porscheralph

A little of topic but I wanted to share my impression of my newest toy - the Magellon RoadMate 700 GPS unit. I've had it about a week and just returned from a trip to Tucson and had a chance to try it out in the "real world". A very nice unit, portable from vehicle to vehicle and easy to use (after a few mis-steps before reading all the manual). Locks on the GPS system fast and is very accuarte - has all the US maps on the 10 gig internal hard drive so you don't have to worry about uploading anything from your PC. Gives a nice display in color and pleasent voice prompts in plenty of time to be in the right place at the right time. I tried a number of different address and locations and it was right on the money in every case. Has a nice trip computer mode that gives ave speed, miles covered and ETA. Overall a nice unit - list price is about $1250, but I got it for about $200 less.

DJF1

I bought the Garmin 2610 off ebay and I could not be happier! Great new products eh?

Ray Calvo

They have directions options (from/to driving directions)? How do they work? Reason I'm asking is I tried the "Street Atlas USA 2004" map software. Used this "from/to" driving directions option and got absolutely ridiculous answers for places I had an idea on what roads to use.

By the way - this Street Atlas USA 2004 is an absolute abomination in comparison with older versions (used Version 8.0 before). Printed/desktop PC screen displays far poorer as far as details.

(Would like to get a GPS, but am thinking more of an adder for my Toshiba e550G PocketPC. You've given me something to think about tho.)

DJF1

the garmin is a touch screen type, extremely easy to use. You have alternate routes you can plan, if you must take certain roads you can input specific roads and waypoints to get there. Otherwise on auto mode you have the options on either going "the fastest" way or the "shorter way" and ofcourse you can adjust the finer points like highway use only or not etc. The great thing about it is that you have a wide variety of choises when travelling , it will give you all the hotels, restaurants etc with distance from your location, direction, phone numbers, etc. I used it extensively on my trip from Houston to Vancouver and i continue using it here in Vancouver trying to learn the city. It is so easy to use and so accurate that it worths all the money. At the same time is very portable with the included bean bag so you can use it in multiple cars.. One very cool thing I found is that even if you shut it down when you reboot it it holds your itinerary and continues directions without having to input your destination again...

porscheralph

Hey DJF1 - Yes the Magellon does all those things also - has the touch screen etc. I think the big advantage and why I picked it over the Garmin was the built in hard drive and therfore no need to have any interface with a PC to up load info when I fly to another part of the country or even Canada. Also the Magellon can be updated on a yearly baisis via the website. I think the screen is a bit larger on the Magellon also. The review on CNET gave the nod to the Magellon also. Both are great toys and very helpfull to folks who travel and have to find new destinations.

Novice

Ralph,
I am trying to decide among the two. I have one question regarding the Megellan roadmate 700, If the nationwide map data is pre-loaded, how do you get data updates ? Can it still be overwriten (just like the roadmate 500 ) ? Does it support WAAS (about < 15 ft accuracy )?

I have been using Garmin products for over 6 years. and their data upgrade pricing is very reasonably and am wondering Megellan data update pricing structure

User 4621

If anyone wants to test drive a similar unit, the Neverlost system in Hertz rental cars uses the same software and interface, although the physical unit is different.

My brother-in-law is a chief Paramedic and after testing the Garmin and Neverlost chose the Garmin for his ambulances. The Roadmate does seem like a nicer unit than the Neverlost however. I prefer the Garmin unit myself, but both seem to be excellent systems. I read a review not long ago that stated that these systems typically outperform OEM systems for a fraction of the cost.

Ralph, does this unit show North always "up", or does the map rotate around the car icon like the Neverlost?

LeeR

How are you guys mounting the Magellan? My wife has one in her MB C320, and it's not that sturdy in the center A/C Vents, and has done some damage to the vents. They say they have a windshield suction holder and a heavy dash holder coming, but to the best of my knowledge the holders are not available yet. So where do you put them on a 993? Thanks.

porscheralph

OK - Let me try to answer some of these questions. The updates will be avalible via flash memory card ( I think) and the Meglleon unit has a flash memory card slot. No info on pricing yet - unit is still too new. I will make a call to the support line to see when they will release next update and price. Yes it does support WASS and mine works in that mode most of the time. As to the orientation of the map - you have a choice - you can choose to have North as "up " all the time - the default is that the map rotates around the position of the car. As to mounting - the mounting method is not good - it really does not work well with the vents in my 993; however the factory has a suction mount they will send you for free if you call - I have and it should arrive tomorrow. It is much better I am told. When I have a chance to try it out I will post an update.

pingu_c4s

Can any of you post a picture of the GPS in your car please? I wanna get one too, but couldnt decide which one looks good inside. Thanks

porscheralph

Here's a photo of it in my 993 using the original mount - hope to have the suction mount later this week.http://forums.rennlist.com/upload/picture_023.jpg

Labatt

Garmin is coming out with a model (the 2620) to go head to head against the Magellan. Supposedly it's shipping now. It has the built in hard drive, touch screen, etc. plus the standard Garmin features.

http://www.garmin.com/products/sp2620/

porscheralph

Labatt - Your link did not work, but I did go to the Garmin site and saw the new 2620. Looks nice - but seems a little pricey at $1516 vs the Magellon at $1250 list.

Novice

SP 2610 is $1166 MSRP at garmin site, but street price (eCost.com) is about $730
so I would guess the SP2620, will be around US$1000

SP2620 link

Labatt

I found it at GPSCity for $999.95. Here's the link...

Fixed Link:

GPSCity

By the way.. I've ordered a lot of stuff from GPSCity... they have some of the best prices around, shipping is immediate and their selection is the best I've seen (especially for aftermarket mounts). No relation here...