In-dash or portable nav?

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adventureman73

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I'm considering getting a nav system for my '03 4Runner, but I'm not sure if I want to drop the $1600+ for an in-dash, or closer to $500 for a portable one.

The in-dash one I'm considering is this Pioneer.

The portable would either be an Magellen eXplorist 600, or one of their Roadmate series, maybe the 630.

What do you guys/gals have, and what do you recommend?
 
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Garmin Nuvi 350! Can be had for about $680. Its worth the extra $$--built in speaker/battery & the size is about that of a deck of cards.
 
Yeah, I'm trying to avoid the whole windshield-mount thing...I don't like something up that high, and my wife (who drives as much as I do) doesn't care for it either.

Are there other mounting options?
 
The Nuvi I have mounts cleanly on a supplied disk on the cubby-door beneath our hvac controls. It has a good antenna, so it pics up satelites there just fine. I have yet to take a pic of it mounted...
 
Garmin StreetPilot 2720
 

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The Garmin 2730 has mp3 capability also and is more "tough" than the Nuvi--but costs a lot more and is physically much larger.

I have both the 2720 (similar to the 2730, but has no MP3) and the Nuvi350.
I love them both, but if I was to choose one, I'd say the Nuvi is more versatile overall.
 
I've got a Dell Axim w/ Bluetooth GPS. I'm extremely happy with it.. no wires.

For about the same price as a stand alone GPS unit, its my planner, MP3 and MPEG player, video game player, can get wireless internet, etc, in addition to accurate GPS.

The size makes it extremely portable between cars, but can make it not as easy to see as a large 7 inch screen on a dash installed one.
 
I'm quite happy with the quality of my Garmin 2730 street pilot. I haven't signed up for the nav traffic or XM yet. I like it because I can bring it from vehicle to vehicle w/ out having to take a windshield mount with it. My second choice would have been the 350 Nuvi... The Street Pilot can also be mounted to motorcycles :) with an additional kit.
 

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Also, I just wanted to add, the remote that comes with the Street Pilot is priceless. It beats having to reach over (if you have a suit on) and press the touch screen, and all functions can be accessed with the track pointer
 
I have the NUVI 350 and I really like it. Travelling around Europe is a pain and this little thing makes life a lot easier. Not only do you get where you need to go, but you won't have to apologize to your wife for all the comments you made about her map-reading abilities during your trip (maybe this is just me).
 
I just got the Garmin Nuvi 660, it's nice it has bluetooth, mp3, traffic avoidances and Fodor's travel guide.
 
Anyone here use a TomTom nav unit? I've been thinking about buying one of those, but like dventureman, I'm not sure which unit is best.

David
 
I just bought a Mio C310x from Fry's Electronics for $198.00. It received really good reviews and in my opinion, it's the best bang for the buck! It's very portable and can fit in your shirt pocket.

You might want to check it out.
 
In my opinion, you shouldn't waste money on the Pioneer, if you sell the truck later, then you have to take it out and try to install it in your new ride which probably comes with navigation. I have a StreetPilot 2730 with a Ram-Mount the best mount I ever had. The unit doesn't even move and with a quick release you can take the unit out really fast! The Garmin unit can be used in any car and this model has XM Radio,MP3 player, XM NavTraffic and XMWeather. I have it hook to the radio and the quality of the XM Radio is phenomenal, I am very happy with this unit!
 

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I have the tomtom 710. It works very well and has alot of points of interest which could come in handy on road trips. Whenever you detour from tomtom's route it delivers a new route real quick. It has blue tooth for connectivity with some cells. I have the motorola q and it syncs. My only complaint with the tomtom is the mount. Tomtom gives out free mounts because of the defect. The unit sinks a little bit after a while of driving and the unit is hard to dismount compared to other brands. Overall a great system for around $500.

Ray
 
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