Although it's tempting, you can't just read someone's opinion of what the top rated GPS units are then go out and buy that specific unit and be happy with your purchase. Well, I guess you can buy whatever unit Consumer Reports or CNET or whoever recommends, but your happiness with your purchase is more of a personal issue. And it's just that personal side of things that I want to talk about.
Okay, just for the record, a little earlier this year Consumer Reports gave the Garmin nuvi 760 their best overall system rating. They also mentioned the Garmin nuvi 660, Tom Tom GO 920T, the Garmin nuvi 350, and the Magellan Maestro 4250 as receiving very high scores.
I agree entirely! All of these systems are great! And it's interesting that the units Consumer Reports picked all come from the three big manufacturers of GPS units.
Just so you know, Garmin has about 50% of the market share, Tom Tom about 20% and Magellan slightly less than 20%. That's 90%! The rest of the 10% is fought over by the little guys. Personally, I like the big three. I see no reason to buy anything else. But again, that's just a personal opinion.
As far as Garmin's three GPS units in Consumer Report's report, the nuvi 350 sells for about $200, the 660 for about $330, and the 760 for about $370. The difference between the three?
Well the 350 is an ever so slightly older model. It has that flip up antenna thing that bothers some people, but frankly doesn't bother me at all. The 350 has maps of the U.S. plus Canada. It can tell you where to turn by actually saying the street name (a big feature in my mind). The only drawback is its 3.5-inch screen.
If you want the larger screen, you'll have to opt for the 660. Which also adds hands-free calling with Bluetooth and the ability to route its transmissions through your car's stereo system. The only thing the 760 adds is multi-point routing. In other words, you can select several destinations and the device can tell you how to get to all of them on one trip.
As far as the Tom Tom GO 920T, there you're looking at a little over $400. It can do everything the nuvi 660 can, but it also has Tom Tom's proprietary map share technology, which is sort of user-generated thing where you can actually send Tom Tom information about road closings, construction, etc. and they'll reflect that on their maps.
Don't forget the Magellan 4250! As a close competitor to Gamin's 660 and the GO 920T, the 4250 sells for only about $280! Don't think this is a cheaply made unit, either. Magellan was one of the forerunners in this field, and they make a quality product.
So, you see even if you're just focusing on the top rated GPS units, there's a lot to choose from and quite a lot to know about your choices.
What will make things easier is an informative website where you can browse models and check out current prices. There you can look at all the top rated GPS units and find the best one for you and your budget.
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