Garmin nuvi 855

The Garmin nuvi 855 can be controlled almost entirely by voice, so you won't have to take your eyes off the road or your hands off the wheel. Experts and users say the voice commands work well, unlike some competing models from TomTom and Magellan. The nuvi 855 also offers most of Garmin's most advanced features, such as the ability to sort several destinations into one efficient route, but it lacks Bluetooth for hands-free calling, and traffic information costs extra. A pricier voice-command model, the Garmin nuvi 885T (*Est. $420) includes Bluetooth and an MSN Direct traffic receiver (the service itself costs extra), but reviews say these aren't big advantages; phone calls can be hard to hear through the GPS device's speaker, and Microsoft has announced it will discontinue MSN Direct on Jan. 1, 2012, due to lack of subscriptions. If you don't need voice commands, reviews point out that the Garmin nuvi 765T (*Est. $270) offers free FM traffic information for the life of the unit.

Experts at GPSTracklog.com and PCMag.com both recommend the Garmin nuvi 855 as a money-saving alternative to the Garmin nuvi 885T. Users at Amazon.com and GPSCity.com find a few things to criticize, but overall they like the nuvi 855 very much.