The best portable GPS for your car- Garmen or Magellan?

My wife recently bought me a Magellan portable GPS or navigator for my car. It looks good, but I could return it and get a Garmen which seems like it is a more popular model. Anyone have any suggestions, or any experience with these things?

Asked by paleojudge 53 months ago Similar questions: portable GPS car Garmen Magellan Consumer Electronics > Car Electronics & GPS.

Similar questions: portable GPS car Garmen Magellan.

Consumer Electronics > Car Electronics & GPS.

Garmin, Tom Tom and Megellen are worth your money. The best GPS navigation system - This title is just relative to the features offered and the requirements of the user. There are simple GPS units with little feature that can be the best in market for a Person who just need directions to commute from one place to another.

But i'd like to scale the GPS units according to 3 basic parameter/features: 1. Response and reception: GPS units function by getting axial information from different satellites that it can communicate with at a given point in the phase of earth. So the more the unit can receive signals from more number of satellites the better and accurate will be its response and direction calculation.In this regard the best response time and accuracy is delivered by Garmin and then by tom Tom tom and Megallen.

2. POint of interests: This is a very useful and significant parameter which is pretty analogous to "googling" for Gas stations or restaurants or ATMs in the nearby area. All the three units have pretty extensive POI's but I think Garmin takes a slight lead in terms of numbers.

3. Interface and ease of operation: Ease of operation - I would rate all three to the same degree. All three can be operated pretty easily, by any layman without the help of any guide or manual.

But the interface of Garmin is really really superior. Not only is the screen clarity but also the responsiveness and the ease in the flow of usage is way better than the Tom Tom and the Megellen.. In this category, Magellen is the least impressive with a sluggish interface (although it has a sharp screen).4. Additional Features: Well in my Opinion a GPS unit is mainly for directions and mapping.

Other features are welcome but should not be overwhelming the navigation feature. One very useful feature is the Text to Speech functionality which most of the recent units are including in its feature set.By this feature the Street names are announced by the voice while navigating. So instead of "Turn Right at1/4 mile" you'll hear "Turn right at River Street" This is very useful in city driving where the streets are pretty close and you really could get consfused which right to tka in a 1/4 mile.. 5.

Price: Price is a very stron parameter in your buying option. If your wife got you a Megellen worth $250 and if you are looking to replace it with a Garmin Nuvi 600, then its your call. Ofcourse you'd get more options but you are replacing it with a $500 unit.

So it primarily depends on you. I could suggest some good units: Best value for money: Garmin C330/c340 (Text to speech); TomTom One, Tom Tom Go, Magellan Maestro 3140 Portable Auto GPS, Magellan RoadMate 2200T Navigation System (Text to speech) My highest recommendation: Garmin Streetpilot C340. But if you like the Megellan, and if it has a lot of good useful features like text to speech, POI's, fast response, then probably you should just keep it.. Hope this was helpful.

Sources: From my extensive research on the GPS systems. Hkzen's Recommendations Garmin StreetPilot c340 Traffic-Ready Vehicle GPS Navigator Amazon List Price: $857.99 Used from: $293.00 Average Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (based on 705 reviews) Garmin Nuvi 350 Pocket Vehicle GPS Navigator with Maps for North America Amazon List Price: $969.22 Used from: $345.00 Average Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (based on 1148 reviews) Magellan Maestro 3140 Portable Auto GPS System for U.S./Canada/Puerto Rico Amazon List Price: $499.99 Average Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (based on 12 reviews) TomTom ONE Portable GPS Vehicle Navigation System Amazon List Price: $299.99 Used from: $200.00 Average Customer Rating: 4.0 out of 5 (based on 204 reviews) .

Magellan Vs Garmin, Here we go again... Let me start by saying I haven't used a Magellan. Let me continue by saying I probably won't, based on what I read in these forums. Just in the past month, I've read complaints about Magellan not filling rebates, about them lying to customers about cracked cases, about firmware updates that add stupid features to units.

I'm beginning to think Magellan is the Wal*Mart of GPS (with Cobra being the fleamarket). Aside from price, can anyone who has used both units tell me what they prefer about the Magellen over the Garmin? Full Edit Quick Edit Renegade Knight Jan 23 2004, 11:26 AM Post #2 Illegitimi Non CarborundumGroup: Charter MembersPosts: 18,797Joined: 16-January 02 Price, and er, well, um, ok there you have it.Price.

Full Edit Quick Edit phantom4099 Jan 23 2004, 12:33 PM Post #3 GeocacherGroup: Premium MembersPosts: 954Joined: Jan 23 2004From: Huron/Aberdeen, SD, USA I have a Magellan 315, and Platinum (I have at one time owned a Gold, and a 330), I also own the Garmin V. I like that Magellan is not quite as limiting on their units. They are the first company with expandable memory (Garmin only had one handheld (in the late 90’s) that used their special memory, although most of their newer car units have expandable memory).

I pretty sure Garmin will never do something like Magellan did with Directroute (If you currently have a Garmin unit that does not autoroute, you will have to buy a new one to get it). Magellan also made their Map 330 WAAS compliant back 2001 (with Garmin you have to buy a new unit). The 3-axis compass on a meridian is easier to use since you don't have to hold the unit completely Horizontal.

Although Magellan does not release as many updates as Garmin they still do, and often times it add new functionality (example of meridian updates:. Switching maps with a meridian, unlimited waypoint/tracks/routes with the meridian, routing, new customized fields, etc...). I have good results with Magellan technical support; they always answered the phone in a timely matter, polite, and helpful.

If you need repairs done they are quick, and usually include free items. I also had out of warranty work done free, and received a free new power/data ($40 at the time) cable for my 315 when I mentioned there might be a small problem (it was not powering a gold-I told them this). I have not had much experience with Garmins customer support, but when I did call and ask about the status of a shipment I was lied to twice (along with a few misleading emails).

Overall I am thinking of selling the V, and purchasing directroute for my Platinum. Wyatt W. Full Edit Quick Edit Cherokeecacher Jan 23 2004, 12:48 PM Post #4 www.

Cherokeeshouston. OrgGroup: Premium MembersPosts: 691Joined: Jan 23 2004 The funny this about tech support people is they are very unlikely to “give you information” unless you know exactly what to ask for or tell them. When I contacted Magellan about the stress cracks in my SporTrack series, the first thing they offered me was to send it to them and have the case replaced for free.

This was a fast, courteous, and understanding answer. After learning that others who have done this, experienced the same cracks very soon after receiving the new case. I called Magellan and informed them that I was not going to get involved in an endless loop of sending the unit in to have the case replaced, even if it was for free.

After I told them that my unit was less than 30 days old, they suggested contacting the retailer and exchanging it for a meridian Gold. Completely different design but has almost the exact features. They even contacted the retailer so I would not get hit with the usual 15% re-stocking fee.

Once Magellan had the “whole” story from ME, they were able to take care of the problem. Sorry about the long post, but it is the only example I could think of.In short, people only know what we tell them or ask of them. Full Edit Quick Edit egerton Jan 23 2004, 01:15 PM Post #5 GeocacherGroup: Premium MembersPosts: 15Joined: Jan 23 2004From: Scotts Valley, CA QUOTE (Indiana Cojones @ Jan 23 2004, 11:21 AM) tell me what they prefer about the Magellen over the Garmin?

I have a Magellen & friends that use Garmin.It seems like Magellen gets & holds on to better coverage in areas with a lot of trees. Due to the location in which I live this was a deal maker for me. I've only owned the STM for a few weeks but i'm very pleased with it.My only wish was that I had enough budget to upgrade to the STP or STC.

Full Edit Quick Edit quest4cache Jan 23 2004, 01:24 PM Post #6 Diehard CachersGroup: Premium MembersPosts: 16Joined: Jan 23 2004 I recently posted a question asking which Sources: http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=63214&st=0 .

Garman I don't have any experience with Magellan, but I have had a Garmin StreetPilot c330 for almost 2 years and I've had no problems with it. There are a few small gripes, but I'm a very picky consumer, and I definitely would buy the Garmin again. The interface is very simple and intuitive, and the screen has excellent visibility and touch sensitivity.

This is not to say that Magellan isn't good, I really don't know. Sources: Use .

2 Sorry, spelled Garmin wrong in the subject...

Sorry, spelled Garmin wrong in the subject...

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North America NT 2008" (part # 010-10989-50) available for sell? " "What GPS system should I buy for my car?

Do portable GPS car navigation systems (e. G Magellon, Garmin, etc) require a subscription service?

I am looking to purchase a GPS for my car, looking for reccomendations.

My dad would like a GPS for his birthday, would like it to be for car and able to take into the woods what should I look.

Does amazon have the Garmen GPS "City Navigator. North America NT 2008" (part # 010-10989-50) available for sell?

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