Keefer Lucas
Member

Registered: Feb 2001
Location: Atlantic Rim
Posts: 570 |
Easy Way Out
For those interested in an in-car GPS I have this suggestion:
Use your Visor. I use my Platinum but the Prism would be great for its color (available refurbed for $200, or less on Ebay).
Purchase a Visor to Garmin Cable for $40 from www.blue-hills-innovations.com for $40.
Get a used Garmin GPS someplace like eBay or a marine electronics store (most independant retail stores have a few older handhelds around like the Garmin GPS 12 or 38) for $75.
Buy the DeLorme XMap Streetmaps for Handhelds for $40.
Hook 'em all up and you have the functionality of a $400 monochrome Map-based navigation system, or if you are using a Prism a $650 color system. A four year old handheld GPS is as good, technically, as a brand new unit as far as accuracy goes (atleast with the Garmin products). I happened to have both the GPS and the Platinum already, so I consider myself in possesion of a $400 system for about $80.
I also have a Memplug and CompactFlash card I can use to store many more maps than the typical dashboard system. Since the cable uses the Synch port and not the Springboard port I maintain that exandable memory capacity that I don't think you get with the Magellan Springboard GPS. Its just way more convenient to leave the handheld GPS on in the car all the time-you can get a cigaret cable if you want-that way you don't have to re-aquire satilites every time you want to know where you are, and you don't need to leave the Visor turned on. With this system I can turn on the Visor, press a button to reconnect to the Garmin unit and **poof** my position is instantly updated.
Last edited by Keefer Lucas on 11-11-2002 at 03:06 PM
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