GPS Systems and Reviews

Why a Hand Held GPS Is Right for You

Have you seen someone walking around on the street or on a hiking trail with a contraption in their hand and wondered what they had? It’s possible that they were using a hand held GPS device to navigate to the location they were trying to get to. Mapping and navigation devices have become very popular among those who love to travel in their cars, on their motorcycles, or even on their boats, but they are also very useful to people traveling on foot. So let’s take some time to look at why they are so popular and how they might make a difference in your daily life.

About Hand Held GPS Devices

Before we take on the idea of picking up one of these devices, let’s look at the difference between them and standard portable units. Many people are used to using the ideas interchangeably, but typically the portable unit simply means that you can take your unit in and out of your car and into another and it will still work as effectively. However, the portable units are usually not as useful when you take them on a trail or boat. Instead, they mount to your dashboard and help you navigate roads and highways.

On the other hand, the hand held GPS units are more versatile and allow you to take them off the roads and into areas that may not normally be picked up by these devices. You might be able to pick up remote trails, rivers, valleys and more, so that if you want to go camping, hiking, biking, or boating you can still find your way around effortlessly. Below, we will look at the specifics of some of these units and how you might find a way to make them useful in your life.

Hiking on a Trail

If you love the great outdoors then there are a number of hand held GPS devices that can help you find your way around whether you are in your car or decide to venture outside for a walk. One in particular is the Magellan SportTrack, which was created for those who love to hike, as well as those who enjoy game hunting and fishing. It offers nine large graphic navigation displays that cover a wide variety of areas away from roads and highways and even is WAAS enabled with a quadifiler antenna so that you can pick up information from all 12 satellites orbiting at the same time.

While you are trekking along outdoors, you can store up to 20 different routes you’ve taken so that if you ever come back to the area you don’t have to worry about remembering the trails you took. Also, you can store up to 500 waypoints and 2,000 tracks. If you are outdoors with the intention of hunting or fishing, you can use the unit’s calculator to determine where fish and game are located in the area. And if you are dependent upon light to get the job done, the unit can determine the Sun and Moon positions for you.

Playing Golf

Believe or not, there is a hand held GPS device that helps you improve your golf game. The GPS Golf Pro is a position system with let’s you same time and improve your skill level simultaneously by informing you of how fare you are away from the front and center of green at all times. In addition, you can determine how other golfers are fairing while on the green. It has an electronic scorecard that contains yardage, par, handicap and other scoring information. And it determines the last shot distance as well.

Keeping Track of Your Dog

If you have a hunting dog, or a family pet that you worry might wander off, then the Garmin Astro is a unit you may want to consider taking advantage of. It has a high-sensitivity tracking collar that you simply place on your pet’s neck, as well as a bright color screen that you hold as you track your pet. With this device, you can track his location in no time, even if he has wandered into dense cover that seems untrackable. Even more, the unit lets you know if he is walking, sitting, running, on point, or treeing.

A hand held GPS device has many functions that can be very beneficial to the everyday person. So take time to explore these and other units on the market that might help save you time and effort when spending time doing what you love. You never know, a hand held GPS device might end up being you next best friend.

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Your One-Stop-Shop for Cheap GPS Systems

Having you been dying to get your hands on a cool new navigation, mapping or tracking device but just don’t think you have the money to buy one? They can be a little bit pricey overall, but because there is so much competition out there, the odds of you find some that are not as expensive is getting better and better. In fact, there are some brands and models that fall into the inexpensive category – and they don’t make you compromise the quality. So let’s look at a few cheap GPS systems to see which might work for you.

What is Considered Cheap?

Before we tackle the idea of finding cheap GPS systems, let’s uncover what is considered “cheap” in the GPS world. Usually, devices that fall under the umbrella of $250 or less fit into this category. If you find some under $100, it is likely to not be a reputable brand, or might be in bad condition. In other words, no matter what, you’re probably going to come out of close to $200 for a decent one, but in the entire landscape of systems, it is considered discount. 

Brands and Models

There are some brands and models on the market today that have great, top-of-the-line devices, but they are not necessarily known for offering cheap GPS systems, however, each company does offer one or two devices that are at a discount price. Let’s check them out.

Garmin – Garmin is one of the most reputable companies in the industry and its StreetPilot c530 device, that sits at around $250, is great for those who like a lot of accuracy, and a few extra features. It is a “plug and play” system that is ready to go as it comes out of the box. It monitors traffic jams, and has an optional traffic receiver as well. It lets you know when there is road construction, weather-related delays, and even offers alternative routes if necessary. It has preloaded maps, offers 2D or 3D perspectives, and even has turn-by-turn voice directions with street names.

Magellan – This reputable company is not normally known for offering cheap GPS systems, however, they do offer the RoadMate 2000 that sits at around $200 and gives you a true mapping experiences with an easy-to-read touchscreen, accurate instructions, and perfect reroutes if you’re caught in a jam and need a new way to go. It is very simple – even simpler than some of the devices found on this list – but it is reliable. What more could you as from a simple device?

Navigon – Navigon was one of the first companies to start the revolution of navigation units, and it is still moving strong with great devices. To accommodate customers who need a break with price, they offer the $250 Navigon 2100, which offers a 3.5” easy-to-read screen, a 3D Reality View feature, and text-to-speech technology. And if you want additional optional features, you can get Lifetime Traffic, and Zagat Ratings and Reviews.

Websites That Can Help

There are a lot of websites out there that dedicate their time to accumulating all of the cheap and discount items in the world that are for sale. So of course there will be some that can help you find cheap GPS systems. Here is a short list of some websites that have decent reputations for being reliable and having discount items:

ShopCartUSA.com – This website has a section dedicated to discount units and allows you to sort them by price – and even offers a list of websites that offer each product at different prices. This makes searching for discount devices easier because you don’t have to travel to a lot of different websites to do the searching and comparing on your own. 

Yahoo Shopping – Yahoo offers an online marketplace that accumulates all of the discount devices for sale by price then allows you to sort them by price. Unlike shopcartusa.com, it doesn’t have a function that lets you see the item and the list of all locations that offer it according to price. But you still get a sense of what is available and how much it will cost, which means it serves its purpose.

Cheap GPS systems are easier to find now than ever. But it is important that you make sure to do your research on not only the company and model of the system, but also the company offering the system, before committing your hard earned money to a purchase. After you feel comfortable with your decision, you can enjoy taking advantage of the many cheap GPS systems on the market that will actually give you the mapping, navagation or tracking experience you hoped for.

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