Best Auto GPS

Garmin dominates reviews as the best GPS

In the $200 to $400 range, you can now find auto GPS receivers with the latest advanced capabilities, like voice commands and Internet connections. Experts were immediately impressed with these models, but some owners say these advanced units have dropped some really useful features to make room for the flashy ones.

Overall, reviewers still prefer a simpler model, the Garmin nuvi 765T (*Est. $270), with features that reviews say can really make navigation easier.

The Garmin nuvi 765T auto GPS has all of the features experts value in the budget-priced Garmin nuvi 265T (*Est. $185), including free traffic information for the life of the GPS device. But the nuvi 765T also has a widescreen (it costs extra on the budget model), shows buildings in 3-D and tells you which lane to be in at major freeway interchanges.

Unlike the budget-priced Garmin GPS receivers, you can enter all of your errand destinations into the nuvi 765T (day care, dry cleaners, Chinese takeout) and the unit will pick the best route to catch them all. If you particularly like certain routes, you can save up to 10 of them. The nuvi 765T also automatically remembers where you park your car, so if you remove the GPS receiver from its mount and carry it with you in your pocket, you can use it to navigate back to your parking spot.

In addition to its GPS navigation features, the Garmin nuvi 765T plays MP3s and audio books and allows you to make hands-free calls via Bluetooth. Its built-in FM transmitter can theoretically route the GPS receiver's sound through your car stereo. However, tests at GPSMagazine.com find that the nuvi 765T's speaker isn't nearly loud enough to carry on phone conversations, and the integrated FM transmitter is "so underpowered that it's almost useless." The Garmin nuvi 755T (*Est. $240) drops Bluetooth and costs slightly less. The Garmin nuvi 785T (*Est. $350) adds an MSN Direct traffic receiver for live traffic updates. However, Microsoft announced in October 2009 that it will shut down MSN Direct on Jan. 1, 2012, due to "significantly reduced demand" for the subscription service. Recently, cell phones -- and Garmin's units like the nuvi 765T -- have started offering similar information for free.

Garmin's newest GPS navigators are especially helpful for people who walk or take public transit, reviews say. The Garmin nuvi 1200 series (*Est. $185 to $275) and widescreen nuvi 1300 series (*Est. $230 to $375) are slim and light, with downloadable maps for major cities in North America and Europe (*Est. $10 to $15) that allow the GPS receiver to plan navigation routes using buses and subways. Testers say this feature works pretty well. All of the models in these new series speak street names, and some offer widescreens, lane assist and free lifetime traffic information.

However, reviews say the new Garmin nuvi 1200 and 1300 series omit too many of the best features from the Garmin nuvi 765T. You can't save your favorite routes. You can't enter multiple stops and automatically get the best route. The new units won't tell you where you parked. There's no 3-D building view, no MP3 or audio book player, no FM transmitter or headphone jack. In this price range, experts say the Garmin nuvi 765T is still a better choice for car navigation.

Garmin also offers a model for truckers and RV drivers, the Garmin nuvi 5000 (*Est. $260), which has an extra-large screen and a video input so you can hook it up to a rearview back-up camera. Some owners say they use the nuvi 5000 in their cars simply because it's easy to see, especially for people with bad eyesight.

Garmin's nuvi 500 (*Est. $285) is designed to be the only GPS receiver you need. The all-in-one unit is built to handle driving, hiking, geocaching, bicycling, motorcycling and boating. "If you've been looking for a single GPS solution...; the nuvi 500 is the best option to date," concludes GPSMagazine.com.

The Garmin nuvi 500 is waterproof to IPX-7, which means it can withstand being submerged in one meter of water for 30 minutes. It comes loaded with street maps for the lower 48 states, plus U.S. topographic maps (for hiking and camping). The nuvi 500 GPS doesn't pronounce spoken street names out of the box, but a downloadable update adds this feature. Users at Amazon.com are very happy with this GPS receiver's performance in cars, on trails and on motorcycles. The Garmin nuvi 550 (*Est. $280) skips the topographic maps in favor of street maps for all of North America.

Most other automotive GPS brands don't give Garmin much competition in the marketplace. Magellan, once a major GPS brand, gets only a couple of nods for its Magellan Maestro 4350 (*Est. $265). A couple of sources recommend the TomTom Go 930 (*Est. $250) as a comparable alternative to the midprice Garmin auto GPS systems, but TomTom's newer Internet-connected GPS models, the TomTom Go 740 Live (*Est. $375) and TomTom XL 340S Live (*Est. $300) are the only TomToms that get much attention from reviewers at all.

Voice-command and Internet GPS under $400

The latest GPS models from Garmin and TomTom can connect to the Internet, so you can search for addresses on Google -- a virtually unlimited well of points of interest -- plus get nearby gas prices, weather forecasts and the like. Garmin's just-released version, the Garmin nuvi 1690 (*Est. $500), is one of the priciest portable GPS devices on the market (see the Luxury GPS Receivers section). However, TomTom's versions -- the TomTom Go 740 Live (*Est. $375) and TomTom XL 340S Live (*Est. $300) -- are more affordable.

The TomTom Go 740 Live constantly collects traffic information not only from the usual traffic services, but also from other Go 740 Live units on the road. In professional tests, this works well; when traffic starts to back up, the Go 740 Live navigates around the problem.

However, the TomTom Go 740 Live does have its drawbacks. The online services cost $10 a month, and the GPS receiver's other big feature -- voice command -- is more limited than Garmin's version, reviews say. Although half of the owners who have posted reviews at Amazon.com award the TomTom Go 740 Live four or five stars (out of five), several complain that they've gotten unreliable traffic information, poor route choices, buggy software and bad customer service. TomTom's latest Internet-connected model, the TomTom XL 340S Live (*Est. $300), omits the voice commands.

The Garmin nuvi 855 (*Est. $245) is Garmin's most affordable unit that can be controlled by voice. In professional tests, the voice commands really work; you can operate nearly every aspect of the unit without taking your eyes off the road or your hands off the steering wheel. Besides the wow factor, experts say this represents a giant leap forward for safety. Although auto GPS receivers warn users not to type commands while driving, some allow it anyway. You'll give up a few of the Garmin nuvi 765T's useful features, though -- the nuvi 855 doesn't have free traffic info for life, Bluetooth support or a 3-D building view. There's a step-up version with Bluetooth, the Garmin nuvi 885T (*Est. $420), but it still lacks the other features (see the Luxury GPS Receivers section for more on the nuvi 885T).