Picking the Best GPS for Traveling

Cut Through the Bells, Whistles When Buying a Portable GPS Unit

Dec 17, 2007

Features business travelers actually need when looking to purchase a new portable GPS (Global Positioning System) for their car. Avoid paying for stupid extras.

A current model GPS should come with plenty of pre-installed, free features. Look for pre-installed maps for easy plug and play action (i.e., you get in your car and go). Older or no-name cheap models might require online/disk downloads. Life is busy enough - business travelers don't have time for that nonsense.

Also look for a GPS with just the right combination of free features versus subscription-based services.

Travelers doing business in many major cities (Los Angeles, Washington DC, Seattle) will find an up-to-the minute traffic report subscription a true boon. Traffic rerouting for construction zones is also a winner for urban area businessmen and women.

Here is the list of bare minimum portable GPS features most useful to the Business Traveler:

Antiglare Screen for use in bright daylight.
Night Mode that dampens the light when it's dark outside.
Touch Screen Interface.
2D and 3D maps. The 3D, or bird's eye view, is easier to follow than a straight-on 2D map.
Pre-loaded Maps of the US, Canada and Europe. It costs more to get Canada's maps on some models in the US, and Europe is usually considered an add-on. Some models have the whole world preloaded at your fingertips - look for this if your business requires international travel.
Turn by Turn Directions of actual street names. This is a huge benefit and can be a deal-breaker when lacking (see "Dan's Law of the Road," below).
Cordless Battery Function. This is the "portable " part. Play with the GPS from your hotel room bed.
Automatic Re-routing. Miss your turn? Re-routers will reconfigure automatically and announce new directions.
Easy Internal Navigation. If you have to mess around with buttons too much while driving, this becomes an annoyance, and a safety issue to boot.
Large POI Database. That's "Point of Interest" for newbies. Gas stations, eateries, large retailers, hotels and public landmarks. Some models, like Magellan's Maestro 4040, will let you call, say, a hotel from the road (via your blue tooth enabled phone), with the touch of an icon.
Subscription Services to traffic reports, weather and traffic rerouting.

Unnecessary Extra Features in the New GPS Models

MP3 Player. Use your iPod, iPhone, Zune or even the old analogue car stereo. According to Best Buy employees, when asked in a Bellevue, Washington store, the sound coming out your GPS unit speaker will be "pretty lame" anyway.
Picture Viewer. Don't you have a digital camera and/or mobile phone for this?
World Clock, Calculator, Tip Scales and Currency Converters. Blah, blah, blah. You already have all this on your mobile phone (and probably don't use those there either).
Darth Vader's voice calling out Directions. Hey, this sounds so very cool, but it's so not crucial. Only Tom Tom has this feature, along with the voice of Mr T. and other celebs.
Large Screens. Keep your eyes on the road, not on your screen. That's why you want turn instructions that include street and exit names. Your co-pilot (if you have one) can man the screen and a 3.5 inch diagonal is plenty big. Don't pay extra for that 4.3 inch diagonal unless money is not a problem.

Work Benefits of a GPS Unit for Your Vehicle

Get where you want to go without getting lost or (dear God no!) asking for directions. Pull right up to your motel and relax in any city or town.

Show up early or on time for business meetings (via the incredible beauty of not getting lost).

Know exactly where the next gas station is, before the tank runneth dry.

Prevent marital spats when traveling with the spouse. Or co-workers. Especially when the co-worker is also your spouse.

And lastly..."Dan's Law of the Road": the less annoyance one has when traveling, the instantly better one's quality of life will become.

Remember to write off the price of the GPS on your business taxes!

Top Portable GPS Models

The copyright of the article Picking the Best GPS for Traveling in Business Road Travel is owned by Dan Florio. Permission to republish Picking the Best GPS for Traveling in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.