Stand-alone GPS units

[soulreapersteve]

Hey all, was wondering if anyone is using a stand-alone GPS unit. Reason I ask is because I'm in the market for one.

I know most phones can pull up Google or Apple maps and it'll be good for everyday driving; along with the HUs in the Twins are capable of nav (but I hear it's not as good).

However, I do a lot of spirited driving in mountainous/backroad areas where I'm not always in range of cell towers. Also, I only get 2 gigs of data.

Linked below is what I was thinking about purchasing, but I do want to know other options out there.

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-Nuvi-2539LMT-North-America/dp/B00N41UTWG"]Amazon.com: Garmin Nuvi 2539LMT North America: GPS & Navigation[/ame]

[Poodles]

I liked my Tomtom a lot when I used it...

[OnionTou]

I bought a Garmin a long time ago (2010-2011). I bought it for when I travel to the US, and I was able to get maps for peru on it on the expandable microSD slot.

I got mine with lifetime map updates, it's really slow (but I guess its because its that old). and the traffic option is always a plus. So you can always see where the traffic is around.

But as long as I update it before any trip, i get updated info before I travel. (I think that's always a plus over car nav systems that rarely get updated)

It gets me out of having to pay roaming for my phone or pay the rental company for the GPS option.

[socal_48]

Magellan has navi and dashcam combined, worth looking into. With that said, I have a Tom Tom that I love. Owned it for 3 years now.

[TofuJoe]

You might also consider a mobile app that lets you download maps in advance. I've used Wi-Fi at home to download maps on MotionX for the iPhone when going to areas without cell reception. It can be slow, but it works. CoPilot Premium and Navigon (Garmin) are 2 other apps that have this feature.

[Lunatic]

I have an old Garmin, love it.

[soulreapersteve]

Thanks all for commenting! I did some extra research into Tom Tom and Magellan, those two had some awesome features. Loved how Tom Tom's show 3D buildings and the power cable goes into the stand, not the device.

In the end, I got the 6 inch screen version of the model I posted originally.

[Calum]

Why not use sygic? The full paid version is about $40 IIRC. All maps are stored on the phone. My moto g did great with it on a recent road trip. And a modern phone will have no trouble getting a good signal.

[brianhj]

Originally Posted by soulreapersteve

Thanks all for commenting! I did some extra research into Tom Tom and Magellan, those two had some awesome features. Loved how Tom Tom's show 3D buildings and the power cable goes into the stand, not the device.

In the end, I got the 6 inch screen version of the model I posted originally.

I loved my old Garmin. One feature I used a lot when I had a job driving all over Houston everyday was how you could search for a POI that is on your current route. Say I set a route for a business across town, I could then tell it to find a Mcdonalds or whatever close to the route I'm taking (instead of just close to me). You could then add the Mcdonalds to your trip as a waypoint. No way to do that in Google maps that I'm aware of.

[soulreapersteve]

Originally Posted by Calum

Why not use sygic? The full paid version is about $40 IIRC. All maps are stored on the phone. My moto g did great with it on a recent road trip. And a modern phone will have no trouble getting a good signal.

I wanted a stand-alone device dedicated to maps only because my phone is a piece of crap. 4 years old that originally came with gingerbread 2.3.7 (though I did flash it to jelly bean 4.0.1). Still, it has 394MB of ram and 800 MHz single core processor. Even overclocking it to run at 1.2 GHz yielded very little performance gain as games can barely run. I use it mostly for playing music so if I used it as a GPS at the same time, it'll be very laggy.

Not to mention it's only 3G capable.

[Poodles]

Originally Posted by soulreapersteve

I wanted a stand-alone device dedicated to maps only because my phone is a piece of crap. 4 years old that originally came with gingerbread 2.3.7 (though I did flash it to jelly bean 4.0.1). Still, it has 394MB of ram and 800 MHz single core processor. Even overclocking it to run at 1.2 GHz yielded very little performance gain as games can barely run. I use it mostly for playing music so if I used it as a GPS at the same time, it'll be very laggy.

Not to mention it's only 3G capable.

Why not upgrade your phone instead of spending the money on a GPS? Cell phone is used more often...

[soulreapersteve]

Originally Posted by Poodles

Why not upgrade your phone instead of spending the money on a GPS? Cell phone is used more often...

Not in my case. I rarely get calls or texts. It's just a dummy MP3 player right now. I would have bought a more "modern" phone but it just doesn't appeal to me.

Weird since I live and breathe technology.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by Lunatic

I have an old Garmin, love it.

Me too! An old nuvi. Keeps yelling at me to update the maps.

Originally Posted by soulreapersteve

Not in my case. I rarely get calls or texts. It's just a dummy MP3 player right now. I would have bought a more "modern" phone but it just doesn't appeal to me.

Weird since I live and breathe technology.

Not so weird for those in the know. The only remaining original part of my old Razr is the main board. I refuse to give it up because it still gets great reception, sounds great to people on the other end, and will go for 3 days between charges. OTOH, with exception to the newest iPhones, all other smart phones sound like utter shit. Even if I have to hold it together with duct tape and baling wire, I plan on being the last holdout using the 900 MHz GSM network.