I posted before, but now that I have my axim... I am just lost!
I don't know which receiver to get (BT-338 vs GPS 10[Deluxe)... the deluxe one comes with mapping software while I don't think the BT-338 does... is there a significant difference between the two? Better to buy software separately?
Purchase your Gps in a bundle and you will save around 30 to 40 dollars .
Check out buyGps.com and compare units and software,I would go with the BT-338 combos,fantastic receiver,small, compact and has the latest Sirf III chip,the bundles start at 200 dollars, good luck....
The only one I know of is Mapopolis. For the others, you will just have to go onto their websites and take a look (some have online demos), do a lot of research (check out the reviews in the review section and don't forget about Google), and ask a lot of questions. :)
Wouldn't it be a good idea to buy the receiver alone, then perhaps buy the software off of ebay or something? Then I am buying the hardware from a store and have return/warranty problems solved... and software I can surely get cheap somewhere.
Look guys, the software & maps are going to cost you around $100 regardless of the brand. Some are a bit more but there aren't any street nagivation software worth looking at that sells for much less. When you step back and think about it, that's actually one hell of a deal.
In my car I have the Mapsco paper street level atlas for my home county of McLennan County Texas (Waco area) and it is about 150 pages and cost $24.95. That's just for one county alone and it still doesn't have any find or routing features. I have to pour through the index to find some street I don't know then find the right page and search the right grid. It would cost me thousands of dollars and I'd have to pull a u-haul trailer just to carry all the county street-level maps of Texas with me on paper. With software like Mapopolis you get up-to-date maps for every single county, street, and town in the entire US and Canada for just about the cost of four paper atlases.
Anyway, if you like to mess around with maps and tinker with your settings. And you like to customize things like adjust all your map colors to whatever pleases you. Then get Mapopolis. It's the best by far if you like to tinker and mess with the program. On the other hand, if you only want simple navigation guidance with voice and the 3-D routing displays that don't really show you a map but just a big graphic arrow to follow like a video game then get one of the other packages that are more oriented towards routing rather than map display.
I got a Seidio powered cradle and wired GPS for my hardware direct from Seidio for $119 (I have an Axim X5 without bluetooth) and bought Mapopolis maps separately from Mapopolis for $99 for a total package cost of $218. I don't see any packages that are really cheaper than that. I also installed a permanent mount in the car because I didn't like either the suction cup or vent mount options. I got a pro-fit VSM Legend mount for $39 to install on my Toyota Sienna dash.
If I were going to do it again I would stick with Mapoplis for my software as I'm totally happy with the software and maps but I would avoid Seidio. You can read my Seidio customer service horror story on another thread.
For hardware I would just get one of the new CF cards antennas from buygpsnow.com or semsons.com and get the free Arkon mount that comes with it (I've found that a wired mouse antenna is unnecessary in my car because the angle of the windshield give the CF antennas plenty of sky. And I don't like the clutter on the dash). Then I would just get a DC power adaptor to run the Axim off the car cigarette lighter. They cost about $10. I think I'm in the minority but I never use the sound or voice navigation so I don't care about speakers. I can't stand having it chirp and chime all the time and talk to me so I just keep the sound off.
If you have bluetooth then the 338 seems to be the preferred unit on the various forums. I've seen nothing but good reviews.
If you are like me you'll probably find the mapping software and GPS antennas all pretty much work fine. By far, the most difficult part of setting up a satisfying car GPS navigation system is finding the right cradle for the PDA and figuring out how best to mount it in your car so that it is clean, easy to see yet out of the way. And so that you can easily pop out the PDA when you park on the street to avoid tempting a smash and grab thief.
You didn't mention what Axim you have. If it is the X50v with the VGA screen then you'll want to get software that supports VGA. The other guys can tell you more about that. I know that mapopolis is working hard on it with their current betas but I don't know which software is currently best for displaying maps in VGA at this point.
Yes, I have the X50v. I guess I could switch into VGA mode for mapping, but generally I don't like it -- the screen is just too small for a resolution of that size in my opinion.
Yes, I have the X50v. I guess I could switch into VGA mode for mapping, but generally I don't like it -- the screen is just too small for a resolution of that size in my opinion.
i have iguidance an really like it. there are buttons big enough for the most part to push with your finger tips(i hve pretty big fingers too) and the routing is very quick. I have the entire US on a 2gb cf card so i never have to go back to the pc to download anything. there are tweaks to change road width and colors but I haven't tried them yet. I have taken a couple of decent length trips, Maryland to South Carolina and back and it works pretty well. there is a fix out for a couple of bugs one of which i noticed on my trip is that in fairly rural areas it will show you off road and that is supposed to be fixed. it wastn that much of a big deal since i was heading south on I95 and was pretty sure i was still on the road ! do a lot of reading though because they all have quirks and everyone likes the one they chose.
edit: I forgot to say i have the x50v, seidio wired mount, garmin etrex legend.
I purchased the Garmin GPS10 Deluxe bundle as a first time GPS user. I am extremely pleased with the Garmin GPS unit and the software. I know that eventually when the SiRF III chipset matures and becomes more mainstream and comes standard with WAAS; eventually I will probably upgrade just my GPS device to a newer GPS device. But that whatever GPS device I upgrade to needs to be able to work smoothly with my Garmin mapping program.
But my overall expectations with the Garmin GPS10 was surpassed. The usability and intuitiveness of the user interface and the fact that I can use it also for geocaching is amazing.
If you're a first time user, get a GPS bundle. Just make sure the mapping program in the bundle is something that you would like after reviewing it online.
Major points to consider;
*** can you choose parts or the whole of North America maps on storage drive (yes for the GPS10)
*** do you care for 3D (not for the GPS10; this is eye candy for me)
*** can you do a route list (yes for the GPS10)
*** can you see how many sats and signal quality (yes for GPS10)
*** quality of software aka robustness (yes for GPS10)
*** map accuracy of Canada + USA (yes for GPS10)
*** basemap accuracy of rest of the world (yes for GPS10)
*** sat reception in city with skyscrapers (no for GPS10, but good if you have a SiRF III)
*** logs your tracks and routes (yes for GPS10)
*** transparencies for your map info so more PDA screen is able to be shown (yes for GPS10) == do a search and look closely at the GPS10 screens.
*** ability to block roads so that you force routing to not route thru blocked roads (yes for the GPS10)
*** Colors of the map makes it usable (yes for the GPS10)
*** VGA capable (yes for the GPS10 but not the splash screen) - however, to small for my eyes... :-)
As you see, some mapping programs will be able to do some or all of the above. It is just a matter of which feature you want most. Usually not all programs has everything. Its up to you to decide what you can live without.
Then BT338 is among the best. I have IG/BT338 bondle from buygpsnow for $200 + S/H. very good deal.
Very happy with IG so far, some minor things might need improve, but UI/Voice and general routing are top notch. Also you could plan the long-distance route in laptop first (It comes with both PC & PDA verison) which is very helpful for me. PDA's limit input/output is painful for long distance routing no matter what software package.
Mapopolis is also decent, not user friendly as IG, but still a great software.
I will look into the various software REVIEWS and see what I think would work best... if anyone can point me to some good reviews, wonderful! Any suggestions would be great to. In order of importance, I would like:
0. Accuracy!
1. Routinely updated or moving map... for when I am driving
2. Directions (do these packages let you pick from various routes, or avoid toll roads? Now in Ontario we have highway 407, which costs money and I don't have a transponder so would prefer directions that never included that highway..)
3. Directions to point from CURRENT LOCATION
4. Voice navigation
5. Ability to move around the map... doesn't have to be WHILE using GPS device
6. VGA capable
As for stores... where from? I am in Canada.. :)
buygpsnow.com, semsons.com, gpscity.ca, gpscentral.ca ... ?
As of right now it seems 95% that I will go ahead with the BT-338...
Mapopolis has the best moving map of any program I've seen and it's very easy to use it to zoom in and out and explore urban areas like you might do with mapquest.
I think all the good software packages will do the rest of what you want. They will all provide directions and routing and voice nav and they will all allow you to route to anywhere from your current position or any other position. I think they will also all allow you to set navigation preferences like "prefer freeways" "avoid freeways" "avoid tollroads" etc.
I will look into the various software REVIEWS and see what I think would work best... if anyone can point me to some good reviews, wonderful! Any suggestions would be great to. In order of importance, I would like:
0. Accuracy!
1. Routinely updated or moving map... for when I am driving
2. Directions (do these packages let you pick from various routes, or avoid toll roads? Now in Ontario we have highway 407, which costs money and I don't have a transponder so would prefer directions that never included that highway..)
3. Directions to point from CURRENT LOCATION
4. Voice navigation
5. Ability to move around the map... doesn't have to be WHILE using GPS device
6. VGA capable
As for stores... where from? I am in Canada.. :)
buygpsnow.com, semsons.com, gpscity.ca, gpscentral.ca ... ?
As of right now it seems 95% that I will go ahead with the BT-338...
Most should have the features above except for VGA.
The Garmin iQue has very good Canadian map coverage except when in Regina, Saskatchewan. I was there recently and looking for a Tourist site and used the "Points of Interest" feature, but it kept routing me to a different part of the city. Had to use intersections to route me where I wanted to go. Anyways, it worked fine for other stuff.
Also, there is a system setup feature that allows avoidance of;
You can add places/roads to avoid. That covers what you need above.
Also other mapping programs that seem pretty good is OCN5. I found it to be very nice as well.
Overall, you should not be disappointed with either Garmin iQue or OCN5. You can try Mapopolis as its free and see if you also like the user interface. I found that I preferred the Garmin iQue and OCN5 better.
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! do a lot of reading though because they all have quirks and everyone likes the one they chose.
