GPS Options

[kcconawa]

What are your opinions regarding the:
1) Rand McNally Tripmaker 7710 unit made for RV versus
2) The Garmin 560 LT Truck/RV versus
3) The Magellan Roadmate 9561T that comes preloaded with campgrounds etc. by Camping World/Good Sam.

Looks like all three have excellent features. I have truck driving friend, called him and he said truckers are buying the Rand Mcnally unit.

What have you bought and how is the unit working for you?

[clutch]

Our Tom Tom works good for us.

[3'senough]

I currently have a Garmin that's going on 4 years for my cars and work. It has served me well but now that we are going on more adventures with our trailer I was looking into a designiated GPS unit specifically for that. From what I have read so far the Rand Mcnally's are specifically loaded and deisgned for the RV or truck type traveling. There are listings for campgrounds, service centers, propane filling stations and specific road hazards as well as heights and weights which is key for this type travel. The Garmin is more geared at broad coverage and might not provide as much detail in amenities for the user which might be a key selling point for me. I use those features on my current unit trying to plan out a stop that can cover all my needs in one stop on my current unit.

The Garmin allows a plug in for height, weight and width which I did not confirm with the RM unit and that would be a deal breaker for me if not an option.

While they are priced almost the same, they really aren't. RM has lifetime maps which is a big thing as roads are always changing. Garmin wants another $75.00 for it. I can't tell you how many times I have been in the woods but really on the road since the GPS has not been upgraded. This started happening within the first year of ownership and the upgrades cost half as much as the unit at the time. That is a huge plus in my book as long as you get in the habit of checking and upgrading the unit either before a major trip or regualr intervals would be good.

I like the traffic feature, but it costs about $90.00 for it. I can see why the trucks might opt for this unit over the others. Rand Mcnally has been around a long time and done a lot in the atlas world so it can't be a bad thing.

I am going to follow this thread and would be curiuos to see if any fellow owners have any of these units to add some pros and cons.

[RedHorse1]

I have used my iPhone with the ATT Navigator app for several years and it seems pretty good. I travel a fair amount and find a GPS app is very useful. The downside is the $10/month charge which would pay for a nice Nuvi in short order. I'm still working and can expense it, so for now I keep it.
I recently bought an iPad (w/o 3G) and an external GPS receiver and the bride and I have used it a couple of times on the road to navigate with using the included Maps app. There are some RV camp apps that are pretty useful as well. Having a larger screen is nice too. The external GPS receiver seems much more accurate than the iPhone. Plus when we get to the park we can check e-mail, surf the net and play games on the thing. Has decent battery life and easy to charge in the TV if needed. No need to take the Notebook.

[David472]

My vote is for the Rand McNally Tripmaker.

[kcconawa]

Originally Posted by David472

My vote is for the Rand McNally Tripmaker.

And why do you vote that way?

Has anyone bought the Camping World Magellion unit and what is your experience with it?

[Terry]

I used the dedicated GPS unit for the last several years, but recently changed over to my iPhone. I purchased a RAM mount which attaches beautifully to the window. I have a system where the audio goes over the car speakers so whenever I get to a turn, she lowers the music volume and announces the turn.

The biggest advantage to me in this setup is my maps are as fresh as possible and I also get routed around traffic or congested areas. YMMV, but this has worked well for me.

[Seann45]

I have been very happy with my Garmins'. They are the biggest for a reason. MAP ACCURACY...

[David472]

Originally Posted by kcconawa

And why do you vote that way?

Has anyone bought the Camping World Magellion unit and what is your experience with it?

My vote is that way because;
They support truck driving route selections, height and weight considerations.
Their display and menu appearance is more appealing to me.
Lifetime free updates of data, although full map updates have a fee.
Truck drivers choose them most often, and we know they spend more time on the road than most of us.

I steered away from Magellion because;
Their product line strength is with hiking type applications, not large vehicles on the road.

The above points are what went into my buying decision. Only made the purchase a couple weeks ago under the guise of Santa. Don't tell the DW because it's current wrapped and under the tree.

[stancsr]

I vote for the garmin 560LMT I used a standard GPS till last year when we got detoured due to construction they sent me down a back road that had an overpass of 13' I am 13'4" the new garmin doesnt let that happen it uses all factors height weight length, well worth the investment, $350 gps or get stuck on road or worse hit an overpass

[Flytyer]

Went throug a similar thought process to many of the previous post incluing using tablet PC in days gone by. First run about town with it impressed me quiet a bit. Receiver seems increbly fast to lock on to GPS. Info DB is quite cool. I like the fact taht it does NOT need to talk to a mothership to get info like many of the cellular approaches. Not many cell towers were I go.

Tested some routes I know and it does better than most of the routing services. Whn I get a full season it with it Ill be back wiht more updtes but so far I am verry happy with the purchase. Camping World btw qas the best price I could find..

[clutch]

Since this topic started Santa Clause brought me a Garmin Nuvi. I am still playing with it and will use it with the Tom Tom later this week. It seems that Sallie has adopted a small dog in Palm Springs so I will program both and see what happens.

[Murphie]

I just purchased Co-pilot Live Premium. For my Ipad It was listed as an equal to Tom Tom. It does the same job as most navigation programs with live traffic which is a 5 dollar a year charge for the updated maps and 9 dollars a year charge for the live traffic. The program can easily be used without paying for the live traffic updates or maps. It does have all the poi and use of a RV route so your not lead thru low tunnels or bridges. It will calculate your gas costs and your choice of three routes and route planning which I like. You can drag the route line over a few streets or miles and it will recalculate. Not bad for 15 bucks it was on sale for.

[3'senough]

I have to say that I am torn between Garmin and the RM units right now. The more I read the more confused and less confident I get in both companies units. Each unit has it's flaws and advantages but the one that concerns me most is the routing. The RM unit seems to get a little higher rating in this area in real road tests which has me leaning towards it beacuse the last thing I want is to be on a tight road with a impass that I just can't negotitate due to the size and of my unit. Price is close enough on each that it is last on the list for now.

Here is a a good link I found with a report for several units out there. It really gives you a good side by side comparison on each units strengths and/or weakneses with a summary listed below. That was as of 10/11.

http://www.dieselboss.com/truck_gps_review_features.htm

The I-pad has me intrigued though.

[David472]

Originally Posted by 3'senough

I have to say that I am torn between Garmin and the RM units right now. The more I read the more confused and less confident I get in both companies units. Each unit has it's flaws and advantages but the one that concerns me most is the routing. The RM unit seems to get a little higher rating in this area in real road tests which has me leaning towards it beacuse the last thing I want is to be on a tight road with a impass that I just can't negotitate due to the size and of my unit. Price is close enough on each that it is last on the list for now.

Here is a a good link I found with a report for several units out there. It really gives you a good side by side comparison on each units strengths and/or weakneses with a summary listed below. That was as of 10/11.

http://www.dieselboss.com/truck_gps_review_features.htm

The I-pad has me intrigued though.

Keep in mind, the link you gave shows the Truck version of RM. The RV Version is RVND-5510 or RVND-7710. They have features not shown in the comparison chart, like the amount of propane you carry, height, length and weight of your RV, and campground POI info.

[3'senough]

Thanks. I was aware and I am planning on a call into RM to inquire about the software and setting differences between each of the units. I am thinking that they are running the same program and maps, it's the warning settings that I need to confirm. I trust the truckers input more than the RV's just due to the fact that they is a larger pool to pull input from.

Thought it was a good comparison side by side for all the features with feedback on each of them.

[Larry G.]

Originally Posted by 3'senough

Thanks. I was aware and I am planning on a call into RM to inquire about the software and setting differences between each of the units. I am thinking that they are running the same program and maps, it's the warning settings that I need to confirm. I trust the truckers input more than the RV's just due to the fact that they is a larger pool to pull input from.

Thought it was a good comparison side by side for all the features with feedback on each of them.

Let us know what additional info your call got you.

[matt1946]

Just purchased the Rand Mcnally 7710 & it is the best yet. gave the Tom Tom away

[Larry G.]

Originally Posted by matt1946

Just purchased the Rand Mcnally 7710 & it is the best yet. gave the Tom Tom away

So tell us why it is the best yet.

[drfife]

Here are some reviews to help in the decision process:

http://gps.toptenreviews.com/navigation/

http://www.gps-planet.com/cogpsun.html