The February 2007 issue of Consumer Reports contains updated ratings of portable GPS navigation devices. I’ll list the top ten, best buys and quick picks, but I have to comment first. Many of these are "last generation" units, and I don’t necessarily agree with their rankings. For alternative recommendations, check out my auto GPS buyers guide. For insight into GPS Tracklog readers’ choices, take a look at the top ten most popular GPS receivers on this site.
Here is Consumer Reports’ top ten (all links go to our GPS reviews, except where indicated):
- Garmin nuvi 350
- Magellan RoadMate 3050T
- Magellan RoadMate 760
- Garmin StreetPilot 2730
- TomTom GO 510
- TomTom ONE
- TomTom GO 300
- TomTom GO 700
(Amazon)
- Navman iCN 750
- Pioneer AVIC-S1
They selected the Tom Tom ONE and Garmin StreetPilot i5 (ranked number 12) as "Best Buys," great for budget-conscious shoppers.
The Garmin nuvi 350, Magellan RoadMate 3050T and TomTom GO 510 were "Quick Picks" — units that were the best overall, taking into account portability and performance:
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It’s great that GPS devices are developing so rapidly.Now they are not only in our cellular phones but in our cars and many other places.
I have been looking for info/reviews on in-dash GPS systems, with no luck at all. Can you direct me to any info?
Thanks.
John,
If you’re talking about factory installed, I advise against it…
http://gpstracklog.com/2006/04/gps_for_your_ca.html
If you’re talking about after-market units, like those from car stereo manufacturers, the best bet is to Google the model name and number + “review.”
I was looking at the garmin but I was wondering what the difference was between the 2d and 3d views on it. Does the 3d view display the road signs or anything like the navigon?? Or is the 3d view just elevated? Because for my purposes I really don’t care about points of interest..I am going to be using it for intown navigation 90% of the time…so a detailed view of where I am is very important since I will be walking a lot and in the car sometimes as well….speaking street names instead of turn left is also important…The navigon has all those features and I can get it for a pretty low price…much less than the garmin but if the maps are that much better on the navigon then that would be worth it to me. Thanks!! Sorry for the lenght of this
Harvey,
The 3-D view is just elevated. A 2-D view is like looking down on a map of the city from above. A 3-D view is more how it would look from the car.
The Garmin is more intuitive and has bigger buttons.
Hope this helps.