Pre-loaded - 50 United States, Canada and Puerto Rico
Birds Eye 3D View/Multi-Destination Routing/QuickSpell
Auto Re-route Never Miss a Turn and Quickly Get Back on Track Whenever You Tak
4.5 Million Points of Interest/Customizable Route method
Data Storage Unlimited Secure Digital SD Card compatible
This review is from: Magellan Maestro 4040 4.3-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator (Factory Refurbished)I've been using GPS systems for several years, and I'm always asked "what's the best GPS?" Unfortunately, that's not an easy question to answer. Just like there's no "best" car for everyone, there's no such thing as the "best" GPS.That being said, this is a very fine GPS system, and one well worth checking out. I've owned two other Magellan systems in the past (a Roadmate 500 and a 750M), and the improvements in this system are wonderful. Excellent screen, clear even in full sun, easy to use - truly a "turn it on and go" setup. I've always been especially fond of the way Magellan announces upcoming turns - they are the only GPS that offers a incredibly accurate "bing-bong" sound right before the turn. The key word there is ACCURATE. Yes, Garmin has an upcoming turn tone, but more often than not, it's too early or too late to be effective. Magellan gets it right every time. That, and their split screen turn view is what makes this a must-own for me. The AAA guidebook is icing on the cake, and I'm finding that to be a real time saver - much better than the typical POI database since the places have been vetted by AAA. If you're a fan of the AAA paper guidebooks, you will absolutely love having it accessible through a GPS. I also currently have a Garmin 2610 and have found that the Magellan/Garmin combo is what works best for me. The Garmins have some advantages over the Magellans and vice versa. Together, they make a great combo.But, if you want to buy just one GPS, the Magellan 4040 is a great choice. The Garmin Nuvi line is also quite nice, but their wide-screen versions are considerably more expensive than the 4040. If it came down to the Nuvi 3XX model or the Magellan 40XX models, I feel the Magellan gives you more for your money. On the other hand, Garmin offers better support, more frequent map/firmware updates, and is an easier company to deal with by far. See - I told you that there's no such thing as the "best" GPS! Everything's a trade off.I've also been impressed with the user interface of the Tom Tom units but, in my area, the TeleAtlas maps they use are rather poor. Both Garmin and Magellan use Navtec maps, which (on the East Coast, at least) are much better. Some people comment on the U turn issue. For me, it's never happened to any extent. My Garmin, in fact, tends to be far more insistent on U turns than the Magellan when you go off-route. I've also found that the Magellan (this plus all the others I've used) tend to give either the same or better routes than the Garmins (I'm on my third Garmin as well). Not all the time -- once in a while you'll get a more roundabout route on the Magellan than the Garmin, but those cases are rare. In short, you will be happy with this unit. If you're on the fence, buy this and a Garmin, and do a head to head comparison to see which one works best for your needs and send back the loser. Chances are, however, you'll end up like me with two (or sometimes three) GPS systems on your dash.UPDATE 5/6/07: Just took the Maestro for a 450 mile trip -- continue to be very impressed with the unit. In a side-by-side test, it routinely beat the Garmin 2610 in determining that I was off route and recalculated the new route before the Garmin even realized I was not where I should be! (Off-route situations were due to me making an unplanned side trip, and not due to bad directions from either GPS). There's also a firmware update available from Magellan that allows you to use the preview turn function at any time (just like with past Magellan units). Very easy to install and, although it warns that you should backup your address book prior to the upgrade, it did not delete any of my addresses. It's always a good idea to backup your data, but the firmware upgrade does not seem to affect it.Update 5/18: Another trip, this one nearly 1,000 in length and the Maestro once again performed very well. My sister was so impressed with the unit that immediately upon our return she placed an order for one as well. Given that she's always shunned GPS units (even though her sense of direction is as bad as mine), that's quite an endorsement for the Maestro. She had tried a Garmin Nuvi 350 that she borrowed from a friend, and found the Magellan to be more to her style. The features in particular she liked were the fact that the direction of the next turn is always visible in the lower left corner regardless of how far away the turn is. I like that feature as well - sometimes you need a lot of advance notice of what lane you should be in when the traffic is...
Detail Products
Detail Reviews
Click here for more information
»»»Visit Store NOW...
Best price click here
