Which is the best available GPS on the market?

Question

Im looking for a GPS that actually tells me the name of the streets or the highway exits in advance. Not just a GPS that says turn left here, turn right there or at 400 yards make a left..I have two kids, so that's the reason i want to be guided by the GPS voice. Thanks

Answer 1

This not as easy of an answer as it may seem. It really depends on what you like to have as a GPS feature that counts, so if you must have Text to Speech, a larger 4.3" display, Blue tooth hands free features with Tons of Points of Interest and price is not as much of a factor, I would recommend the following units.

When you ask for a unit that can tell you announce the street names, what you are asking for is a unit with Text to Speech feature and the following units below can offer you this feature you are looking for.

TomTom 930 or 920, Garmin Nuvi 760 or 260W or Magellan Maestro 3250 or 4250 units to start with. Depending on your budget these are some of the current popular GPS model that includes TTS.

Garmin, TomTom and Magellan GPS systems are the leaders in GPS systems in NA, and they all offer a tremendous value and quality for what they have to offer.

It is like comparing a Mercedes to a BMW or a Cadillac to a Lincoln, each proud owner will tell you they have the best no matter what you may think.

Generally, Garmin sales and popularity is higher in North America and TomTom popularity is higher in Europe. Europe is about 2 to 3 years a head of North America.  Magellan is comes in third in NA and they have a long history with building GPS system and was the pioneer in having GPS systems in Hertz Rental cars also known as the Hertz NeverLost. Many loyal Magellan customers continues to purchase Magellan GPS products.

With that said, if you are a world traveler, TomTom probably offer you a greater value for what they have to offer, a TomTom top end GPS unit that is loaded with both US and EU mapping software can be obtain for less than $400 while the Garmin is normally a bit higher in the US.

TomTom is probably one of the most feature rich and user interface feature is much more customizable than any other PND products currently offered.

With that said, some of the main differences between TomTom and Garmin is that TomTom have the ability to have MAP SHARE and correct map errors without having to buy new maps, you can update your maps online with TomTom and have fresher maps daily if you wish. The TomTom Voice command is not as good as the Garmin product offer in the Nuvi 850 and 880, but the cost is almost half of what Garmin is asking for being the top end Garmin unit selling at $999 and TomTom 930 with both EU and NA selling for $499. Both have Voice command, traffic, text to speech etc but the price difference is what differentiates the two models.

Magellan offers some unique features such as AAA Tourbook which adds additional information such as AAA rating and discount programs. They also have the route preference that allow you to select most use of freeways and least use of freeways, quick spell, limited voice command along with some unique Magellan only features at a very reasonable price. Currently the Magellan Maestro 4250 is the flagship unit for Magellan.

The Garmin and Magellan routing seems to be very stable and I prefer it to compare to the TomTom, they all will get you where you need to go but TomTom sometimes takes a slightly longer route for no apparent reason and for the price of fuel these days, that is something to be consider while making your selection.

The Garmin do have the ability to expend your world travel capabilities by adding in SD cards that are loaded with mapping software from other countries such as SouthEast Asia, South Africa, Australia, Mexico, Brazil, New Zealand, Middle East etc, so the flexibility and map availability is better with Garmin. Garmin also offer software such as language translator, travel guide with rich points of interest information,

They also have travel features such as currency calculators, world clock etc that will make your travel a bit easier.

I guess I would say the most important part of the answer is what are you looking for the GPS system to do for you and at what price?

If you wish to buy a great system at a great value, consider the TomTom or Magellan units, if you wish to buy a great system with feature rich add-ons and a more stable routing engine, consider the Garmin.

You really can't go wrong with any of these three GPS manufacturers and I am sure you will be happy with either one should you decide to commit to buying a GPS system.

You can find out more about different GPS systems at Auto Nav 2000 Plus, Inc at www.Autonav2000.com

If you are not sure and you wish to test drive a few, you maybe able rent them through GPS4Rent at www.GPS4Rent.com

If you wish to ask that question again with price, size of display, if Text to Speech, Traffic information, route optimization etc features that you wish to have, I maybe able to recommend you to a GPS system that will fit your needs better.

Good Luck