GPS help, nothing to do with printers or ink!

[Old Chipper]

I've learned a lot from reading this forum. So I thought I might ask all you well-informed folks another question.
We want to get a GPS system. We travel quite often with our 5th wheel. I'm also involved in genealogy, which means I'm often looking for old homesteads or family cemeteries. If possible I would like a system that could be used for both. Would like stay below $500.00 if possible! I need the system to allow me to get the coordinates of a cemetery or old cabin, so others could find them. I don't care much about weigh as long it is less than a pound. I have no need for MP3, cell phone and other bells, whistles. I welcome any of your comments or suggestions, Pro or con.
thanks very much!
Harry

 

[fotofreek]

Google GPS reviews and you will come up with lots of hits. There are magazines totally devoted to GPS issues. That is what I did before buying the Garmin Nuvi 370. Online it was just under $500. It has maps of North America and Europe. Don't discount the value of the bluetooth feature. California has a no-hands cellphone law starting in July. It sounds reasonably good with the incoming message, but the person with whom you are talking will hear you sounding like you are on a speaker phone. A good bluetooth headset or earphone sounds better in both directions, but the GPS bluetooth feature is very handy. This unit will accept coordinates. you can also program in intersections. It weighs a few ounces and slips into a pocket very easily. Be sure to spend enough to have text-to-speech directions rather than just turn left at the next intersection. The basic Tomtom is a good unit but it doesn't give voice commands with names of streets or highway numbers.

 

[on30trainman]

I have the Garmin nuvi 200W. It is a basic entry level GPS unit that comes with maps of the lower 48 states - no Canada. Canadian maps could be loaded onto a SD card. It has no Bluetooth or MP3 capability. It tells you that your turn is coming up, but does not announce the road names. The road names are shown on the display. So far I haven't really missed the road name announcement, but I think it could be useful in an urban area with short blocks. If/when I upgrade I would get that feature. I picked the 200W for price. I wanted to see how well I liked a GPS unit without spending lots of money - got mine for $200. It is wide screen which I found to be very convenient - more map area shown.
There are several ways to set your points for the cemeteries or farms. You could find the point on mapping software (Google Maps, Street Atlas, etc) and record the lat and long values. Or when you visit the place, capture the coords and give them an unique name. A good forum for POIs (Points of Interest) and other GPS info is "www.poifactory.com" (without the quotes). There are lists of POIs and lots of help in developing your own.
Now that I have mine I don't think I could travel to new areas without it. I don't miss the Bluetooth capability - I seldom if ever use a cell phone in the car - if I need to make a call I pull off or have my wife make it. I had an experience where a woman talking on her cell made a one-handed turn into a parking lot right into my lane that I was going out on. She did catch her mistake before hitting me - headon. My son was hit by a driver talking on a cell phone who went right thru a RED light and broadsided him. Luckily he was in a Ford Expedition and she was driving a sports car. Totaled her car - minor door damage to my son's car. Even with hands off units the talking distracts many drivers into not watching traffic.

Steve W.