Thread: GPS Under $400

Originally Posted by NavyDiver

Hi Lionel or is it Professor Lionel now Sir?

A melbourne store I have used a few times has very good advice in store and probebly via phone

Online it is Johnny Appleseed GPS - Your Garmin GPS and RAM Mounts shop for GPS Australia!

Phone number is Freecall number 1800 477 477
email via sales@ja-gps.com.au

One question you might like to consider is GPS or via mobile network? The Tablet computer Apple or android would in my view need to be a Tablet with built in GPS

A quick look at a "Lenovo Tab M8 HD, 8 Inch, 2GB RAM, 32GB eMMC, Iron Grey, ZA5G0036AU" specs did not show GPS anywhere in the details despite googling Android tablet with GPS

A sailing site might have that covered What is the best GPS tablet for navigation in 2022 : Android or Apple? - Sailing Kerguelen


Good luck considering. Hunting is fun

Hello NavyDiver,

I am still getting a sense of naive amusement when people call me "Dr. Evans". Once I get used to that I might look at expanding the title a bit. At the moment not being hooked up to academia is quiet restorative.

For example, I can research stuff such as a new GPS without having feelings of guilt. The voice whispering in my ear that I should be working on the PhD instead. I am very pleased that particular monkey is off my back. My last bout with Google Maps re-directing me kilometres away from my intended destination was a parts run to pick up an engine and gearbox. This whole trip was guilt free! While I was in that neighbourhood, myself and a friend who for various reasons - lock-downs ... we have not seen each other in years; and we arranged to catch-up with each other. Anyway, we had a significant amount of our scheduled get-together consumed by Google's foibles. Google sure as hell did not do my stress levels any good during the redirection time either. Plus, I am lucky I do not have a self-imposed swear jar. I have also been able to work on motor vehicles - you know that word called a "hobby"! Something one can pursue during their... what is the word? That's it ... "Leisure" time.

Kind regards
Lionel

I bought a Garmin in 2015 for a trip to Europe and installed a Europe SIM card.
We traveled all over the UK and France without an issue.
Yes it told us when we went the wrong way (which we often did in Paris) and would recalculate a new shortest route.
i used it in my Morris 850 mainly as a speedo but would put in destinations if I didn’t know the way.
My daughter has one in her Morris 850 (daily driver) and has compared it with her iPhone and prefers the directions from the Garmin.

One of the features I liked was using a woman with a French accent while in France as the street names then made more sense

I am planning to build a pod to mount it in, in my 82 RRC so that it looks like it sort of belongs there.

Phil

Originally Posted by incisor

garmin are much easier to update than navman or tomtom

i get lots of calls to update devices for people...

Hmmm. I get an advice box on the Navman: "Updates are available" and just connect the unit to my laptop and Bob's your uncle.

I've been using Igo for android for years and it tells you when turns are coming up etc and if you miss a turn it will say " recalculating route" and give you new directions.
My old Iaq PDA was running TomTom with an Ozzy Osbourne voice pack so you'd get turn by turn navigation with a stutter and he would tell you off if you missed a turn

Originally Posted by Lionelgee

Hello Saitch,

Thank you for your reply. Does Navman tell you that you have gone the wrong way and that you should turn around - or re-directs you around the block to get you back to where you should have been going? The bit about "you are going the wrong way" is the most critical aspect to me. The sooner it announces the error the better!

Kind regards
Lionel

Yes. It's fairly quick to come up with a 'Do a U turn when possible' statement and reasonably quick to calc a new route.
I also have a few apps on my phone and tablet, for more non-urban travel.

Remember with an Android tablet you can try and use for free a vast number of navigation apps and you’ll find one you like. Much better than buying a locked down dedicated GPS, as you have so much more choice.

I use OziExplorer ( on the tablet ) for most touring and off-road driving, and Google Maps for on road.

You really need an internet connected device for on road so you can get live traffic / road closures and other alerts. Several times this has saved me!

Other good turn x turn apps include Waze and Mapme.

Originally Posted by Lionelgee

Hello All,

Thank you for the suggestions of using a Android/Apple tablet and downloading free maps. This is all great and I really do appreciate your replies.

However, do they immediately tell you - via a speech mode - that you are going the wrong direction and that you should turn around when it is safe to do so? Or do they automatically redirect you and via speech mode - tell you about it?

If these programs do not do that then they are not fit for my specific purpose.

I have only bought Tom Tom GPS in the past, and I just wanted to know if other brands of GPS offer the bold, italics and underlined bit from above.

Yes, I can be a pedantic git ... "fools and their money" you might say .... However, I do have a specific purpose and the item must be fit for purpose. To achieve that end I am more than happy to pay for it; providing it is priced at a reasonable amount.

Kind regards
Lionel