IMHO: GPS Shopping list

Must have:

1. Preloaded with maps of USA – DUH! If you live in the US, but worth double checking the side of the box and making sure your not going to have to pay a fee to download the maps.

2. Ability to update said maps – An extension of the requirement above, its good to know that you can update the maps, even for a small fee if need be.

3. Excellent User Interface that clearly identifies the next road in the Trip – This turns out to NOT be as obvious, for example the TomTom One has this feature turned off in the UI by default, after turning it on, the TomTom One becomes very usable.  (Just to be clear, its very helpful to have the ability to glance at the GPS and know what road or street to look for next, especially if your GPS lacks Text to Speech)

4. Text to Speech – Many current GPS units, have the ability to say out loud the name of the next turn, this can be very helpful, especially during city driving when you are making turn after turn.

5. Lane Assistants – California here we come. I have noticed in particular that California will have many highways split off at once. This can be confusing if your GPS is telling you to bare right and there are two or three options to your right. The Lane Assistant will clearly identify which lane to take to remain on course.

6. Large Database of “Points of Interest” – Extremely helpful in a strange location to locate the nearest Coffee shop, IHOP, BestBuy, Wal-Mart, Target, or Shoe Repair – as the case may be… 

 

Nice to have:

- Free Real-Time Traffic updates for the life of the product*
- Radar Info
- Emergency Help
- Speed Assistant
- Extendable memory

 

-Keith