Recommend a GPS
 

With so many different brands and models, can someone help me pick one that is: small, light, portable, durable, accurate, works well in the US, relatively inexpensive, in car use? If additional maps (europe) can be added cheaply, that will be a bonus. Also if it can be purchase from walmart (have tons of gc there) that will be even better.

GPS recommended in this thread:
Garmin Nuvi 350 - $260 at walmart
TomTom Go 920T - $300 at dell
Service from verizon, at&t - $10/month

The TomTom came in handy when I took a trip in 06 from NH to Sturgis. We had to stop in CT and Jersey to pick ppl up and it got us right to where we wanted to go. Best fun feature? You can change the accent of the speaker to Aussie or British as well as male or female!

Here is link to a new model VERY INEXPENSIVE (second item down at the moment):

http://www.bradsdeals.com/

I'm using the Garmin 250W, does its job in my opinion, but it could have performed faster for the POI search that often did not have what I wanted. It comes cheapest from ebay I think.

You'll probably get a variety of opinions here, but I like Garmin as a brand for the maps, POIs, ease of use, etc. The Nuvi 650 also has one of the best screens I've seen.

I like the Garmin nuvi line. The screen auto-adjusts for day and night, but can be set manually. I bought it with North America pre-loaded, then bought Europe as an extra. Later discovered it would have been cheaper to buy it with Europe pre-loaded, then add North America. When I finally read the on line owners manual, I discovered it could do a lot more than get me from point A to point B. Among the optional accessories is a language translator with voice. The nuvi also accepts jpg and mp3 files. For leisure travel without a computer, this means that I can scan word documents (with stuff like addresses, hours, recommended must-sees, suggestions from FTers), save them as jpg files, then zoom in and read 'em right on the nuvi. Some models have bluetooth capability, but of course they cost more.

my daughter has the garmin 350 and likes it for the functionality and that it is small enuf to easily fit in her purse. she also likes feature of specifying places rather than having to know the address

I also like Garmin, but not as much as I used to. If I ever get another one, I'll look around at competing brands.

Garmin's good points: Nice designs, rugged and durable (the outdoor models), quick ongoing updates to unit firmware and software (not maps, though). With most models you can do routings on a PC and xfer to the unit.

Bad points: The maps are average, but not top of the line. Some models come with bare minimal maps, and you have to buy separately the detailed maps you want, such as the driving/road maps for an outdoor/handheld model. Map prices are not cheap. The nuvi models already have the detailed road maps built in. Until you become familiar with Garmin's various map options, it is confusing exactly what's what. And the POI in the road maps always seem to be missing something somewhere when you really need it, grocery stores that have been open for five years, or roads or turn-navigation that is identified by 'street name' on the maps, but on the road while driving are named by route number (The unit map displays Columbia Road, but the intersection is signed with RT 99, and RT 101, but no Columbia Rd, ... it's can be frustrating).

A 2008 release of North America maps is supposed to be an improvement on the prior versions. But, another bad point, you have to purchase map updates. They are never, ever free nor continuously updated, unlike and not to be confused with continuous and no charge updates for the unit firmware and map-viewer software you run on a PC.

I would choose a garmin over a tomtom for routing reasons. I have had pretty much all of them, and in side by sides, find the garmins get the routing just a BIT better, more often. It isn't the ONLY consideration of course, but I think it is the one that once I get comfy with a GPS, the chinks in the ROUTING armour start to show. Garmin leads for me, USA only

If you have cell service with Verizon, consider their navigation software. I use it on an LG VX8300, and it's astonishingly useful.

In theory maps and POIs are always up to date because they are downloaded for each trip (yes, it uses air time, but only for route planning, map downloading, and POI lookup).

Small screen not an issue because while driving I rarely need the maps. Instead the turn-by-turn voice is almost always sufficient.

I travel a lot on business, and at 10 bucks a month, it has served me very well.

I tried the AT&T version of this service with my Tilt. It is worth noting that it won't be able to help you if you are in a cell coverage dead spot @:-)

I am very pleased with my Nuvi, although I am not sure it is fair comparing a Nuvi 680 to the cheapest models now available. The 350 is really a bargain these days. It is worth noting that JadedTraveler's comments are a little... jaded. Every standalone GPS is going to charge you for map updates. I hear some of the newest low-end GPS's don't have the entire country pre-loaded, but the 350 shouldn't require you to purchase additional maps for US travel and the North America NavTeq maps (Garmin, Magellan, Google Maps, Mapquest, etc all use NavTeq) seem to be better than the TeleAtlas maps used by TomTom. TeleAtlas maps appear to have the edge in Europe, however.

I'd highly recommend that you make sure the GPS will give you voice directions, including the street name. Some voice prompts on low end models only give you something like "Turn right in point five miles" instead of, "In point five miles, turn right on Cherry Avenue".

Absolutely agree. I am on my 2nd Garmin..The new one is a Nuvi350

That's what I discovered, too. And the Garmin Nuvi 370 GPS Navigation with 3.5" Screen (North America / Europe Maps) does the job. I originally got the bigger screen (670 I think?), but after reading numerous reviews I chose the 3.5 inch screen for its compactness. Walking with it in Europe in my backpack was essential for me.

I'm also looking into purchasing a GPS unit. But why do they need to offer so many models? Seriously, Garmin must offer 3 dozen. Talk about confusing.

I've got the Nuvi 360 and love it. I really did not care about the bluetooth, but the Costco deal a few months ago at $250 beat any other deals out there. The bluetooth does make for a decent speakerphone. It is now my only device for plane travel since I can load MP3s onto it and listen while I watch where the plane is. The only negative here is it does not have very many volume levels.

I'm glad I did not pay more for the larger screen. With the text to speech I rarely look at it unless I am programming and there is still plenty of screen to see everything you have to.

I used to have a Garmin Nuvi 650 works great in the US, but to add the Europe maps (if purchased from Garmin) it's $300.

Shopped around and just bought a Nuvi 670 for $400 on Amazon and it has both the US and Europe maps. On my way to Paris, and already have the hotels address 'locked in'
The 670 also is bluetooth ready, and has traffic reporting

D