (we live in Buffalo - traffic is not an issue).

The c510 has “anti-theft, high-sensitivity receiver, sunlight-readable”. The high-sensitivity receiver may be nice - I know in my van, I have to use an external antenna (they sent me one - no charge - after I complained about losing the satellites while driving). My MAXX does not need the antenna - I think it’s the way the windshield is angled on the van. “sunlight-readable” is a joke - they’re all sunlight-readable

“Bluetooth® wireless, speaks street names, MP3 player” in the c550 is overkill. You don’t want this stuff - you just want a GPS navigator.

The c580 has “MSN® Direct content” which is kinda neat. It’s an additional monthly charge (after 12 months included, you’ll pay $50 / year) and get traffic, gas, weather & movie information. Gas is probably the neatest feature. While the other units will tell you where to get gas, this one will tell you current prices. So you can save $0.02 / gallon for $50 / year. OK - maybe not worth it.

If it were up to me, today, I’d be looking at the c330 or c340. The c330 is $175 from Amazon while the c340 is $50 more. For $50, you can hear “In 100 feet, turn left on Knowlton Ave” rather than “In 100 feet, turn left.” It’s your $50.

This entry was posted on Monday, December 3rd, 2007 at 1:26 pm and is filed under Technology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.