(Jan 23, 2009)
Bonnie Cha
Senior Associate Editor
The Thomas Guide used to be the apex of car navigation, but GPS and digital-mapping technology have combined to make an evolutionary leap. These portable navigation systems can help you get from point A to point B with audible driving directions, color maps, points of interest, and much more. And while they were once a novelty tech toy for early adopters and gadget hounds, they've gained in popularity and the market is now flooded with them. To help you in your buying decision, we've selected our Top 5 picks for in-car GPS navigation systems. We will frequently update this list as we review new GPS devices, so check back often.
Garmin Nuvi 880
As we've come to expect from the Nuvi line, the Garmin Nuvi 880 offers an impressive feature list and solid performance, but it's the accurate speech recognition that really pushes the Nuvi 880 over the edge and makes it one of the best GPS we've tested to date.
Price: $669.99 - $734.29 (check prices)
Filed in: Best 5 GPS
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Navigon 7200T
The Navigon 7200T offers an attractive design and plenty of features, including voice address entry, 3D landmark renderings, text-to-speech functionality, and integrated Bluetooth. The user interface and maps still aren't as clean as a Garmin or a TomTom, but performance has improved and address entry by voice can be quite accurate with some training.
Price: $349.99 - $449.99 (check prices)
Filed in: Best 5 GPS
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Magellan Maestro 4370
Despite a couple of minor performance issues, the Magellan Maestro 4370 offers convenience through its new OneTouch interface, providing you with quick one-click access to your preferred destinations. The GPS also delivers with features and accurate directions.
Price: $399.99 - $399.99 (check prices)
Filed in: Best 5 GPS
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Mio C520 Navigation Receiver
The sleek Mio C520 is a good-value GPS device, packing in advanced navigation features, a large screen, and other extras for an affordable price. It's even sleek enough that we'd use it as a video player. Our only complaint is that we think you can get a slightly better experience and smoother performance from competing systems.
Price: $259.99 - $259.99 (check prices)
Filed in: Best 5 GPS
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TomTom GO 930 GPS
When it comes to in-car GPS, TomTom has always been of the philosophy that its products should be about navigation first. Its latest TomTom GO 930 brings several new features, including advanced lane guidance and historical traffic data, to make it a helpful copilot to any driver.
Price: $358.45 - $499.99 (check prices)
Filed in: Best 5 GPS
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