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Lowrance iWAY 600C review

April 23, 2007 By 1 Comment

Iway600csat_2
UPDATE: This model has been discontinued. For current recommendations, please refer to our auto GPS buyers guide.

The Lowrance iWAY 600C is the new top of the line automotive and marine GPS navigator from Lowrance that, in addition to displaying maps, has aerial imagery of hundreds of U.S. and Canadian cities.

The iWAY 600C has a large 5″ touch-screen, pre-loaded maps of the continental U.S. and Canada, plus electronic charts with depth contours for U.S. inland lakes, the Great lakes and coastal waters. It also has an MP3 player, built-in FM transmitter and 5.5 million points of interest (POIs).

25 GB of its 30GB hard drive is dedicated to maps and aerial photos. The remaining 5 GB is available to store MP3s.

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Filed Under: Aerial imagery, Auto, GPS Reviews, Hardware, Lowrance, Lowrance auto GPS

Magellan Maestro 4040 review

April 8, 2007 By Leave a Comment

Magellanmaestro4040

UPDATE: This model has been discontinued. For current recommendations, please refer to our auto GPS buyers guide or check out our other Magellan auto GPS reviews.

The Magellan Maestro 4040 is part of Magellan’s newest lineup — the Maestro series. Like all members of the Maestro family, the 4040 has a wide 4.3″ screen, voice-prompted directions, AAA travel information and a SiRFstarIII chipset. The 4040 also has preloaded maps of the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico, 4.5 million points of interest (POIs), and Bluetooth for hands free cell phone use. Additionally, it will call out the street names for upcoming turns.

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Filed Under: Auto, GPS Reviews, Hardware, Magellan, Magellan auto GPS

Garmin zumo 450 review

March 31, 2007 By 6 Comments

Garminzumo450left
The Garmin zumo 450 GPS for motorcycles follows the successful introduction of the zumo 550 last year. The 450 has all of its features except Bluetooth, the ability to speak street names and XM Satellite compatibility.

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Filed Under: Auto, Garmin, Garmin auto GPS, GPS Reviews, Hardware

Garmin nuvi 250 review

March 26, 2007 By Leave a Comment

Garminnuvi250

UPDATE: This model has been discontinued. For current recommendations, please refer to our auto GPS buyers guide.

The slim Garmin nuvi 250, one of the entry level nuvi models, has preloaded maps of the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. It sports a 3.5 inch color touch-screen display and, as with other nuvis, includes voice-prompted directions, picture viewer, calculator, currency converter, unit converter, world clock and 6 million points of interest. The Garmin Lock security feature is provided as well.

UPDATE: A newer model, the nuvi 255, offers these features and more.

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Filed Under: Auto, Garmin, Garmin auto GPS, GPS Reviews, Hardware

Garmin nuvi 200 review

March 22, 2007 By 1 Comment

Nuvi_270_left

UPDATE: This model has been discontinued. For current recommendations, please refer to our auto GPS buyers guide.

The Garmin nuvi 200 is Garmin’s entry level device in their incredibly popular nuvi series of GPS navigators. The slim nuvi 200 has preloaded maps of the 48 contiguous United States, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. It sports a 3.5 inch touch-screen display and, as with other nuvis, the 200 series includes voice-prompted directions, picture viewer, calculator, currency converter, unit converter and world clock. The Garmin Lock security feature is provided as well.


UPDATE: A new model, the nuvi 205, offers these features and more, and has occasionally been selling for a little less than the nuvi 200.

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Filed Under: Auto, Garmin, Garmin auto GPS, GPS Reviews, Hardware

Garmin nuvi 370 review

March 17, 2007 By Leave a Comment

Garmin_nuvi_370

UPDATE: Though still available and supported, Garmin has discontinued the nuvi 370. For newer models, check out my Garmin nuvi comparison chart.

UPDATE 2: The latest trans-Atlantic navigators to be introduced are the Garmin nuvi 2475LT and nuvi 2370LT.

The Garmin nuvi 370, with pre-loaded maps of both North America and Europe, is an excellent choice for international travelers. It sports a 3.5″ touch screen, MP3 player, integrated traffic receiver, speaks street names and has Bluetooth for hands-free cell phone use. That’s in addition to standard nuvi features like a currency and measurement converter, world clock and digital photo organizer. Add-on options include language translators and travel guides.

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Filed Under: Auto, Garmin, Garmin auto GPS, GPS Reviews, Hardware

Garmin nuvi comparison chart

March 15, 2007 By

IMPORTANT: See our improved Garmin nuvi comparison chart. Due to space constraints on GPS Tracklog, I’ve taken the nuvi comparison chart elsewhere. Comments are now closed on this post, but you can comment and ask questions at the new Garmin nuvi comparison chart.

There are a plethora of nuvis entering the GPS marketplace, and I can see that there is going to be a lot of confusion among would be buyers. In light of that, and despite my admittedly limited technical skills, I’ve put together a Garmin nuvi comparison chart. It may not be the prettiest HTML table in the world, but it should serve the needs of confused consumers. The chart only covers models designed for North American consumers, though it does include units with both North American and European maps — the x70 models.

Before we get into all the details, here’s a brief look at the various series in the U.S. nuvi lineup:

  • 200 series – This budget, entry level lineup includes the nuvi 200, 250, 260 and 270. All have a 3.5″ screen. A relatively new series, these units have an internal antenna, giving them a less obtrusive profile.
  • 200W series – The 200W, 250W and 260W are also entry level units with limited features, albeit with a 4.3″ screen.
  • 300 series – With more features than the 200 series, this set includes the first two nuvis ever released, the 350 and 360, along with the newer 370.
  • 600 series – More feature laden still, this line includes the nuvi 650, 660, 670 and 680.
  • 700 series – The newest additions to the nuvi family, these units incorporate the high-end features of the 600 series, with the internal antenna found on the 200 series.
  • x70 models – The tranatlantic 270, 370, 670 and 770 models have maps of the U.S., Canada and Europe.

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Filed Under: Garmin, Hardware

Hoax: GPS-microchip implanting sniper rifle

March 6, 2007 By Leave a Comment

Gpsimplantingrifle
An item on Digg caught my eye – a GPS-microchip implanting sniper rifle. The only thing is, I don’t believe it.

Supposedly, it is produced by a Danish firm, Empire North. Their website claims:

"It is used to implant a GPS-microchip in the body of a human being, using a high powered sniper rifle as the long distance injector. The microchip will enter the body and stay there, causing no internal damage, and only a very small amount of physical pain to the target. It will feel like a mosquito-bite lasting a fraction of a second…


As the urban battlefield grows more complex and intense, new ways of managing and controlling crowds are needed. The attention of the media changes the rules of the game. Sometimes it is difficult to engage the enemy in the streets without causing damage to the all important image of the state. Instead EMPIRE NORTH suggests to mark and identify a suspicious subject on a safe distance, enabeling (sic) the national law enforcement agency to keep track on the target through a satellite in the weeks to come."

The only problems are (a) they would have to incorporate a transmitter in order to do tracking and (b) the human body is comprised mostly of water. And GPS signals don’t penetrate water very well.

Till proven wrong, count me as a skeptic.

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Filed Under: Hardware

GPS, daylight savings time and Mini-Y2K

February 24, 2007 By 1 Comment

Have you heard about the fears of a mini-Y2K event when the U.S. goes to daylight savings time (DST) earlier than in past years? The law making this change wasn’t passed until 2005, which means that software created before then could miss the date for advancing the time (making you late for appointments from March 11 to April 1).

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Filed Under: Garmin, GPS News, Hardware, Software

Magellan Maestro series includes voice recognition

February 20, 2007 By 1 Comment

Magellanmaestro UPDATE: Check out our Magellan Maestro 4000, Magellan Maestro 4040 and Magellan Maestro 4050 reviews.

GPSReview.net reported last night that a new Magellan GPS series, the Magellan Maestro, is about to hit the market. There’s nothing on Magellan’s website yet, but I did find out that TigerGPS.com already has the Maestro series on their site. They are showing an availability date of early April 2007 for two of the units, and mid-May for the top of the line model..

This is the first thin series (0.8") that’s been put out by Magellan. The Maestro units will include a new user interface and improved graphics. What’s really exciting though, is that the top of the line model, the Magellan Maestro 4050, will include voice recognition capabilities (something that showed up on my 2007 GPS wish list). Let’s take a look at the differences in the three units:

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Filed Under: Hardware, Magellan
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