Save Big On Auto GPS Units | The Communication Blog

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Save Big On Auto GPS Units

By Michael Torc

Although prices on auto GPS units have fallen quite a bit lately, there are still ways to save hard earned cash when you buy one. Because you can spend from $150 to $900 on a GPS, using 'price' as a starting point is not a bad strategy.

Possibly the most important money saving tip is for you to understand the marketplace before you buy.

A lot of people just read reviews or talk with friends and say "I'll buy that one," only to find out that the one they bought was not the right device.

Let's start by looking over the features you should be considering.

All auto GPS units demonstrate where you are and give you directions to get to where your going. They all also have a library of pre-programmed destinations called Points of Interest, or POI's. You can get an auto GPS unit to do all of this and more for only $150! The Garmin nuvi 200, the Tom Tom One, 3rd Edition, and the Magellan Maestro 3100 are all three good choices of basic GPS systems.

Premium features include more extensive maps, actually pronouncing street names instead of just "Turn Here!", real-time traffic bulletins, and Bluetooth capacity so you can make hands-free phone calls while driving.

You can get all of this for $200! The Garmin nuvi 350 is a great model. It can do this and more. The multiple point routing will cost you another $50 to $100.

Another example of a good mid-priced GPS is the Magellan Maestro 4250. It can do everything I've mentioned and it has the wider, 4.3-inch display. (Normal screen sizes are 3.5-inches. These are all measured on the diagonal, just like a television.)

Yet another auto GPS unit you need to be thinking about is the Tom Tom GO 920T. At around $400, the GO 920T can do everything mentioned thus far, and also it has functionality that only Tom Tom offers--such as their Map Share technology. Map Share allows users actually enter information into Tom Tom's map database that reflects present road conditions.

The Garmin Nuvi 200 is one of the least expensive auto GPS units you can buy. I would recommend this as a good entry level GPS system, it's simple enough that a friend of mine bought it as a birthday present for his mother in law who is a complete and utter technophobe.

While we're mentioning extra features, let me make certain you know about Magellan's deal with AAA. they have the Tour Book pre-programmed right in their device. I'm a AAA lover. So, for me that's a great selling feature.

As you can see, there are auto GPS units to fit all budgets and needs.

Your best money saving tip would be to visit an informative website where you can check out prices and browse particular models. I can't think of a better way to know what you're buying when you make a decision to spend your hard earned money!

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