[time-nuts] GPS unit for car navigation -OT ??

[James Maynard]

xaos wrote:
> Hello everyone,
> 
> I have, until now, resisted the urge to buy a GPS navigation system for 
> my car.
> However, I now have to do some traveling and new and unknown addresses
> keep popping up.
> 
> There are several different GPS units on the market and they all look OK 
> (i guess).
> 
> I just want to know which units do the members here consider to be the 
> best for
> this sort of thing?
> 
> Many thanks in advance,
> 
> -George Hrysanthopoulos, N2FGX

I really like my Garmin StreetPilot 7200. Its GPS receiver has WAAS 
correction capability, it has a built-in database of street maps for the 
entire USA, and its large display, perched atop the dashboard of my car, 
is very readable to my aging eyes.  In my car, my view of the 
speedometer is obscured by the steering wheel, so I use the GPS receiver 
as my primary speedometer display, too.

I usually set it just to display a moving map. In that mode, it shows 
the name of the next cross-street that I will encounter at the top of 
the screen -- much easier to read with my aging eyes than the street 
sign on the corner! It also shows my speed and the time of day.

Occasionally I will set it to compute a route for me to follow, 
particularly when driving to someplace unfamiliar. In that mode, it 
doesn't display the time of day, but instead displays the estimated time 
of arrival at the distination -- something that I'm not as interested in 
knowing. At intersections where the calculated route changes from one 
street or highway to another, it zooms in automatically as I approach 
the intersection and zooms out automatically after making the turn.

It didn't hurt that, as a Garmin employee, I got a nice employee discount!

----
James Maynard, K7KK
Salem, Oregon, USA