theiceman

Well as some of you know I have been looking to pick up a GPS now that the prices are coming down drastically with more and more features being added. At our GTG the discusion came up some what and I thought I would post with what I have found in case anyone else is in the same boat or has something to add.

I actually have a rain check from CT for the Magellan 3140 . it was on sale last week and my local CT did not have one and they told me all the stores in the region were out. Not a big deal really. Gave me a chance to check out some reviews as they have a great raincheck policy and I felt under no pressure.
It is a bit of a older unit in that it is not the new sleek design look. From what I have read it is a solid unit however that locks on quickly and does it's job. The weakness for Magallan has always been it's clunky mounting hardware ( which I know from experience ) and this is no different. it is difficult to mount and unmount. Also they do not provide an AC adapter which can be a pain. It is not the easiest to use but once you gain experience like anything else it becomes easier. There is a some reviews here.

http://reviews.pricegrabber.com/gps/m/40997436/

a great in depth review here .

http://www.gpsmagazine.com/2007/06/m...pth_review.php

I of course had my mind made up until CT threw a curve ball and put ANOTHER GPS on sale this week .. the nextar X3-01 . i tell ya these guys must see the money in my wallet and just want to vacuum it out :-)

http://www.nextar.com/frontend/prodd...01&co=10000312

I had never heard of this and my local CT had one so I grabbed it and kept it sealed in the box just in case. this is the Nextar X3-01 and is on sale this week ( 197.00 ) . It is the newer sleeker design I mentioned earlier , has MP3 player ( Magellan does not ) in it also but no jpeg display ( neither does the magellan ) . It also does not have the bluetooth technology in it that the magellan 3140 does. I htink this will allow you to connect to u- connect in the cars. I also found out it does not have a windsheild mount ( sticky pad only ) but does have the AC charger . Both have speech .
The reviews on this one were NOT very favorable. Just about everything I read included lock ups and returning of units. Another issue was the speaker was just not loud enough especially with road noise and AC running. Too bad really as this looks like a nice sleek unit. I think I have some reviews on this one also.

http://www.staples.com/sbd/reviews/p...on-System.html

the reviews here are for the X3-02 which has the jpeg viewer but the rest of the unit is the same.

some personal subjective thoughts. I have a Magellan explorist GPS already ( CT a couple of years ago ) and it is a great little unit. the instructions aren't great but I learned lot figuring it out on my own . It is not a user friendly as a garmin I checked out but I have full colour for the same price point as the garmin black and white. i found however magellan product support to be brutal ( yes based in India ) and they new nothing about the product , just asked questions off a knowledge based screen. This made me very nervous about magellan , but fortunately i did not need them much.

Also a friend of mine has the Magellan 3200 series which is the sleeker design but runs the same software . says it has never locked up and he loves it. Also downloaded 6 million points of interest to it.

All in all i think I can live with the mount and older style and will wait for my 3140 to come in .
I know lots of you have GPS units already and would apprciate any input.

All the best

Bill N

I just bought the 3140, and am impressed with it, but I also just noticed that Costco has the 3200 series for $200.

theiceman

That is a great deal Bill , 3200 series for 200.00 did you notice which 3200 series it was ?

sometimes thay are stripped out without blue tooth and other features.
edit .. okay I checked it out .. it is a 3225. That unit is the newer sleeker design. It has the AC adapter included but does not have the blue tooth technology on it. Only 1.6 million points of interest but as I said this could be upgraded. Bill do you see a use for the blue tooth ?

Bill N

I am a luddite...I'm not bluetoothed...more yellow toothed and long in the tooth! As I read the manual for the 3140, it seems to provide some connectivity with the phone, etc.

Sorry, not much help.

Bill N

Iceman, if you send me your email, I can send you the manual for the 3140.

Turbodan

I don't see the need for bluetooth in your gps. the sleek design and ac adapter and easy mounting are helpful. that being said any unit in 6 mos will be cheaper and have better features coming out. also the lane identity function is nice. mp3 might be nice for travelling in rental car.

theiceman

Thanks Bill but I got it off the Magellan site . Blue tooth alows you to call the destinations you bring up . not a big deal really as Danny suggests.

right now its a toss up between the 3140 and the 3225 each has it's advantages. the nextar is definitely OUT.

old man neri

Wow, am I ever behind the times. All I have is a road map.

Jaak Lepson

Wait till the Garmin Nuvi 250W goes on sale ... soon!!!!

Garmin has the best and most up to date maps ..... I work with Geocoded basemaps .....

theiceman

with no text to speech it is pretty well a non starter for me. It is quickly becoming a minimum spec. Garmin from all accounts seams to be the best GPS but they are a premium for the same features. to compare with the others it would have to be a 3 series.

Jaak Lepson

Garmin is the best with basemaps & data ... you get what you pay for.

here's a shop I use ... http://radioworld.ca/index.php?cPath=4_90

Imo000

Me 2! My bother gave me a GPS (he had two) but I ended up giving it back after 2 months. I still prefer a good road atlass over a GPS BUT I do love satelite radio!

Budweiser

I had my daughters newly acquired Garmin 360 last week for my vacation in Texas. Don't leave home without it. I have a good sense of direction and no problem with maps, however when driving in unknown turf these are great. Not only for driving, but for locating restaurants of your choice ie steak , BBQ, Chinese etc.

Bill 86.5 928s

I got a good deal on a LG 735 at the Source warehouse in Barrie. Ive owned it for about 4months now and I tell you, I'll never leave home without it. It has made my driving experience in the big city tolerable not to mention the escape from the same.....lol.........get one you will love it.....Bill

theiceman

Thanks for the feedback guys .. after long review and talking to people I decided to try the 3140 . My local CT came through for me and while shopping for something else a lady stopped me and siad " aren't you the guy with the Raincheck ? " i said yes and she gave mw the Magellan .. nor THAT is customer service. I am trying it and boy is it a good one. I decided to get this one because of the bluetooth , it is really loud, and the 54.5 million points of interest, the 3225 was nice too but I have heard it is too quiet, has no bluetooth and only has 1.6 illion points of interest ( although upgradeable ) .

So far so good . Jaak is tand corrected , although the website says no text to speech the unit I saw in the store had it . Nice unit but I do not want o may 350.00 for a GPS with less features than a one for 199.