NaviGadget

(decent) gps navigation systems $200 or less

Jul 5, 2008 garmin, gps navigation, magellan, navigon, tomtom 7 Comments

Here we have a (possibly incomplete) list of GPS navigation system for $200 or less. We decided to stick with most common brands. Let us know if we’re missing any.

tomtom one 130 – $150
tomtom one 3rd edition – $148
tomtom one 130s – $199

garmin streetpilot c550 – $188
garmin streetpilot c530 – $180
garmin streetpilot c340 – $156
garmin streetpilot c330 – $127
garmin nuvi 250 – $189
garmin nuvi 200W – $198
garmin nuvi 200 – $161

magellan roadmate 1412 – $189
magellan roadmate 1200 – $139
magellan maestro 3100 – $104
magellan maestro 3200 – $101
magellan maestro 3250 – $186
magellan maestro 3100 – $144
magellan maestro 4000 – $155
magellan maestro 4200 – $188
magellan maestro 4210 – $181

navigon 2100 – $118
navigon 5100 – $199

mio moov 310 – $196
mio moov 300 – $180
mio moov 200 – $141

hack magellan 3100

Dec 12, 2007 gps navigation, hacks, magellan Leave a comment

If you’ve been meaning to hack your Magellan 3100 GPS navigation system we’ve got the source for you. Nothing too exciting here but you can change your splash screen, add a file manager… But also you can do useful stuff such as increasing your POI’s by a small margin which now will contain 6 million POI vs. the 750,000 POI in the original, switch between map files, or even add a basic media player… via

Konaki GPS navigation system

Nov 28, 2007 gps navigation 4 Comments

While the holiday season is saturated with GPS navigation systems from big brand names Navigadget would like to remind you that there are other brands out there. Konaki is one of those names but it maybe not as easy to find as the big names.

Priced at $200 at Amazon, Konaki offers a standard 3.5″ screen, an extension slot for SD cards, 20-channel GPS Module, and a 1200 mAh Li-Ion battery. It comes pre-loaded with latest mapping data for the United States on a 1GB memory card.

It doesn’t quite compare with the Black Friday deals you missed such as the Maestro 3100 for $140, or the TomTom ONE 3rd Ed. for $125.

GPS deals on Black Friday – Radio Shack

Nov 22, 2007 gps navigation, magellan, mio, navigon, tomtom 3 Comments

Let’s not forget Radio Shack for Black Friday. They have some pretty good deals on GPS navigation systems.

Magellan Maestro 4040 for $300:

For $499.99 (list), the Maestro 4040 offers a surprisingly large number of features. Most important is Magellan’s SayWhere text-to-speech engine, which enables the device to pronounce street names and exit ramps. Next, you get expanded map data. The 4040 includes maps for all 50 states, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Those of you with Bluetooth-enabled phones will appreciate the built-in speakerphone function (more on that later). You also get a larger POI (Points of Interest) database with millions of business and service listings. The 4040 is upgradable to provide live traffic info, if you purchase the optional TrafficKit and a subscription to traffic-data services. The 4040 snaps into the TrafficKit cradle, which has an integrated FM-TMC receiver. No additional wires or antennas are required. Finally, you can enable the Maestro 4040 to accept voice commands, for virtually hands-free operation.

Navigon 2100 for $150:

NAVIGON 2100 is built with the same design DNA of NAVIGON’s award-winning 7100 and 5100 devices — and offers features that aren’t available on systems at twice the price.

• easy-to-read 3.5″ screen
• 3D Reality View
• Text-to-Speech
• Intuitive touch-screen menus and stunning 2D and 3D maps

Maestro 3100 for $130:

Magellan Maestro 3100 offers simple GPS navigation that’s affordable. The most intuitive graphical 3.5″ touch-screen interface available makes navigation easy. Enter virtually any destination and get turn-by-turn voice guidance to locations all over the contiguous United States. Smart touch-icons and Magellan’s QuickSpell function enable error-free spelling, minimizing steps, so you get a customized route to your destination with just a few touches of the screen. Preprogrammed points of interest make it easy to find restaurants, gas stations, ATM and more.

Choose the 2D or 3D view and see your location, route, direction, next turn, destination and more. SmartDetour will help you find your way out of traffic jams or stopped freeway traffic.

Mio C320 for $150:

Mio C320 is a really thin, flat system that feature a 4.3″ wide screen. It is preloaded with maps of 22 Western European countries (by TeleAtlas) thanks to the 1GB internal memory. Whatever’s left from this memory can be used for the storage of MP3 files which can be played with the built-in MP3 player.

The C320 supports RDS/TMC live traffic information, but this feature is optional. Other features include the ability to use the 4.3″ screen in split mode to display various information about your journey. Mio C320 also does safety camera warnings. You’ll get free updates for one year.

TomTom ONE 3rd Ed. for $140:

This entry-level GPS device is similar to the TomTom One but adds the Map Share technology and “Help Me” safety feature. Map Share allows you to make adjustments to your maps and then share the information with other drivers. You can make the changes right on your device, save them, and then upload and share them with other users via the TomTom HOME desktop companion. Help Me safety function tells you where you can find the nearest police station, hospital, or car service center, based on your current location. As a basic system, you don’t get text-to-speech functionality, but you do get the standard text- and voice-guided turn-by-turn directions as well as a 3.5-inch touch screen.

black friday GPS deals – Staples

Nov 21, 2007 garmin, gps navigation, magellan, navigon, tomtom 2 Comments

Staples will have GPS navigation systems from four different manufacturers on sale for Black Friday: Navigon, TomTom, Magellan, and Garmin.

Navigon has been available in the U.S. for a relatively short time and now you’ll have the chance to pick up a Navigon 2100T for only $100. It has text-to-speech function and comes integrated with traffic alert receiver which does not require any subscription or fees. Not a bad deal. More information on Navigon 2100T:

NAVIGON 2100 is built with the same design DNA of NAVIGON’s award-winning 7100 and 5100 devices — and offers features that aren’t available on systems at twice the price.

• easy-to-read 3.5″ screen
• 3D Reality View
• Text-to-Speech
• Intuitive touch-screen menus and stunning 2D and 3D maps

TomTom One 3rd Edition will also be on sale at Staples for $125 – Not only this is the cheapest price we’ve seen for this TomTom but you’ll also get a $20 gift certificate when you purchase it. Alternatively you can pick up the TomTom One 3rd Edition from BJ’s for $130.

This entry-level GPS device is similar to the TomTom One but adds the Map Share technology and “Help Me” safety feature. Map Share allows you to make adjustments to your maps and then share the information with other drivers. You can make the changes right on your device, save them, and then upload and share them with other users via the TomTom HOME desktop companion. Help Me safety function tells you where you can find the nearest police station, hospital, or car service center, based on your current location. As a basic system, you don’t get text-to-speech functionality, but you do get the standard text- and voice-guided turn-by-turn directions as well as a 3.5-inch touch screen.

It is almost like every retail store is offering this Magellan Maestro 3100 on Black Friday. Staples has a decent price for this device at $140. Magellan Maestro 3100 has a 3.5″ touch screen, offers 2D or 3D maps, lots of POIs and Smart Detour. It is very light and portable. Check out manufacturer’s site for more information.

Of course there’s also a Garmin you can pick up on Black Friday. Staples will make the Nuvi 260 available for $250. Which is 50% cheaper than when it first came out.

Garmin just announced a new entry level GPS navigation system called nuvi 260 that is supposed to hit the stores this month and cost only! $500. The 260 differs from the other 200 series buy only adding the text-to-speech functionality. The rest of the specs are standard with a 3.5″ touch screen, maps of North America (United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico) and six million POIs. We don’t have any info on the battery but if it just like the others you’ll be able to get 5 hours of life out of it.

Nuvi 260 also includes a built-in picture viewer, calculator, currency converter, unit converter and world clock. The SD slot for memory expansion is a good idea but this $500 navigation system does not even include a simple MP3 player!!!

black friday GPS – BJ’s

Nov 21, 2007 garmin, gps navigation, magellan, tomtom 2 Comments

BJ’s has deals on GPS navigation systems for Black Friday, in fact one from each major manufacturer: Garmin, Magellan, and TomTom.

Nuvi 680 – $600: After a $100 coupon you can pick the nuvi 680 for $600 at BJ’s. You can also get the same deal on BJs.com. But Amazon already offers nuvi 680 for the same price. Moving along…

Directions and on-demand travel info from MSN Direct with nüvi 680. This widescreen, personal travel assistant is packed with preloaded maps, hands-free calling and FM transmitter — plus real-time local weather, traffic, movie times and gas prices. Like the rest of the wide nüvi 600-series, its large touchscreen display puts the world at your fingertips.

Maestro 3100 – $150: From Magellan BJ’s is offering Maestro 3100 for $150. Which means if you can’t pick up any at Office Max for $140, this should be your second choice. Maestro 3100 sells for $160 on Amazon.

Magellan Maestro 3100 offers simple GPS navigation that’s affordable. The most intuitive graphical 3.5″ touch-screen interface available makes navigation easy. Enter virtually any destination and get turn-by-turn voice guidance to locations all over the contiguous United States. Smart touch-icons and Magellan’s QuickSpell function enable error-free spelling, minimizing steps, so you get a customized route to your destination with just a few touches of the screen. Preprogrammed points of interest make it easy to find restaurants, gas stations, ATM and more.

Choose the 2D or 3D view and see your location, route, direction, next turn, destination and more. SmartDetour will help you find your way out of traffic jams or stopped freeway traffic.

TomTom ONE 3rd Edition for $130: TomTom ONE 3rd Edition for $130 sounds like a good deal – it sells for for $247 on Amazon. You can also read reviews from actual users on this page where almost all users gave it a 4 or 5 stars out of 5.

This entry-level GPS device is similar to the TomTom One but adds the Map Share technology and “Help Me” safety feature that was first introduced in the TomTom GO 720. Map Share allows you to make adjustments to your maps (such as noting blocked roads, updating points of interest, adding new streets, and so on) and then share the information with other drivers. You can make the changes right on your device, save them, and then upload and share them with other users via the TomTom HOME desktop companion. Meanwhile, the Help Me safety function tells you where you can find the nearest police station, hospital, or car service center, based on your current location. As a basic system, you don’t get text-to-speech functionality, but you do get the standard text- and voice-guided turn-by-turn directions as well as a 3.5-inch touch screen.

If you want to pick up a TomTom on Black Friday you may also be interested on TomTom ONE LE which will be available at Best Buy stores for only $120. You’ll have to get up really early to get one of these though.

a few black friday GPS deals

Nov 8, 2007 gps navigation, magellan, mio 3 Comments

All of the deals below are for in-store purchase at Office Max. While Mio C220 will only be available for 5 hours on Black Friday, the Magellan deals are good for two days.

Mio C220 for $100

Mio C220 has a very simple design with only one power button on top. All other user interface operations are taken care by the 3.5″ touch screen. Speaking of the screen, it is easy to see even under the AZ sun – unlike what other reviews may say. Oh, and we should also mention that it switches to night mode automatically depending on the time of the day.

Other important hardware spec you may be interested in a sat nav device is the battery life. Mio C220 comes with a 1200mAh rechargeable battery that Mio claims will last you about 4.5 hours. We haven’t tested the battery to its limits but we didn’t see the battery indicator go down after 1 hour of driving at mid range brightness.

Magellan Maestro 3100 for $140

It seems like the Maestro 3000 series is going to be step-down from the 4000 series but only in terms of screen size. Maestro 3000 series will have the same slim body as the 4000 series but will come with a 3.5″ screen. This could be a plus for you though if you are more into smaller and lighter gadgets.

Magellan Maestro 4000 for $250

Turn-by-turn directions in the continental U.S., built-in AAA travel information, including member roadside assistance details, 1.5 million POIs, 2D and 3D views, customizable address book, 4.3-inch WQVGA, anti-glare touch screen, measures 5.0 x 3.75 x 0.88 inches (WxHxD) and weighs 8.5 ounces.

gps navigation systems for $200 or less

May 11, 2007 gps navigation 11 Comments

Lately we’ve been seeing a lot of GPS navigation systems going below the $200 mark. Most of these are from manufacturers you’ve probably never heard of before but that’s not necessarily bad. The hardware is usually standard and the software is sometimes identical in these machines. Here is our roundup:

Magellan Maestro 3100 for $200

Evesham Nav Cam 7700 for $160

InVion GPS-4v106 for $200

Aytobe for £100

PIVA PNS350 for $190 or L100 for $175

JVC KV-PX9 for $180

Mio C220 for $180

UPDATES:

ViaMichelin X930 for $198

NaviBlue NBC3500 for $155

Navman F20 (refurbished) for $158

FineDrive 400 for $190 or $99

Holux GPSmile 52 for $170

Sanyo NVM-4030 for $200

MORE UPDATES:

Lowrance iWAY 250c for $190

Jensen NVX-225 for $190

Nextar HGPS35 for $156

Navman iCN 330 for $130

Evesham NAV-CAM 7000 for $181

Are we missing anything? Even if it’s after rebate, let us know. We’ll update the list.

UPDATE: July 2008 – We now have another list cheap GPS navigation systems.

now Magellan at the $200 mark

May 8, 2007 gps navigation, magellan 5 Comments

BestBuy is now offering the Magellan Maestro 3100 for $200. Maestro 3100 was a new addition to the Maestro series just announced last month. It comes with a 3.5″ screen fitted on a slim body, and a battery that can last up to 3 hours if you dim the backlight all the way down.

Even though Magellan 3100 is your very basic system with no bluetooth, MP3 playback, TMC receiver, or text-to-speech, we’re still pleased to see one of the biggest GPS navigation system manufacturers down at the $200 mark. Others will follow!

UPDATE:
Now it is Radio Shack that is offering the Maestro 3100 for $200.

new Magellan Maestro 3000 series

Apr 17, 2007 gps navigation, magellan 1 Comment

Magellan is extending its line of car navigation devices with the Maestro 3000 series. The first two models from this series are the Maestro 3100 and Maestro 3140. These devices offer some neat features such as AAA TourBook Travel Information, Rapid Routing, Bluetooth and Text-to-Speech.

It seems like the Maestro 3000 series is going to be step-down from the 4000 series but only in terms of screen size. Maestro 3000 series will have the same slim body as the 4000 series but will come with a 3.5″ screen. This could be a plus for you though if you are more into smaller and lighter gadgets.

The Maestro 3140 delivers advanced navigation capabilities, including AAA TourBook travel information in North America, while the Maestro 3100 delivers the best navigation experience in a price category that affords more drivers the opportunity to travel with the convenience and confidence Magellan navigation systems provide.

Both devices utilize Samsung 2443 processor for rapid routing.

Magellan Maestro 3100

Available this month, the Maestro 3100 provides the best navigation experience at the most affordable price of $299.99. Drivers gain out-of-the-box, turn-by-turn guidance to nearly any destination in the 48 contiguous United States.

Magellan Maestro 3140

Available in May, the Magellan Maestro 3140 equips drivers with the most feature-rich navigation tool at the highly affordable price of $399.99. In addition to the features in the Maestro 3100, the Maestro 3140 provides AAA TourBook travel information and member roadside assistance details, Bluetooth hands-free phone calling functionality and advanced SayWhere™ text-to-speech voiced routing directions that states the street name for upcoming maneuvers. The Maestro 3140 also provides preloaded maps of the 50 United States, Canada and Puerto Rico plus an expanded POI database containing millions of business and service listings. Upgrade options will allow drivers to add real-time traffic services.

Both 3100 and 3140 will come with a windshield mount, a cigarette lighter adapter, USB data cable, and an adhesive disk for dash mounting.