Talking GPS - and try to be reasonable...

[labgeek]

My mother has moved up here by us. She's having a very hard time getting accustomed to the new city. What I'd like to find for a Christmas present for her is a car mounted GPS (she'd just forget a handheld one at home) that we could set various destinations in and it would talk her through getting there. You know a "turn left 500 feet" type deal.

[RossMAN]

Budget?

 

I like the Garmin StreetPilot series.

[mrn8]

The low end Garmin and Magellan units are in the $400 range, and they have voice prompts. The Garmin C320 and the Magellan Roadmate 300 are both close to $400 right now at buy.com.

[RossMAN]

The low end Garmin and Magellan units are in the $400 range, and they have voice prompts. The Garmin C320 and the Magellan Roadmate 300 are both close to $400 right now at buy.com.

Do you know the differences between the two models?

[mrn8]

They look to be pretty much the same in features. They both have SD card expansion slots, touch screen, and voice navigation. The Magellan software looks to be a lot more inclusive, however, with point of interest mapping, which I've found to be incredibly useful.

 

Edit:

 

Nevermind the POI comment. Apparently the Garmin has it, too. So, they are pretty much the same. I'd read some reviews and see which pro/con list best suits you.

[mrn8]

OK, so the Garmin looks better to me, now. It has a battery, so it can be portable if you want it to be. The Magellan has to be powered to work.

[labgeek]

So can you save person spot's like "Rob & Tammy's House", "Rob's Work", "Grocery store", that she can select from and it'll tell her how to get there.... $400 is a doable, a little more than I hoped but not out of the question.

[RossMAN]

OK, so the Garmin looks better to me, now. It has a battery, so it can be portable if you want it to be. The Magellan has to be powered to work.

I would probably use mine 99.99% in the car so external powered isn't that much of an issue.

 

For me it boils down to which is more functional, has better software and the most comprehensive maps.

[mrn8]

So can you save person spot's like "Rob & Tammy's House", "Rob's Work", "Grocery store", that she can select from and it'll tell her how to get there.... $400 is a doable, a little more than I hoped but not out of the question.

Yes, you can set favorites in the GPS systems. $400 is about the best you'll find for a color GPS with voice navigation. You could wait until BF to see if there are any deals on them, if you wanted to.