Buying GPS: Help needed for clueless shopper

[Capella]

Somehow I have managed to make it this far in life without having GPS. I think the time has come, however, because my glovebox will only hold so many AAA maps, and none of those are detailed enough for local driving.

Anyway, I'm not going geocaching. I would just like to be able to get around an unfamiliar place without constantly having to refer to my scribbled notes and Google maps printouts.

I don't need anything super fancy and I don't have a data plan on my cell phone and don't plan to change that in the foreseeable future. I just want to be able to get from Point A to Point B without a lot of fuss. I guess spoken directions/turns would be good, but I don't need traffic reports or real-time updates.

So, wise and all-knowing FSUers, help!

[Garden Kitty]

I love my Garmin Nuvi, they have a bunch of models - just search on amazon and they have a lot of comparisons. Lifetime updates are nice if you think you'll be using it for the "points of interest" but otherwise you probably don't need to pay for them since most of the roads you're using won't change frequently (unless you're in an area where things change quickly).

[taf2002]

I won a Garmin but it is not yet in my car or Mr t's car because neither one of us can figure out how to use it. We've had it over a year.

[MacMadame]

I love my Garmin Nuvi as well. I got an older model off Amazon for a reasonable price and it comes with a lifetime free subscription to traffic so my GPS will reroute me around bad traffic when it can. That's a nice feature to have.

I've tried other models and I find that Garmin has the easiest user interface of all the brands I have tried.

[Sassafras]

In addition to a Garmin handheld (for geocaching) I use a Garmin Nuvi for car navigation. Tons of models to choose from Costco usually has them at a good price. I don't like the traffic feature myself. In Denver, it's usually wrong. LOL.

[skipaway]

another Garmin Nuvi owner here. Mine's very basic, got it on Amazon.

[mysticchic]

Garmin owner also. Easy to use and love the options I have on it.

[barbk]

Sad owner of a non-Garmin that wants to charge me $75 a year for map updates.

I've decided that I'm only going to drive on roads that were in existence in 2007.

[Aceon6]

Garmin here also. I have a high end Nuvi, hubby has the cheapest one. Both work fine. I bought the "lifetime maps for $69" as I live in an area with lots of road changes going on.

[Andora]

Another Garmin user chiming in! Love it, though I think the settings keep switching to something other than fastest route.

We're ready to upgrade because map subscriptions didn't come with it, and they're awfully expensive. Hubby and I are looking at the i1390. I rode with a friend who has one, and it's all kinds of helpful when having to make a strange or complicated turn. A little animation comes up to show the turn, which is handy if it's not your standard roundabout, intersection, etc. (ie: it's helpful when you're in Michigan and not used to Michigan lefts. ) I believe it also has traffic alerts on it, and can help detour you. I know another brand offers this (Magellan, I think?) as well, but I'm used to Garmin at this point.

[Vagabond]

I recently went to a wedding in another state with my brothers and sister-in-law. My sister bought a new GPS device just for the occasion. On the afternoon of the ceremony, we all met up at a rental car agency, my brothers programmed the device, and we set off for the wedding. At some point, it seemed like we must have gone past the right exit, but the GPS assured us we were to get off farther down the road. Eventually, the GPS directed us to exit and took us on back roads for ten minutes. Then it told us that we had reached our destination. We were at the bottom of a long private driveway, with the wrong street number and no signs indicating that it was the wedding venue. We headed back to the gasoline station and determined that we had been misdirected. The actual wedding site was a thirty-minute drive away! Fortunately, we got there just before the ceremony started.

Sorry, but I don't know what make or model the GPS was.

As for me, I'm sticking to scribbled notes and printouts from Google Maps.

[Capella]

Thank you so much for everyone who shared their experiences and opinions! You've been really helpful.

[Moto Guzzi]

Another Garmin Nuvi owner. I got mine on sale at Best Buy. Easy to use and works great!