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GPS Comparisons - A Great Way To Shop For The Perfect Unit

Categories: GPS Articles | March 2nd, 2009 | by Mike Tucker | no comments

It's much easier to find information about specific GPS products than reliable GPS comparisons. When I first got interested in automotive GPS systems, I scoured the Internet, looking for unbiased comparisons, GPS ratings, or reviews that might be helpful. Suffice it to say that useful comparisons were few and far between.

All GPS devices work the same way, all work off of the same satellite system-a network of about thirty satellites that orbit the earth and are used to triangulate the position of GPS devices. When you buy a GPS system, from Amazon for instance, what you're buying is the receiver, which receives the signals transmitted by that network of satellites. What is even better is that you and I do not have to pay to use that multi-billion dollar satellite network. It's free! All we have to do is buy the device.

But then, there's the problem-which device to buy?

The market leaders are Garmin, Tom Tom, and Magellan. You can go to their websites for information, but each company tries to stress their products strengths, while overlooking their weaknesses, and they do this in a way that makes it difficult to compare their product with that of another company. I have no problem with this. It just makes it a little hard to decide which GPS to buy.

You can buy automotive systems that are installed in your car's dash (like your radio), or portable ones that you mount to a suction cup device on the windshield or sometimes on the top of the dashboard. The information in this article is focused on portable systems. They are much cheaper, and you can take your unit with you walking or while driving another car.

Portable systems run from less than $200 to almost $1000US. All of these GPS devices find your location and show you routes on maps. All of them preloaded with maps of the United States and Canada. (A few of the cheaper ones only come with regional maps.) What makes the difference in price is quality of the maps and what are called "points of interest", along with a whole slew of extra (but useful) features.

The size of the points of interest database is important. Points of interest are preloaded addresses and information about businesses, civic buildings, hospitals, gas stations, restaurants, hotels, schools, and generally any destination that you might want to go to.

The cheaper systems only have about 750,000 points of interest preloaded in them. That sounds like a lot, but when you consider how big the United States and Canada are, 750,000 restaurants, hospitals, gas stations, ATM's, and Starbucks is not really that much. The better systems have a few million points of interest. Definitely something worth considering, especially if you'll be using your system while traveling. Of course, if you're only using your GPS close to home then the number of points of interest might not matter-then again, you might not need the GPS system. J

There are a few features that are important to consider.

The user interface (how easy the unit is to use) is important. Some systems like the Garmin Nuvi's are like mini computers, they do so much. I'm not saying avoid the Nuvi-I happen to like that line of products a lot. Just be aware that you might have to read the instructions the first time you use it. Much to Garmin's credit, the StreetPilot C series was designed to be extremely easy to use. If I were going to buy my 86-year old mother-in-law an automotive GPS system, it might well be the StreetPilot c340.

As you climb higher in price range, you get more features. Some are not that important, like having a travel clock. My car has a clock, so I don't think I need two. Bluetooth technology is a feature you might want if you use your cell phone a lot in the car. Bluetooth lets you use your GPS as a cell phone. So, you're limiting the number of devices you have to keep up with in the car-always a good idea when negotiating a busy expressway interchange.

The mid to upper range GPS systems have mp3 players so you can listen to music and audiobooks. That's neat if everyone else in the car wants to listen to the same thing. If not, well I guess everyone will have to use their own iPod.

The display size is a biggie! The last thing you want to be doing in traffic is straining to see the GPS screen. Many of these product lines have widescreen versions. That translates to 4.3-inch screens. That's almost an inch bigger than the 3.5-inch screen. For some people, it does make a difference.

There are a few other features I haven't covered in this article. But these are the big ones that most folks are interested in.

To read more great GPS Reviews, check out my website. Lee Cole is a true GPS enthusiast! Take a look at his website to find out more information!

Article Source: GPS Comparisons - A Great Way To Shop For The Perfect Unit - ArticleSpan.com

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Price Comparison GPS - Find the Right Model to Fit Your Budget

Categories: GPS Articles | February 28th, 2009 | by Mike Tucker | no comments

In this article, I'm going to talk about what you can get from the three major manufacturers of GPS systems and approximately how much it's going to cost you.

I'm also focusing exclusively on after-market, automotive GPS receivers-not the kind you take hiking, but the kind you see mounted on people's dashboards. To get started, let's talk about GPS systems in general first, so you understand what they do, what their basic features are, and what additional features you can upgrade to.

What GPS Systems Do

GPS systems (or receivers) are electronic devices that show you where you are on an electronic map and tell you how to get where you want to go via some sort of voice instructions.

All GPS receivers also have a database of Points of Interest (POIs). These are pre-programmed locations of gas stations, restaurants, state parks, hospitals, well-known buildings, etc. Basically these are public destinations.

GPS receivers also all come with the following:

* A touch screen interface
* A choice of "views"-either 2d, which looks just like a map, or 3d, which looks a little more realistic
* All of these devices auto-calculate your route to your destination. Usually you can choose between shortest or fastest route
* Come pre-loaded with maps. Even most of the base price units have maps of the lower 48 states

Upgrades

Popular upgrades are:

* A wider screen, 4.3 inches diagonally as opposed to 3.5 inches
* Saying the names of the streets, instead of just saying "turn here."
* More maps
* Bluetooth integration for hands-free calling
* Real-time traffic and weather
* Millions of POIs, instead of a few hundred thousand
* Multiple route calculation

Price Comparison GPS

GPS systems range in price from around $150 for base units to $1,000 for Garmin's top of the line Street Pilot 7000. You can get a lot of bells and whistles for $200 to $300.

Magellan's Maestro line currently runs anywhere from about $150 for the Maestro 3100, which has a 3.5 inch screen, maps of the lower 48 states, and about 750,000 POIs. The top of the line Maestro, the 4250, currently runs slightly more than $250. With the 4250, you get a 4.3-inch screen, maps of the U. S. and Canada, 6 million POIs, real-time traffic capability and Bluetooth.

Garmin's GPS receivers are comparatively priced. Their introductory model, the Nuvi 200 does about the same thing as the Maestro 3100, and runs about the same amount of money. Their top of the line Nuvi 770 currently costs slightly less than $600, but it has every feature imaginable-4.3-inch screen, more maps, huge POI database, says street names, real-time traffic and weather, Bluetooth, and much, much more.

The other main manufacturer, Tom Tom, has fewer models to choose from, but they make a great product and their prices are in line with Magellan's and Garmin's. Their base model, the Tom Tom One, runs slightly more than $150. Their top of the line model, the GO 920 has a 4.3-inch screen and all of the other features.

To learn more, your next step needs to be finding an informative website where you can actually browse, look at pictures, and compare models.

To read more great GPS Reviews, check out my website. Lee Cole is a true GPS enthusiast! Take a look at his website to find out more information!

Article Source: Price Comparison GPS - Find the Right Model to Fit Your Budget - ArticleSpan.com

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The Best GPS System - How Do You Figure This Out?

Categories: GPS Articles | February 26th, 2009 | by Mike Tucker | no comments

Finding the best GPS system is like buying the perfect car. It's all relative -- to you! The perfect car for me would have to be able to survive two rowdy kids, a dog, sometimes two cats, and a wife who routinely picks up junk (Oh, excuse me, they're called collectibles) on the side of the road. It would have to be roomy and maintenance free. For someone else, the perfect car would only need two seats, a rag top, and be able to do 120 mph easily.

In order to find the best GPS system, you have to first understand what they generally do and what are the usual features, then define what you want it for.

By GPS systems, I'm specifically talking about the after-market car variety. You know, the kind you see perched on people's windshields at the grocery store. I'm not talking about the in dash kind that come with some cars, nor am I considering the hand-held varieties you would take on a long hike. The after-market systems are usually called portable GPS receivers, or systems, and that's what I'll call them here.

Basically, all of these portable GPS receivers do exactly the same thing. They show you where you are on an electronic map, and they tell you how to get where you want to go, be it down the street or somewhere across the country.

All GPS systems work off of the same network of satellites that ring the earth, and most of the portable ones even use the same types of receivers. So, the differences between makes and models are not in how they work or what they do, fundamentally, but in the bells and whistles that come with them.

Virtually all GPS systems come with the following:

* Voice prompts that tell you where to turn
* Touch screen
* Large database of "Points of Interest" (locations of hospitals, ATMs, McDonalds, etc.)
* Choice between 2D "map view" and 3D "bird's eye" views
* Automatic route calculation
* Choice between shortest and fastest routes
* Come preloaded with maps of the 48 states

The main optional features to consider when buying a GPS system are these:

* Does it actually say the names of the street you need to turn on as you approach it?

* Do you need a widescreen version (4.3-inches diagonally as opposed to 3.5-inches)?

* Do you need maps of Canada, Mexico, and/or Europe?

* Does it support Bluetooth technology, which allows you to use your GPS system in conjunction with your cell phone to make hands-free calls? (Which essentially makes it a windshield mounted version of those little ear clips people walk around with.)

* Can you enter multiple routes into the unit and have it calculate the best route to get to all of them? Say you were in an unfamiliar city and you wanted to go to the cleaners, the grocery store, the movies, and a local dentist all on one trip. Could the GPS system calculate the shortest possible route to get to all of these?

* Does it have real-time traffic and weather report capability, and can it use that information to re-route you around traffic jams?

* Can you use your device to listen to music (mp3) or to look at digital pictures?

* How big is the Points of Interest database?

There are a few other features that major manufacturers include. Magellan, for instance, has hooked up with AAA to offer their Tourguide information actually on the GPS itself. Tom Tom has this neat feature where users can make map changes and upload those to Tom Tom's computer database which makes them available for everyone else. And Garmin is coming out with a new unit in 2008 that will learn to recognize your voice so you can enter commands by speaking instead of typing on the touch screen.

So, in order to find the best GPS device for you, you need to first decide which of these optional features are necessary, and which you might like if you can afford it.

You can get a basic GPS system for under $200. The Garmin nuvi 200, for example, has all of the basic features I listed above. It comes preloaded with regional maps (not the entire United States). If you want to spend slightly more, how about the Tom Tom One, 3rd edition, which at the time of these writing (early '08) costs slightly less than $200 at Amazon and comes with real time traffic capability and Tom Tom's MapShare (where you can uploaded changes).

Virtually all of the Magellan Maestro series is currently in the $200 to $400 range. You can get the more basic 3210 for around $250, which has millions of points of interest and, of course, the AAA Tourbook, or you can spend about $100 more and get the 4250, which includes all that the 3210 does and adds Bluetooth, voice recognition, and real-time traffic.

One of the most popular units is the Garmin nuvi 350, which does all the nuvi 200 does, but includes Garmin's "Travel Kit", mp3 capability, picture viewer, world travel clock, calendar, and more.

Deciding can be difficult, but don't put off buying one, though! GPS systems are great. Once you have your first one, you'll wonder how in the world you got along without it.

To read more great GPS Reviews, check out my website. Lee Cole is a true GPS enthusiast! Take a look at his website to find out more information!

Article Source: The Best GPS System - How Do You Figure This Out? - ArticleSpan.com

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Keeping your kids safe with GPS

Categories: GPS Articles | February 24th, 2009 | by Mike Tucker | no comments

It's every parent's nightmare: your child is not answering their cell phone and they have not returned home as scheduled. You call their friends but they don't where they are either. Frantically, you call the police in an effort to track them down, when all of a sudden your call waiting kicks in. It is your child, who decided to go the movies without telling you first. They are safe and sound, but your heart won't stop beating fast.

This situation could have been easily averted if the parent had been able to track their child's whereabouts using GPS technology.

There are two primary ways to track where your child is using GPS: in their car or on their cell phone.

· GPS in the car. Many new cars now come standard with GPS devices, but if you want to add a GPS to an existing car, the cost is lower than it has ever been. Garmin, Tom Tom and other consumer GPS companies now offer basic products that only cost between $200 - $300 and fit seamlessly into any automobile.

· GPS in the cell phone. One of the most effective ways to track the whereabouts of your child using GPS is through a cell phone. The latest smart phones from Palm and Blackberry are now coming equipped with the technology and can be purchased for a couple of hundreds of dollars (or may even be free with an upgrade or extension of your cell phone calling plan).

Both these methods are extremely affordable, given the peace-of-mind that they provide the parents of kids who are driving age or older.

How it Works

Once the GPS device is activated, it can be tracked on any PC with an Internet connection. It is important to tell your child to keep the device in the on position at all times (especially on a cell phone) so that you can determine their location if need be.

Don't be secretive

If your child discovers that you tried to sneak a GPS device into their car without their knowledge, it can create trust issues that may be difficult to repair. A better idea is to tell them upfront about your intentions and the reasons why you are doing it.

It is important to tell the child that you are not using a GPS device because you don't trust them, but rather because you are concerned about their safety. Emphasize that will only check the GPS in the case of an emergency or if you are unable to reach them by cell phone.

If handled correctly, this will make the teenager feel loved rather than mistrusted.

More Tips

· Cell phone GPS functionality tends to drain the phone's battery. Be sure your teenager's phone is always properly charged when the leave the house.

· Don't panic. If you can't find a signal from your child's GPS device, it may that they are driving through a "dead spot" where service is not available.

In order to make an educated decision of what GPS device would best suit your needs while staying in your budget, visit http://www.gpsviews.com . We provide consumers with ALL information needed including where to buy, lowest price, and detailed GPS reviews.

Article Source: Keeping your kids safe with GPS - ArticleSpan.com

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