GPS Magazine Picks a Winner......TomTom, Magellan or Garmin?

That's a biased report Terry. Look at who's ad is first on their web site    Do you think they'd risk ticking off their main ad customer and losing their ad revenue? It isn't going to happen. Maybe if they were open to comments from experienced users, Ron could provide some input.

I noted the same thing.  Garmin had at one time the best on the market but they sure went down hill when they come with City Nav.  I also noted they didn't include the iWAY 500.  At keast the Iway can locate the Lowes store that Garmin showed it as in the swamp.

Tom,

If one ad totally discredits something is it true that if any of us might suggest, push, or promote this forum it must mean that the RV Forum is biased and all comments should be immediately discredited.  I respectively submit the thought that Garmin's ad is not the sole support of the GPS magazine.   

Ron,

I realize that you have had several routing problems with your Garmin and we have too.  But OTOH the GPS magazine routing tests were most likely much more extensive than the few routing errors that either you or I have encountered.

JerryF 

Jerry

I have to agree with you completely. I have the Garmin 2610 on my dashboard and the Garmin nRoute software on my laptop which I run simultaneously with the 2610 while driving the coach. Both use the same City Nav software mapset but are slightly different in the POIs and routing. Yes the NAVTEQ map set has a few mistakes in it, maybe even more than I would like, but I usually don't get into trouble following the 2610's instructions. That, and getting me to where I want to go, is paramount. The POIs are wrong or missing at times, but overall the accuracy level is pretty high. I even am surprised at some of the POIs that I find. More than I would have expected.

Like Ron, I would have liked to have seen the Lowrance in the comparison and am curious as to which mapset Lowrance uses.

As for testing the routing engine - OK- But they did not drive the route to verify the route given by the GPS. I have had instances where a particular route is supposedly faster only to have me on a zigzag trip through the burbs which is way slower than a longer straighter route with less stop signs. They also did not validate the route times given by each GPS.

Bernie,  see this page for information on what map data is used by the various GPS manufacturers.

robfogle said:

As for testing the routing engine - OK- But they did not drive the route to verify the route given by the GPS. I have had instances where a particular route is supposedly faster only to have me on a zigzag trip through the burbs which is way slower than a longer straighter route with less stop signs. They also did not validate the route times given by each GPS.

Click to expand...

Rob

It seems as tho the ETAs are based on non-stop driving without consideration of stop signs or traffic lights. If you catch the lights wrong, your arrival can be significantly delayed. I will frequently modify my route from the displayed one to bypass a higher concentration of traffic signals.

Bernie,  see this page for information on what map data is used by the various GPS manufacturers.

Click to expand...

Ned, thanks for the lead. I had seen that article before but didn't remember where.

JerArdra said:

Ron,

I realize that you have had several routing problems with your Garmin and we have too.  But OTOH the GPS magazine routing tests were most likely much more extensive than the few routing errors that either you or I have encountered.

JerryF 

Click to expand...

They never mentioned actually driving the route but just on how it was routed.  I.E. If they were downtown Boise and wanted to go to Idaho City Garmin routes you down a street that terminates at the freeway because there is no access there.  Wouldn't have wanted to be there in the MH.  The route looked good on the 2610 but wouldn't work.  Around Boise it was like Garmin didn't even know they had a freeway going through that area.

A real test would be to not only put a route into the GPS but to also drive the route to see how many mistakes were really made.  It did not appear to me that the routing tests were any where near as extensive as we users have done.  I for one would really like to see a real comparison which includes routing and driving comparing the iWay500 with the Garmin and Magellan.

JerArdra said:

If one ad totally discredits something is it true that if any of us might suggest, push, or promote this forum it must mean that the RV Forum is biased and all comments should be immediately discredited.  I respectively submit the thought that Garmin's ad is not the sole support of the GPS magazine.

Click to expand...

Understood Jerry and appreciate your comments. I was merely questioning how the magazine could run an impartial test when a major advertiser's product is being evaluated. Didn't mean to suggest they were the only advertiser in that magazine, but you can be sure that Garmin is a factor in their revenue. My comment was made somewhat tongue-in-cheek and maybe I should have included a smiley face.

For clarification, I am not on any crusade to discredit Garmin or the magazine. I haven't reported negative issues with our Garmin SPIII (which we still own) other than some minor issues and an operator error (me). When we bought the Lowrance iWay to replace the Garmin, it all came down to ease of use (by Chris), who couldn't tell you which brand we have (she calls it "Molly"). I have and use several Garmin marine products, but Garmin wasn't my first choice when I purchased the last 3 marine GPS systems; In these cases, the choices were made based on some technical/feature aspects, none of which were a factor when we purchased the iWay for road use.

As for the forum, folks do in fact discredit us based on some minor things, including misconceptions and error on the part of the reporter, in addition to other things not of our making. This is done publicly both here in the forum and elsewhere and also in emails I receive. Some of the emails could best be described as hate mail.

Tom,

It's to bad that folks get so upset when they see things in the RV Forum that causes them to generate BAD/HATE emails and I'll bet they go to you.  You do a great job so please keep it up. 

In todays world folks get overly upset at trivial things.  They even kill for minor/stupid reasons. 

All I can say is that the next time any of us are in a mall and we see a young severely disabled kid in a wheel chair where he or she will probably spend the rest of their life stop and take a "long" look and say to yourself, "I don't have any problems, everything is going great for me."

I do this and have done it for years!  I have to keep reminding myself.

JerryF

Ron

>>The route looked good on the 2610 but wouldn't work.  Around Boise it was like Garmin didn't even know they had a freeway going through that area.<<

We were just in Boise a few weeks ago & used the 2610 extensively with no errors including the tricky freeway re-entry from the flying J....Perhaps if you started using the current City-Nav software instead of the outdated Metroguide you wouldn't get lost so often.<BG>

There must be a reason the Garmins are the most popular even though they are the MOST EXPENSIVE.

PC Magazine this month just ranked them and the TomTom came in tops.  I guess you takes your pick and spends your bucks.

FWIW I have the Garmin 2620 and it sucks.  Lousy, confusing interface and very expensive to keep maps up to date.  I have had it two years and want to try something totally different.  It works fine, but there simply has to be a better manufacturer out there.  And an interface that is not as dangerous to operate when driving.

I gave up using the laptop because it is too cumbersome when driving.  Even though the DeLorme software allows you to operate it by your own spoken voice.

The hardware dash solution is the answer, but it needs a simple interface to be safe.  And when you lay out a cool grand, you should not have to spend hundreds of dollars keeping it up to date.

We have used a 2620 for about 3 years now and haven't seen an indash GPS that works any better or has a better interface.  We have no problems entering addresses or searching for POIs using the Garmin touch screen.  And $75/year is very inexpensive for map updates.

LOL Ned, you sure do live in a different world than me.  I live in the world of the technological illiterate.  ;D

Now my idea of a safe interface is the voice interface that DeLorme has.  When I use the touch screen of the 2620 I have to take my eyes off the road. 

JerArdra said:

...the next time any of us are in a mall and we see a young severely disabled kid in a wheel chair where he or she will probably spend the rest of their life stop and take a "long" look and say to yourself, "I don't have any problems, everything is going great for me."

Click to expand...

Well said Jerry and I agree 100%.

Smokey,

Don't bet on a hardware in-dash solution to be any better, we have two of them.  Make sure you try it first. 

The worst one is in our 2007 Lexus ES350 so it's a new GPS.  It has voice commands but it usually takes 3 to 4 repeats of the command words before it understands what you're saying.  It's mass frustration to keep repeating yourself and it has NEVER understood the word "Decatur" which is a major street here.  Map upgrades cost $300 whereas a map upgrade for our Garmin 2610 costs $75.  The Lexus GPS has so many features it is very dangerous for the driver to use it.  In our case Ardra uses it when I drive and vice versa.  Last but not least you CANNOT use the touch screen when the car is moving so most owners MUST use the feeble voice command entry mode.

An acceptable GPS is in our 2004 Acura MDX tow car so the maps need updating.  Only once in a while do you have to repeat the voice command.  It seems to understand us.  Also you CAN use the touch screen when the car is moving and it has a much simpler interface that does not have the overwhelming number of features as does the Lexus.  We just updated the maps and the DVD cost was $280 so they are no bargain either.

In our case we rate them Garmin 2610, Acura MDX GPS, and last is the Lexus ES350 GPS.

You're not supposed to program ANY GPS while driving.  In fact, you have to override the default in the Garmin to even do that and they give you plenty of warning.  We do our programming before we start out and get lost.

Jerry mentioned the indash versions.  We also checked the one in the Volvo and it's the pits.  It comes up out of the dash and at least half the time you wouldn't be able to see it because the sun would be on the screen.  We were generally underwhelmed by it.

Regarding the interactive GPSs, the passenger should be able to work the darned thing while driving.  That's supposed to be what makes it useful; e.g., deciding on the spur of the moment that you want to find, for example, a restaurant or mall and being able to change course immediately.  Without that feature, their usefulness is reduced significantly.  And, by the way, we have never used them in conjunction with a laptop.  Just too dangerous.  Get the kind where you can download the needed maps from your computer and you won't need to use the laptop.

The GPSs have improved significantly since our first one and I love them!

ArdraF

Oh dopey me!  Naw, the passenger always programs the GPS if we're moving.  BTW, you would not believe how much effort I went to in order to "hack" the Lexus NAV system so we could use the touch screen while the car is moving.  Lexus does NOT offer an override like in our Garmin.  I did put a "HOW TO" on the Lexus ES350 forum and there are already over 2,850 hits.  It appears that it is a popular "do it yourself" aftermarket option.

JerryF