GPS
 

Looking to buy a GPS for Canada and USA OH is going out on the highway trucking. Have been told that Garmin is the best anybody got any recomendations?

Any help would be appreciated.

Re: GPS
 

What specifically do you need a GPS for?Do you have the coordinates of the place in advance?or Do you need the one with already built in maps?
Garmin is good

Re: GPS
 

looking for something to use in the truck for work and also in the car when he's not working so was looking at one with maps built in - Garmin Nuvi 265W/WT GPS - 4.3" Touch Screen or Garmin Nuvi 1350T Auto GPS - 4.3" Touch Screen can't work out the difference ?? :huh:

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Personally, I find that they all suck. I find they do not give proper directions and take you the long way around. Have found this out on several trips that I make routinely. They had me going sometimes 10 miles out of the way.

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Ive got a panasonic strada its got a 5" screen never had any problems with it. Would reccomend one

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Tom Tom1 is all you need in my opinion...:thumbup: I have an old one that has the mb card slot in the bottom so I have the UK, Canada & US on it.

I have used it extensively around Florida, Ontario and LA and its been brilliant. Its enabled me to go to everywhere I've wanted to and get back without any problems. I would say as long as you are cautious around city centres(due to new 1 way systems and road layout changes) you will be fine:thumbup:

Occasionally when you're sitting in a car with a local and you are following the GPS they will say "Oh why did it take you down this road when you could have just cut across there" but for me I would never be without it:)

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Apparently you can get Snoop Doggy Dog to do the voice for your sat-nat/GPS. Which is nice.

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Why would anyone need a GPS in Canada? There are very few roads and virtually no choices of routes. Get a map.

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States in the original post that he will be going to the US.... With a myriad of roads in the US, I wouldn't fancy navigating that via map. Whilst I appreciate that people did have to do this at one time, for the sake of 100 quid - why inflict such pain on yourself?

I have a TomTom and whilst it does take me on some strange routes occasionally, it normally works out ok.... I have heard that Garmin's have better Points Of Interest (POI) databases for the US. I was however familiar with the TomTom interface after using it for years in the UK, so that's what I stuck with.

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Perhaps I should've added a smiley.

I've posted this before, but when I first lived in California (33 years ago) I asked in a gas station if they had a map.

The attendant looked down at where I was standing and asked "Why, what have you spilled?"

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Good grief, you jest surely? I always hire a GPS on my bi-annual forays around the GTA. 'Where have you been?' people ask me and it's difficult to answer because I merely follow the bleep to another postcode. And of course urban sprawl looks the same whereever you are. No, without GPS I would be stuck in an endless loop trying to get out of the industrial part of Richmond Hill.;)

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You'd need at the very least a map now, what a sprawling mess of confusing roads!

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We just spent a week driving around AZ. Since we took a map, rather than a gizmo, we achieved the same effect by having the passenger recite "please return to the highlight rout" in a tinny, vaguely Oriental, voice.

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I prefer the TomTom products, too. I use mine in Europe and North America with no issues at all.

Cheers

Martin

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i have a Garmin nuvi and never had any problems with it - have used it in the UK here and in the states too and works a treat - apart from downtown calgary when it gets a little confused because of the high rise buildings :eek:

There is a place in calgary that does really good deals on GPS systems called GPS Central a google search should bring it up for you and they ship to you too

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I have a Garmin , wife has a tom tom, user interface in Garmin is much better in my opinion. Been a God send. Used is States recently was very good. They are not fool proof but will get you to where you want to go. Make sure they are updated as well , esp with level of new city roads being built in places like Calgary, GTA and Vancouver.

Also recommend one with a Bluetooth receiver for hands free calling

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Have you a GPS-equipped phone? Check out Co Pilot Live (google it/other search engines are available). In the region of 20-30 quid for Co Pilot on the iPhone for US and Canada. Good value. The advantage of these over the embedded iPhone mapping program is that the maps are stored on the device, no data required. Another one to check out on the iPhone is gMap. Looks cheap and cheerful.

If you do a search of the entirenet, you'll find endless discussions about TeleAtlas vs Navteq (the different companies which supply maps to TomTom et al) and which is better. Both TomTom (PDA version) and Garmin (Nokia E71) have both been prone to sending me round the houses. Purely anecdotal non scientific evidence, but I think they're all much of a muchness.

Like the poster above, I like TomTom, but have not purchased it for the iPhone as it's way more expensive than Co Pilot, which I'll buy when I get to Canada.

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Garmin no question. I use Garmin in the air and my OH uses a Garmin on the ground. Get one you can program the routes in through Google maps and upload to your GPS, then you can plan and set your own route. The highway maps with all GPS devices are OK, they take you some on some really weird routes if not programed properly. Cheap ones don't allow you the flexibility in programing.

Maps are still the best for highway nav, problem relying on GPS is you never learn the routes as well as using a map. The OH has driven all over the Lower Mainland and still needs a GPS to get anywhere as she follows it religiously, without paying attention to the route.

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Aha a fellow pilot - I'm sure I'll be picking your brain re aviating once I get settled in Canada.

Good point about the Garmin PC connectivity - their PC software is good and I like the way you can plan and transfer to device, an aviation 496. But I found the device itself a pain to use - too much button pressing! Ditto the aviation GNS530. But I also like the way that Garmin products can load different types of maps to one device eg hiking and driving maps together. This is probably more in depth than neede by OP but good chat nonetheless!

Re: GPS
 

Hi there
pretty much all the GPS devices are user preference. I used garmin professionally but love the Tom Tom for out and about. It is easy to use for the wife and has things like closest restaurants gas stations etc. Also you can up date it via the web using their community function.
My only firm advice would be to wait and buy one over here. I found them a lot cheaper than the UK. If you can consider renting the different types you are looking at then chat with the OH about which one you both prefer. Costs but might save you in the long run. We had rented a Tom Tom with a rental car one trip so I knew the OH liked how they worked and interfaced.

Being honest unless you are moving to one of the bigger cities once you have been here abit you won't use it apart from trips. Canada doesn't change much and of it does it does so at glacier speed :)

All have good and bad

hope the move goes well

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Just to clarify, the reason we need a GPS is that my OH is a truck driver and will be doing long haul trucking as of the end of this month. For the last 2 years nearly he has been shunting in a yard in High River AB. Now he will be traveling all over Canada and the US so has to be easy to operate while driving an artic.;)

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sorry reading this via iPhone causes to miss points.
I would rec the Tom Tom then nice big screen easy to program on the move although illegal in most provs ;) lane advice, covers the whole of N America and would give him the closest eateries etc when he is in a place ge doesn't know.
Most of the truck drivers I have met are using a Tom Tom.
Lots of add ons to the POI via the web page for different chains and hotels for when he is on the road.

It's what I would use if doing the same thing.

Safe driving

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I've got a TomTom 340XLS, the missus got it for me from Amazon when they had it on sale going for cheap.

I like it...the pluses -

Quite to load and lock onto a satellite, even in built up areas it generally takes seconds and only a couple of times has it taken longer than a minute, usually bad weather.

It's quick to route and if going through tunnels it predicts where you might be in the tunnel based on your speed which is handy.

Clear display, great at night, nice menu that's quick to get info/POI's and directions.

Good battery life if you want to take it for a walk, it'll even route cycle/foot directions.

Decent map updates and easy to edit the maps and POI's.

Cons -

No cancel button in the menu, so a few extra presses to get back to screen if you are browsing though.

No quick button to the base map from the short cuts, it's a couple of menu clicks to see it and you've got to be on the map view to get details of POI's.

Suction cup is a bit fiddling to stick on the windscreen, but it does work well, just get a dash beanbag time stand thingy.

If for some reason it is recalculating a route, it doesn't revert to text view of previous directions so if your going fast on the motorway, you might have to hope you don't miss your exit and quickly getting off the next one sort of thing.

No SD card slot and there's not enough room to add other maps like EU maps without clearing the whole lot as the US/Canada maps are one thing and backing the maps to computer hard drive takes bloody ages.

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you need the Cobra 7700 Pro, or Rand Mcnally TND 500 which are proper truck specific GPS for both Canada and the states. Google it to get all the info. they have all the truck stops and everything on them. both are the best you can get. the cheapest place to get it is in the states from either the pilot or Flying J truck stops the garman 465 is truck specific but only in the states. no normal car one is just no good at all.

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Are there really routes that a truck could not use in North America? One would assume that load is not an issue on North American roads and, if an articulated lorry can back into an entrance in a tiny road in Burton-on-Trent, I fail to see how a good driver would have difficulties in backing into anything in North America. Having said that, I watched a Trail Appliance "semi" take about 30 attempts to back into a single stall that only had about 100' of clearance on both sides so I suppose anything is possible:p

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Trucks are not allowed over various mountain passes and on some dams, the Hoover Dam, for example.

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The main things you have to watch for is restricted routes where trucks can not go, plus low bridges/underpasses, and also weight restricted roads that trucks can not go on. Someone I know had just got a car GPS which took him down this road with a low bridge. He could not get under it, so had to call the police to block the road off so he could reverse back up this road. The police then gave him 3 tickets which come to more than what it would have cost to buy a truck specific GPS in the first place. Yes a map can take you on the main Highways to where you go. Its when you get to the towns when the problems can start.

I have the Cobra 7700 Pro. I can do multi routing, takes me on all the right routes, tells me where all the truck stops are along my route, or where ever I want to stop. If I brake down it has all the contact details of all the brake down services and repair shops in the local area to where I am including Phone numbers etc. so you can see it is an essential peace of kit that no trucker should be without

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There's even some roads in Windsor that trucks are not allowed to use and my TomTom certainly doesn't tell you which they are! So it seems very wise to get one of the truck devices suggested!

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i use a garmin nuvi 265, but i carry a bag of maps to check out new drops..
would like a truck one but $300-400, a bit to rich for me..:thumbup:also use the updates 2times a yr..
james

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Canadian maps are crap, often wrong. The roadsigns are often non existent or pointing in the wrong direction so a GPS might be a good idea if only they weren't based on the crap maps.

Oh how I yearn for the rigours of Ordnance Survey maps.

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OK, all noted thanks. I am amazed that there are weight restricted bridges or low bridges or underpasses that a "regular" semi would be unable to negotiate. All the ones that I have seen appear to be massively over engineered and would be able to take anything. I, mistakenly, thought such restrictions in England were as a result of a engineering works completed long before the invention of the motor vehicle.:p

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And bridge heights are another factor...plus there are plenty of roads in the US where trucks aren't allowed on, NY is particularly bad.

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allicat001,
I shunted with Ian in yard,
my GPS packed up this week and I'm now going to go for the GarminT465. It's for trucks and covers bridges, weight limits, truckstops etc. tell him to buy a Rand McNally laminated mapbook of US & Canada to use alongside GPS. We don't always get routed the same way as the GPS wants to go so he'll need the mapbook to re-route the GPS.
Steer clear of Rand McNally & PC Miler Truck GPS, they are new at the moment and have problems but they are sorting them out.
Check prices but usually cheaper in Montana (Shelby Pilot, Great Falls Pilot or Flying J), no sales tax down there.
Neil.