GPS Navigation Shopping Advice

The next best thing to having your own local guide is becoming more affordable and feature packed

If you often travel to new places, have trouble reading maps, or simply hate to ask for directions, you might want to consider a portable GPS navigation system. Once you give it a destination, the system can plot out a route, deliver spoken directions, and display each turn as you drive, or in some cases, walk. Most units let you choose guidance options that include plotting the shortest, fastest, and even a toll-free route. An internal database also includes common points of interest such as gas stations and ATMs, and the nav system can route you to the nearest one. You can even choose a nearby restaurant by the type of food.

Although not always as easy to use as the in-dash systems available on many new vehicles, portable systems are catching up. Features like internal, rechargeable batteries and pre-loaded North America map databases are now commonly included on budget systems. More premium features such as real-time traffic reporting are becoming available on more affordable units, although those often require additional hardware.

Portables have the distinct advantage of being easy to move from car to car, enabling a family to share a unit or lend it to others. Their low weight and small size are well suited to long-distance business travel and vacations by plane (for use in a rental car when you arrive), or for walking and biking tours (for use as a handheld device).

And with prices from about $250 to $700, portable units are much less expensive than the typical price tag of up to $2,000 for an integrated, in-dash factory system.


WHAT'S AVAILABLE

Many manufacturers offer units that will get you where you need to go, and more are entering the market as sales continue to skyrocket. Systems from Garmin, Magellan, and TomTom have historically scored highest in our ratings. Those navigation-focused companies now face competition from Delphi, Harmon-Kardon, and Rand McNally--none of which were available for our previous test. Our latest report also includes units from Alpine, Audiovox, Cobra, Lowrance, and Navman.

Units have decreased in size since the first portables came on the market, but too small a device is hard to read or operate. We find that the common 3.5-inch screen, measured diagonally, is a good compromise between portability and usability. We found the Gamin nuvi 660 to be particularly easy to use with its wide-screen format, while remaining portable.

Special features like photo viewing, video player, hands-free calling, and live traffic reporting are available in an increasing number of units.


HOW TO CHOOSE

None of the navigation systems we've tested is perfect. They don't substitute for local knowledge, and all databases had minor errors. But a portable system will usually get you there, guiding you on the way and providing you with peace of mind when you are traveling to unfamiliar areas. The highest-rated models make it especially easy to enter destinations and they give the most helpful directions.

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